New Mars sign unveiled on Wednesday
MARS — The new welcome sign in Mars was unveiled on Wednesday, July 22, at the corner of Grand Avenue and Irvine Street, near Stick City Brewing Company.
The sign is the first of three that will be placed. The others will be on Mars-Evans City Road near Finn Chiropractic and on Route 228 near CVS Pharmacy. Those signs have yet to be built.
Along with a dozen residents, Mars and Adams Township officials were in attendance for the unveiling ceremony.
The need for a new sign was identified by Christine Clutter, borough secretary. Both Christine and her daughter-in-law, Lee Ann Clutter, observed visitors often took pictures with the old sign, which had been falling apart.
“It was to the point where it needed redone,” said Lee Ann Clutter, a teacher at Butler County Area Vocational-Technical School.
She introduced the problem to her graphic design class and several students came forward with their design ideas.
“Three really stood out,” said Lee Ann Clutter.
The shortlisted designs and the one chosen were created by different students at the school.
Borough officials loved the designs when they were presented in November, Clutter said, and narrowed it down to one after some consideration.
Mika Smith, from Karns City, who designed the final version, and Charlie Dillaman, from Butler, one of the other students whose design was shortlisted, were also at the unveiling.
Clutter said the students collaborated on building the sign.
The students also submitted their designs for a SkillsUSA competition, won at the district level and came in second place at the state level.
Smith also designed the Evans City sign two years ago, Clutter noted.
“I am so proud of them,” said Clutter.
Starting with sketches on paper — around 30 different designs — an 11-month process of designing and building followed, “until we were able to turn it into what we have now,” said Smith.
Smith went on to color the best design, scanned it and imported it to Adobe Illustrator. The building process, including cutting out and printing everything, took around a month.
“I think my favorite thing has to be the Martian peeking out at you, welcoming you,” Smith said.
Gregg Hartung, mayor of Mars, said the new sign captures the essence and theme of the borough for residents and visitors to see and also spruces up downtown.
Recently, Mars and Adams Township officials approved merging the municipalities into one, planned to be called Mars Township. The final decision on the merger will be on the ballot as a referendum during the November general election, when residents’ votes will decide whether it actually becomes reality.
The new sign, Hartung said, will continue to serve the area for years to come regardless of the outcome of the vote.
“The town itself — the name — will be always be Mars, Pennsylvania,” said Hartung.
