Ukiah council votes to approve murals on store

<p>Six murals proposed for a Ukiah sporting goods store were deemed to be art rather than advertising by a majority of the Ukiah City Council on Wednesday night.</p><p>"I don't think it's signage," said Ukiah City Councilwoman Mary Anne Landis.</p><p>The art vs. advertising debate was brought to the council chambers by City Councilman Phil Baldwin, who appealed the Planning Commission's approval of Pacific Outfitters' murals. Baldwin, alone in his objection to the murals, ended up joining the majority in making it a unanimous vote to deny the appeal he'd brought.</p><p>He said he'd appealed the project largely to stimulate debate and that he was concerned it would open the floodgates to excessive business advertising.</p><p>Everyone else at the hearing, from council members to members of the public, said Pacific Outfitters' project and other murals should be encouraged.</p><p>"I think it's very important our community support public art," Landis said.</p><p>She disagreed with Baldwin's stance that the murals should be considered advertising because they included products sold in the store.</p><p>The murals, to be painted by Eureka artist Duane Flatmo, depict various outdoor scenes. They include a hunter with a gun, boaters and a fisherman with a fishing pole.</p><p>Store manager Chris Ostrom said his family, which also owns two sporting goods stores in Humboldt County, is spending about $30,000 on the murals in an effort to beautify the outside of the store.</p><p>The murals were intended to compensate for walling over the store's windows, a measure taken to ward off gun thefts.</p><p>The store's owners were taken aback by Baldwin's challenge to the murals. Similar murals on their Arcata store were lauded by officials there, Ostrom said.</p><p>They said they were pleased that Baldwin appears to be in the minority.</p><p>Ukiah-area residents at the hearing also voiced surprise that the murals on an otherwise box-like building would be challenged.</p><p>"Why are you giving these guys such a hard time?" asked Carol Rosenberg, noting the city will benefit financially from encouraging businesses and helping them thrive.</p><p>Murals beautify and attract visitors to cities, said artist Laura Fogg, noting there are mural tours in cities such as San Francisco.</p><p>Flatmo's murals are on Eureka's mural tours.</p><p>"Please, work with these guys," Fogg said.</p><p>You can reach Staff Writer Glenda Anderson at 462-6473 or glenda.anderson</p><p>@pressdemocrat.com</p>