Jasper’s mural will be updated with a new design

The mural at the gateway to downtown Jasper is set to get an update.

Mike Ackerman, president of Jasper’s German club, Deutscher Verein, requested permission to begin work on the mural and maypole located at Sixth and Newton Streets in May with plans to unveil a new design at the end of the month.

Ackerman told the Jasper Board of Public Works Tuesday that with the building owner, Bob Herzog, needing to complete repairs on the building, the club felt it was a good time to complete the update.

“We take care of that corner and the landscaping, to promote a positive image of Jasper and our German heritage,” he said.

He said the new design will use a larger of portion of the wall. “A lot of the elements in the current mural will remain. But we hope to add additional things to it,” Ackerman.

Orange Moon Arts Studio of Newburgh is designing the new mural. The company has completed work at Holland Elementary, and according to Ackerman, the company is working on another project in the area in June and will work on the mural prior to that.

Ackerman explained that sales through the group’s food booths during the Strassenfest raised the necessary funds for the project.

“We were looking for projects that embellished the needs of the German Club to promote and preserve and celebrate our German heritage and believe the mural very much accomplishes that,” Ackerman said.

The design isn’t known yet but the German Club provided Orange Moon Studios with ideas to feature in the piece. “We could see some small changes on some things and it will look a little different than what it does today,” Ackerman said.