Letter: Murals can attract visitors to downtown

To the editor:

In reading about the suggestions and plans for revitalizing downtown Franklin, I am reminded of a town here in the Midwest which I visited one time.

I can’t remember the name of it, but it was attracting a lot of attention because of many beautiful murals which had been painted on the outdoor walls of downtown buildings.

As I remember it, the town was a few miles off the main highway, but word of the murals had spread and they were bringing a great deal of traffic into the downtown area.

Granted, we do already have a bit of artwork in downtown Franklin, such as the attractive murals in the alley between East Court and Water streets, rather hidden from the public as a whole, and the one on the Paris building on West Jefferson Street, but we still have a number of beautiful, nice big buildings whose sides, very visible to the public, are barren.

Could some murals be done by art classes in the schools or by individual artists? I’d like to see pictures from our local area such as from farms, parks, schools, Franklin College and the like.

We have talented artists and undecorated buildings. We want to attract people downtown. I suggest that the idea of downtown murals be considered.

Mary A. Medlicott

Franklin