Time for an Update

Voting is open to choose a mural design for Update Uptown this April. Creston residents and other interested parties can go to the Union County Development Facebook page and vote for one of three choices for this year’s project until March 12.

The three designs created by local urban designer David Marroquin involve painting the south lane of West Adams Street to connect to the current street mural at the corner of West Adams and North Maple streets and create a parade viewing area. As with the original quilt mural, this first instance of the Adams Street design will be created in temporary paint to gauge the public’s reaction to the mural before raising money for a permanent installation.

“The main idea behind our efforts has been from Pop-Up to Permanent,” Marroquin said. “The linear mural’s ... final intention is to reclaim underutilized space to ... (create) a destination using the public space and using art as a catalyst for that.”

Update Uptown will be April 24 and 25 and will focus on West Adams Street and the 100 block of North Maple Street this year with the temporary mural, a facade walk, a possible fashion show, and a pop-up market on North Maple Street.

Katie Davidson has been involved in planning the Maple Street Market. She said that so far they have eight vendors and two food trucks committed to attending. They are hoping for at 12 to 15 vendors.

Davidson said these sellers are not the same ones typically seen in Creston vendor fairs. The focus was to invite vendors who might then have an interest in opening either a solo or shared shop in Uptown Creston or adding their wares to an existing store.

The two food trucks are Mediterranean food and Thai ice cream. Davidson said the goal of the market is to bring the community into the uptown.

“If they just stroll around eating ice cream, that’s OK,” Davidson said.

Mindy Stalker of the UCDA said the Update Uptown committee is still hoping for live trees for temporary display of greenery, but that project has not been worked out yet.

The Creston Community High School Communications and Service Technology students will be creating an art installation in the empty lot from the building that was torn down last year.

Stalker said the focus of Update Uptown for the past few years has been to develop the uptown into a destination for events. She is hopeful that the business owners in the uptown area will come together and eventually transform the event into an attraction to bring visitors to Creston.

Volunteer

Volunteers will be needed to help clean up the area before the event, help with the historic survey, outline the mural design and provide other activities.

Contact:

• Jeremy Rounds at 641-782-8491 to help with the historic survey or community clean up.

• Brian Zachary at 641-782-8932 to help outline the mural.

• Mindy Stalker at 641-782-2003 to offer an additional activity.