The Lapeer City placemaking committee reported it secured a vibrancy grant and proposed several downtown projects, and the board reviewed a draft mural design for the back of the Hicks (PICS) Theater.

Committee members said the vibrancy grant will fund community murals downtown, history plaques on buildings, additional bike racks, a novelty phone booth installation and volunteer/ fund‑development software. The committee said it expects to install at least 10 history plaques and to add several murals as part of the program.

The board saw an initial mural draft created by Crystal Cook. The proposed design uses sepia tones and imagery intended to reference the theater’s movie‑house heritage (the structure dates to the 1940s, presenters said) while acknowledging live performance. Members debated several elements: whether the central human figure reads as a dancer or a more general performer, the prominence of a large microphone in the composition, the inclusion and number of floral motifs that would tie into the adjacent pocket park, and the mural’s coloration.

Discussion and next steps: board members generally praised the artwork but requested additional renderings before making a formal recommendation to the city commission. Staff said the artist is willing to provide alternate options (for example, a musician with a trumpet or a different performer pose) and that renderings could be circulated by email before the next DDA meeting. The DDA will then make a recommendation to the city commission; the artist cannot begin full production until that approval is in place and grant funds are committed.

Conservation and installation details: presenters said the mural panels and painted surfaces would receive a UV‑protective coating that is fade‑resistant and anti‑graffiti. The placemaking group discussed timelines tied to grant spending: funding must be spent in the grant period beginning July 1 and running through the next fiscal year, and staff expressed the goal of completing the mural before winter weather begins.

Other placemaking items: the committee also reported distribution of dog water bowls funded by a pharmacy grant, a bandana order with printing errors that should arrive within one to two weeks, and a plan for a European‑style holiday market. The committee said it will add mural and placemaking materials to the DDA’s strategic planning process with Michigan Main Street and will coordinate with parks staff for any installations that touch municipal property.

Who said what: the mural concept and design feedback came from committee members, the parks department assistant superintendent Eric Smith joined a meeting with the artist, and Crystal Cook is the contracted artist. The DDA directed staff to request additional renderings and to return with a recommendation at a subsequent meeting; no final mural approval was taken at this meeting.