HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016 04-06 Maplewood's 'new beginning' has begun to show MAPLEWOOD REVIEW4/13/2016 Maplewood's'new beginning' has begun to show I Lillie Suburban Newspapers
Maplewood's `new beginning' has begun to show
Submitted by admin on Wed, 04/06/2016 - 12:OOam
By: Aundrea Kinney
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Maplewood's new logo, top, incorporated a clear maple leaf that will take on the color of whatever is behind it, or it can remain white.
Maplewood's city logo changed when the website was updated last October, but over the past few
months as the city has been phasing out the old logo, residents have begun noticing the change.
"As I'm out talking to people ... overall, people really like it, and they really like that it brings a new
perspective to the city," said Mayor Nora Slawik in a recent interview. "We went through some
challenging times, and I think people see it as a sign of positive change."
While many residents have made positive comments and expressed excitement about this symbol of
change, other said they felt left out of the design process and are disappointed in the new look.
"They changed our beautiful red maple leaf with a dead -looking maple leaf," said resident Anne
Fosburgh. She said that to her, the red maple leaf represented Maplewood.
Fosburgh is a lifetime member of the Maplewood Area Historical Society and was an active member of
the Maplewood Heritage Commission for many years and remains in contact with commission members.
She said that although the Maplewood website states the city had public input, these two organizations
were unaware of any plans to change the familiar, autumn -red maple leaf logo.
"We surveyed residents on our webpage and worked with city staff and advisory board members," in
addition to the input from city council members and the two graphic designers, Slawik said.
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4/13/2016 Maplewood's'new beginning' has begun to show I Lillie Suburban Newspapers
According to Slawik, the city had been using the previous logo for over 20 years. She indicated the
process of developing a new logo was "a thoughtful one" that ended up taking longer than she originally
anticipated. Mychal Fowlds, Maplewood's director of information technologies, said the project cost
$1,500 for the logo design work.
The city webpage says the key design considerations were a color palette of deep red and soft green,
an outline of the traditional maple leaf icon and a more contemporary font type.
She explained that several font types were considered, though some, such as a cartoon style, were
dismissed right away. The city council viewed several options for the new image and font, and actually
sent the designers back to the drawing board. It was in the second round of options that the current
design first appeared before the council.
One of Slawik's favorite aspects of the new logo is that the leaf is actually clear, so it can change colors
to match whatever background is behind it, or it can remain white. She also appreciated the clean and
simple design.
"I think it's really innovative. I think it's very fresh, and it incorporates our traditional maple leaf," Slawik
said.
For Slawik, the updated website and new logo represent the new city council, new ideas and a new
beginning. She said she feels these two changes are the beginning of better communication between
the city and its residents.
Aundrea Kinney can be reached at akinney0fillienews,com or 651-748-7822.
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