The Springboard Mural Committee is seeking the support of local youth and businesses to begin the next installation of murals along Linear Park in the City of Oswego. Meetings for young artists and creative teams to submit artwork and/or designs will be held at 3 p.m. Wednesday, July 29 and Wednesday, Aug. 5 at the Oswego County Opportunities Youth Services office located in the lower level of the Midtown Plaza. The meetings are open to the public.
The mural project is a youth-focused initiative, with the design concept and implementation directed by local young people with the support of the mural committee. The Springboard Mural Committee is a community collaborative comprised of Oswego youth, City of Oswego officials, teachers and students of the Oswego High School, Oswego State student teachers, Oswego businesses and artists, as well as Oswego County Opportunities Youth Services Street Outreach and the Oswego City-County Youth Bureau.
The first mural, located on West Linear Park near the Utica Street Bridge, was designed and created by six Oswego High School students. The project was originally a city-sponsored community development plan to address graffiti issues. Oswego High School staff, teaching assistants from Oswego State, and high school students joined the project. Other agencies and local business people also contributed to the mural project.
The committee was given a $ 2,000 beautification grant, but significant contribution from Raby’s helped to keep the project under budget. “There are multiple benefits related to the success of this project,†said John Michael Belt from OCO Youth Services Street Outreach Team. “The students who participated in this project became more involved in school, graffiti issues are being addressed, and relationships have been developed by a wide cross-section of the Oswego community. Instead of covering the graffiti the community has come together and invested in something special that reflects the sense of community pride which has made this project successful.â€Â
For additional information or to participate, contact John Michael Belt at OCO Youth Services, phone 342-7532 or Dawn Metott at the Oswego City-County Youth Bureau, phone 349-3575.
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