Palmer hosts Bicycle Rack Design Competition

PALMER — The City of Palmer is looking for a few good artists to enter its Creative Bike Rack Design Competition.

It’s also looking for donations from local businesses to support the project.

The city has identified a need for additional bike racks to be placed around town, particularly in parks, so that children can have a place to store their bikes when they play. The Palmer Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Board discussed some details of the project during its Feb. 2 meeting.

“I talked to local businesses, and they’re really excited,” said board member Meggie Aube-Trammel.

Director of Community Development Sandra Garley said the city council would select one or two designs as the winners, but said it could also be an option for businesses that favored more designs in the contest to fund them.

She said the city has looked at two other places where similar projects have taken place, and that in those cases, the designs were given to the local public works to build or contract out to build. She said Palmer would likely take a similar tack for the bike racks’ construction.

The new bike racks help meet needs identified in Palmer’s recent Bikeability Survey. The board also discussed drafting a resolution to be proposed at its next meeting, on Thursday, March 2, to support the results of the survey.

After the meeting, Garley and Aube-Trammel said they haven’t worked out yet what the prizes will be for the artist or artists whose designs are selected, but they have started doing outreach to businesses and posting fliers about the competition.

Palmer is looking for bicycle rack designs that “reflect the history and character of Palmer,” and “re-envision the standard bicycle rack.”

The competition contains two categories: one, for two-bicycle racks, and another, for racks that hold three or more bicycles.

The racks also have to be made of stainless steel or galvanized round or square pipe, and be between 30 and 36 inches tall, and comply with safety and locking standards.

Artists would also sign the rights to the design over to the City of Palmer.

“As part of our effort to promote cycling as a sustainable, mainstream transportation option,” the competition’s promotional materials state, “the City of Palmer is seeking to tap the creative energy of the art communities for this important element of our community.”

For more information about the Creative Bike Rack Design Competition, contact Sandra Garley, City of Palmer, at sgarley@palmerak.org.