With the City of Powell’s iconic mural of John Wesley Powell showing its age, artists are being invited to design a new one.

“We’re looking for folks to create an original design inspired by the Powell community,” said Shelby Wetzel, president of the board at the Plaza Diana Community Center for the Arts.

Submissions are being accepted from Friday through Sept. 29. The chosen design will ultimately be turned into a 53-foot-high painting and hung on the side of the Powell bean mill, above Coulter Avenue.

“Hopefully the community can have some fresh ideas, and then that can [be] put on a big mural,” City Administrator Zack Thorington said at a July city council meeting.

The city received a $32,200 grant from the Park County Travel Council for the project, which is expected to cover “just about half” of the total cost, Thorington said.

The city has committed $15,000 and hopes to raise the remaining $15,000 from the community, with assistance from Plaza Diane. 

“The estimation is that we have enough to get the material painted and shipped,” Thorington said last month, “but we also now need to find money … to get it installed by next summer.”

Wetzel said the nonprofit is looking at some grant opportunities and may seek some larger sponsors.

The overarching aims of the design contest are to produce a new mural that’s representative of the Powell community, promotes and celebrates its cultural values and enhances the highway frontage and downtown area.

Entrants must be at least 14 years old and their submissions must be their original work. Whoever wins will receive a $250 prize, plus a spot on one of Powell’s most prominent buildings.

Owned by Treasure Valley Seed, the elevator is currently decorated with a mural that dates back to 1997. 

It features a stylized portrait of the city’s namesake — the geologist and explorer John Wesley Powell, a depiction of the late Powell farmer Rich Fisher irrigating crops and Powell’s 1994 recognition as an All-America City. Thorington said he didn’t think the city could continue using the All-America logo after so many years, but the National Civic League, which runs the award, confirmed to the Tribune that the city remains free to use it.

“There is no time limit on when a community must stop using the [All-America City] logo,” said program director Rebecca Trout. “In fact, we encourage its use to promote your community.”

Powell remains one of only two Wyoming cities to have earned the honor. The other is Sheridan, which was named an All-America City in 1958.

Under the conditions of the grant from the Park County Travel Council, the mural will need to include the council’s logo, but artists don't need to worry about including it or any other logos in their design.

"We will work with the signage company once the design goes to production to include some logos at the bottom of the mural space," explained Shelby Wetzel.

The travel council offered its destination development grants last spring, and Powell Mayor John Wetzel thought it was a great opportunity to replace the mural, which has fading paint and loosening plywood panels.

The grant dollars were intended to enhance travel destinations. In a March application for funding, Thorington wrote that the mural “beautifies our community” for nonresidents and makes Powell “more of an enjoyable destination.”

In an upgrade, the new mural will be illuminated with lights. Treasure Valley Seed’s owner, Trinidad Benham Corporation, has already agreed to cover the ongoing electrical costs, calling the mural “iconic and important” to the Powell community.

“It will be cool to have it lit,” Mayor Wetzel said at last month’s council meeting. “It will be a little more iconic.”

A selection committee is set to pick a design by Oct. 13. Applications and official rules are available online at plazadiane.org.

(Editor's note: This story has been updated with more detail about the inclusion of logos in the final mural.)