A new mural was recently installed in Jefferson, along with the announcement of a new rooftop art project.

Tower View Team Chair Deb McGinn says the newest mural is on the west side of New Hope that is located on the west side of the downtown square that was locally designed and painted.

“This mural was first brought to us by Roger Aegerter, he designed it. He said, ‘Can I do this?’ And I said, ‘Sure, let’s do this.’ You know, it’s very cute, (and) it’s very farm-themed. Dana Harrison then helped him do this and he did all of the cows, and pigs, and roosters. And then Roger filled in all the other details for it. So, it is now done.”

McGinn notes that the funding for the mural came from TVT as a budgeted item and she adds if a downtown building owner wants to do something similar, to contact the Welcome Center for more information.

Additionally, McGinn touts that another rooftop art installation is planned to happen next week. She details that after they were awarded a Grow Greene County Gaming Corporation grant last year for the new public art project, the artist – Kathleen Roling – had health issues, but is now better and is willing to move forward. 

McGinn points out “Home Sweet Home” will be a 3-D printed design that will be located on the north side rooftop of the Bolton and Menk building, next to the original rooftop display of “Wild Woman on the Roof” with Lashier Graphics in Des Moines who will manufacture the final product. 

“And what they will do is they will print her artwork on a piece of vinyl and it covers the entire roof, and it will be applied, vinyl product, to the rooftop. So it doesn’t hurt your roof, it doesn’t do anything, it’s just on the roof. And it can even be peeled off the roof if we want to change out the design, is what I’m being told.”   

McGinn mentions that the owner of Lashier Graphics, Andy Lashier, has family ties to the Jefferson area, with his grandfather – Richard Lashier – serving as the Jefferson School District Superintendent and his parents were also from Jefferson. 

She says additional funding for this project came from Jefferson Telecom Foundation and TVT money.