Walk along a Denver sidewalk and you might notice a stamp in the concrete — a mark of the year it was built and the crew that poured it.
Now, it could be your turn to put your mark on the city
With Denver’s huge sidewalk rebuild underway, the city is looking for a design to mark the thousands of miles of sidewalk repairs and construction.
Like the sidewalk stamps of old, the winning design would be pressed into the concrete laid by the new sidewalks — not quite permanently, but at least until the next round of sidewalk repairs are needed.
The parameters are simple: The design must include a reference to Denver and a space for the year of installation. It must fit inside a space no bigger than 8 inches wide by 7 inches tall.
The city recommends that the design both includes “symbols, shapes, or icons to make your design unique” while also staying relatively simple — these designs could crack or wear out over time. Around downtown Denver, designs from the mid-century are still visible. Many use big, bold fonts. Ones that use cursive have worn out, with once-fine print now forming amorphous blobs.
If your legacy being etched in stone isn’t enough incentive to submit a design, the city is also offering a cool $1,000 to the winning artist.
Submission rules and criteria can be found on the city’s website, with a submission deadline of July 31.
Denver’s Sidewalk Enterprise Program was approved by voters in 2022. The program is collecting hundreds of millions of dollars in fees from property owners so the city can repair damaged and inaccessible sidewalks.
Paolo Zialcita
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