Clearview council got a look at the township’s new signs Monday.
In June, Gary Page of Page Graphics in Creemore was contracted to design signs for the entranceways to the municipality and its communities as a next-step in the township’s ongoing rebranding process.
Page presented variations on a design that incorporate the township’s logo and green and blue colour palette. The signs would have a removable panel along the bottom highlighting local events.
Page proposed a stylized swoosh feature on the top of the signs, which was a recommended option by staff.
“Forget the square, I like the swoosh,” said Deputy Mayor Barry Burton.
It is proposed that the signs for the main entranceways and individual communities will portray photos of landmarks specific to that community. For instance, in Creemore the signs show images of the fountain and the jail.
“There is a risk the photos could look dated,” said Councillor Shawn Davidson, referring to the clothing and vehicles.
Councillor Doug Measures reiterated his dislike of the branding concepts, namely that the logo does not include the word township.
“You get assaulted by watermelons and then you get this great image to the side,” he said.
He critiqued many of the individual photos submitted by community members, hoping they could be replaced with stronger images.
Working with staff, Page solicited submissions of photos from people in various communities. The photos will be reviewed as the contract rolls out. As it was proposed, the tiger moth and Sunnidale Hall were chosen to represent Sunnidale Corners, leeks and rock climbing represent Singhampton, fishing and the old gas station depict Nottawa, New Lowell Conservation Area and baseball represent New Lowell, apples and the old mill are shown for Glen Huron, Nordic skiing and the old schoolhouse represent Duntroon, Knox Presbyterian Church and sheep are depicted for Dunedin, Brentwood Hall and a historic photo are depicted on the Brentwood signs, farming and Avening Hall is depicted on the Avening signs and cycling the rail trail, the old bell tower, gazebo and a historic photo of downtown represent Stayner.
The swoosh design was approved but there will be some tweaking of the images.
Staff was directed to proceed with a request-for-proposal for the signs with acquisition to be determined as funds become available. It was stated that the township hopes to move forward with acquiring six entrance signs as a start.
The signs are estimated to cost between $4,800 for the biggest ones and $2,600 for the smaller signs without an image.