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Resident proposes library-area sidewalk mural, cites San Carlos model and $40,000 grant example
Summary
Resident Susan Hannah pitched a community-designed painted mural for a library-adjacent plaza or path, suggested partnering with ArtBias and school groups, and recommended pursuing grants (San Carlos example: $40,000) with a tentative target of 2027.
Susan Hannah, who identified herself as a Morgan Hill resident, asked the Arts Commission to consider a large painted sidewalk or plaza mural near the library or Administration Building as a community art project tied to Morgan Hill’s 120th anniversary.
Hannah said the idea was modeled on San Carlos’s Centennial Street Mural and stressed volunteer and student involvement rather than city-paid labor. “I’m not asking for money. The group that did this in San Carlos said they got a $40,000 grant from San Carlos, and that's what inspired them to do the project,” she said. She proposed siting the work in the library return area’s circular concrete pad or a straight path between the commission chamber and the Administration Building to allow better pedestrian viewing than a busy street location.
Hannah described a multi-step process she learned from ArtBias in San Carlos—surface preparation, background layers, detailed painting and a top coat/sealant tailored to pedestrian traffic—and said materials and protective treatments differ from street murals intended to be temporary. She suggested using projection techniques for detailed imagery, involving local historians for content, and recruiting high school art students for supervised painting of background areas.
Commissioners asked logistical and funding questions. One noted that more durable coatings raise costs; another suggested preparing a budget and square-footage estimate before seeking grants or volunteer commitments. Commissioners and staff offered to help Hannah network with grant writers and school contacts and recommended an early conversation with the Department of Public Works about site feasibility. Hannah said she would like to aim for a 2027 project timeline if the commission supports proceeding with planning and outreach.
Next steps identified on the record included: staff-and-resident coordination to estimate usable surface area and likely materials, preliminary contact with the Department of Public Works, and outreach to local arts groups and schools for volunteer and design support. The commission did not vote on the mural concept at this meeting.
