The Town of The Blue Mountains has begun the process to design and install new welcome signs across the community.
At its committee of the whole meeting on Oct. 28, the The Blue Mountains council received a report about an initiative to establish new wayfinding and gateway signs for the entire community.
The town has been planning the sign project for a number of years, but it was put on hold during the COVID pandemic. Many current signs have been damaged, worn down by weather and need to be replaced. In addition, the existing signs don’t match up with the town’s branding priorities.
“This is a project we’re very excited about,” said Tim Hendry, manager of communications and economic development.
Hendry said the project would roll out in two phases. First, would be the design phase during which the town will consult with the public about design priorities and the look of the new signs. The second phase would be the fabrication and installation of the signs.
The town plans a multitude of new signs in a variety of sizes and locations. They include: gateway signs, community entrance signs, village/hamlet identification signs, park signs, trail signs and community events/service club recognition signs.
“The focus of this project is to create a comprehensive sign family,” Hendry said.
The town recently awarded a request for proposal for the sign project to Fathom Studios, a firm with an extensive background in municipal sign creation. Fathom Studios has worked with many municipalities on similar projects including: Collingwood, Owen Sound, Innisfil, Huron County and many others.
Community consultation will be part of the process to design the new signs and the town is compiling a list of locations where they will be placed once approved.
Members of council were happy to see the project advancing.
“It’s good to get this going again. We did have a hiccup during COVID,” said Mayor Andrea Matrosovs.
Hendry did warn council that the project was going to cost significant dollars over a period of time.
“It’s very expensive,” he said.
Hendry said the plan would be to create a budget for the project that would be in place for multiple years in order to implement the sign plan. He did note that there were possible funding opportunities for the town to consider.
“There are funding pockets out there we will try to leverage as we bring this forward,” he said.
Council did not take any action on the report other than to receive it for information.
