Plans for a corporate sponsor to play a major role in painting Sweet Home’s downtown core are taking shape, but the city needs lots of volunteers, Sweet Home City Manager Kelcey Young told the Ad-Hoc Committee on Arts and Culture at its June 20 meeting.
The plan is to paint all of downtown along Main and Long streets from 9th to 18th avenues. Unpainted brick will be left alone, as will certain buildings that “already look great,” according to Young.
She said that the Portland-based Miller Paint has offered to supply a $200,000 value, including paint for buildings (with some city match), 100% of the paint for murals, color consulting, national press (commercials and print campaigns featuring city banners and signage); and discounted supplies.
A color consultant will help develop an overall design, coordinate trim and accent-color ideas, develop a cohesive plan, and create maps and renderings.
Sweet Home Public Works will prepare for this undertaking by pressure-washing building surfaces from July 6 to July 13. Then, in what Young called Phase 1 of the project, some 20 to 25 supervised youth will begin painting the following day. Volunteers will continue the process between July 15 and July 25. According to Young, the city needs 40 or more volunteers for this phase, with six to seven leads each managing a team of five to six members.
Under the plan, August and September will see the painting of two or three murals. Eight to 10 more are slated to be completed by September 2024.
Although still underway, the city is also devising a volunteer competition, where agencies and businesses would each sponsor groups competing for prizes.
Businesses that stand to benefit from the project’s painting and pressure-washing will receive those services for free, provided they sign waivers agreeing to one or more tasks including replacing awnings; lighting display areas and front windows, and featuring attractive products, business materials or artwork; allowing the Sweet Home, Oregon, Coalition for Artistic and Scholastic Enrichment (SHOCASE) or other community organizations to display art in display areas and windows; providing a bench and planter of flowers in front of buildings; and other items approved by the city. Business owners can contact Sweet Home Community and Economic Development Director Blair Larsen at [email protected] or Communications Manager Adam Leisinger at [email protected] for these waivers.
Volunteer waivers are available at City Hall, 3225 Main St., or online at https://shorturl.at/rtGMR.
Completed waivers can be emailed to [email protected] or dropped off at City Hall.