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By COURTNEY BENNETT / Community Columnist

“Montevallo is the place to make your mark!” This is more than just a tagline—it’s a way of life.

Downtown beautification is one of the priorities of Montevallo’s volunteer-driven Main Street program. A robust street pole banner program has been a large part of that effort. The newest banner series highlights citizens’ favorite aspects of their community—art, education, history and nature.

Design Committee volunteer Sarah Hogan selected a diverse group of four Montevallo businesspeople to collaborate on this project: James “Happy” Smith, owner of the Flower Shop; Anna Nix, with Smitherman’s Pharmacy; Alison Baggett, owner of The Art Studio; and Becky Cox-Rodgers with Falcon Art Supply. Collin Williams, Professor of Art at the University of Montevallo, turned their concepts into reality.

“The banners are a visual representation of our community that not only characterize what our citizens love, but provide visitors a sense of what our community has to offer,” Hogan said. “Happy, Becky, Alison and Anna did an outstanding job of ensuring the design accurately captured the character of our community and an invitation for everyone to Mark their Mark in Montevallo. Whoever you are, whatever your interests, you are welcome here and we have a place for you and we hope you return again and again, as Montevallo tends to Make its Mark with a lasting impression on the hearts of all who experience her.”

“Being part of the banner committee was a reflection of what I hope to do as a business owner here in Montevallo. To get to contribute to the place where I live and work in a positive way is a pleasure,” said Baggett, who relocated The Art Studio to downtown Montevallo in 2019.

“I believe that as citizens we have a responsibility to support our community according to our talents. As an artist I believe that the aesthetics of our environment has an impact on how we feel about the public spaces we live in. There are many things that I don’t personally have the ability or resources to change, but I can use my artistic skills to design a banner and therefore in some small way contribute to the beautification and edification of our shared public space,” Williams said.