Visitors coming into Grand Forks from the west would be greeted with a new welcome sign next summer, if the City Council agrees to recommendations from a group of Gateway Drive business interests.
The group's consultants Tuesday held a meeting in City Hall with several designs for the sign, which are variations of a spiral-shaped concrete structure with an optional American flag.
It would be built in the median on Gateway at 55th Street, the western edge of the city.
The project has a budget of $150,000, of which 80 percent would come from federal funds and 20 percent from the city's Beautification Fund, according to Meredith Richards with the city's Urban Development Office.
The idea came out of the Gateway Drive Committee, formed partly to find ways to beautify the drive into the city, which now is marred by junkyards and dilapidated buildings. The committee also is charged with enhancing the corridor in general, Richards said, and the welcome sign fits the bill.
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The proposed 15-foot high sign, designed by Ulteig Engineers in Bismarck, would say "Welcome to Grand Forks" with lighting for visibility at night. There would be smaller structures on both sides of the highway, landscaping and options for one to three flags.
Construction is scheduled for the summer, if the council agrees to foot the 20 percent.
-Tu-Uyen Tran
