Grass Valley committee recommends murals for Highway 49 underpass

The Grass Valley Development Review Committee voted 4-0 on May 13 to recommend that the Planning Commission approve a city-sponsored mural project for the State Route 49 underpass at South Auburn Street.

The committee’s motion, as recited in the staff report, included a determination that the project is categorically exempt under California Environmental Quality Act guidelines, Class 1 (Section 15301), and would approve a mural sign permit with conditions of approval described in the report.

City staff said the underpass is within Caltrans right-of-way and is a prominent entry to downtown that currently lacks the visual character of adjacent areas. Staff described the project as a transportation art application developed under Caltrans’ art program; proposed renderings were solicited from local artists and bundled by the project team for review.

Caltrans’ regulatory framework, staff said, places several limits on permitted designs: murals must celebrate community identity, be scaled appropriately, permit safe maintenance, and avoid text, simulated traffic devices or motion, highly reflective finishes, moving elements, and most flags or logos beyond limited sponsor recognition. Staff also advised that painted treatments will need division-of-maintenance approval so the treatment does not conceal structural cracks or interfere with drainage or sight lines, and that sponsors must fully fund expected life-cycle maintenance.

Committee members generally expressed support for placing murals on the columns but raised several concerns about specific renderings. Catherine Dykes, senior engineer, said she liked many of the designs but “I kind of wish that they were more, that they also brought in, like, the mining history of the town,” and she flagged one rendering with bright blue mushrooms as potentially problematic for community perception: “I think that might be giving a little bit of the wrong impression.”

Several members raised pedestrian-visibility concerns, noting that darker color palettes around the base of the columns could make it harder to see people walking under the overpass. One committee member suggested brighter colors at the lower eight feet to preserve sight lines; staff noted that Caltrans and the division of maintenance are likely to request changes during their review.

Brian Blakemore, Grass Valley Police lieutenant and project proponent, asked the committee to consider the wraparound effect when viewing small renderings and said a later version of the mushroom design “is more accurate of what the artist was intending,” adding that scale and color may appear different once wrapped onto a column.

Funding and project delivery were discussed briefly. Staff said the Chambers Project Art Studio had reported a donor who had indicated interest in funding the project; the city described the approach as intentionally streamlined so the project could move forward without additional committee processes that might delay implementation.

The committee’s approved motion recommended that the Planning Commission approve the murals as presented, confirm the CEQA Class 1 categorical exemption in accordance with the staff report, adopt findings for the mural sign permit, and approve the permit subject to the conditions in the staff report. Committee members voted 4-0. The recommendation will go to the Planning Commission and the project will be forwarded to Caltrans for its review and any required changes.

Next steps identified in the discussion were forwarding the proposal to the Planning Commission, submitting the renderings to Caltrans for safety and maintenance review, and allowing Caltrans to require minor changes; staff said substantially revised designs would be brought back to the committee if necessary.