DeKALB – After applications have been open for about two months, only three submissions to participate in DeKalb’s Paint A Plug program have been received, Community Enhancement Commission Chairwoman Sue Johnson said.
This special event allows local painters to turn one of the more than 2,000 fire hydrants in DeKalb into a one-of-a-kind work of art. Once an application and design proposal is submitted, the commission will review the application. Once approved, artists should paint their “adopted” hydrant by Nov. 1.
Potential artists can still submit applications through the city’s website, www.cityofdekalb.com/paintaplug. There is no theme for fire hydrant designs, but artists are encouraged to incorporate elements of the community or their neighborhood in the art.
“There are plenty of hydrants out there, and we want to get this moving,” Johnson said.
Questions about the project can be emailed to paintaplug@cityofdekalb.com.
Alternative art projects were also discussed during Monday’s commission meeting.
After a downtown cleanup effort in April that saw volunteers pick up thousands of discarded cigarette butts, Johnson said the possibility of creating more artistic downtown cigarette receptacles was discussed.
“We just want to make them available, but not make them look like an eyesore,” Johnson said. “We can’t stop smoking so let’s try to get smokers to help us with the cleanup.”
Johnson said that this was a preliminary discussion and commissioners were asked to bring more ideas to the table during the next meeting.