CAPE CORAL, Fla. — Local artists presented their proposal to paint murals downtown Cape Coral on Tuesday. They told city leaders more art would bring more visitors and more money to the city.
Artist Aesar Aguilera with ArtSemble told the South Cape Community Redevelopment Agency or CRA board about all the benefits murals would bring to the 47th Terrace area of downtown. He said it’ll help support local artists, and make downtown more inviting.
Aguilera’s partner Brian Weaver said their artwork can bring more money to the city.
“The concept is you bring the art to the community, it’ll bring more people. More people means more businesses. More businesses means more jobs,” Weaver said. “And the more businesses and people more tourists, more money for the community.”
And local shoppers like Gary Wood said it’ll bring more color to the city.
“It’ll be great. Take away the white walls,” said Wood.
And Armondo Gambino who stopped by the local discount store said adding art to Cape Coral like Fort Myers and Miami’s Wynwood art district have done isn’t a bad idea.
“It’s nothing pretty to look at now, so it would probably be an improvement,” he said. “All the big cities have murals. If it’s done tastefully, I think it actually adds depth and it adds something to the community.”
As of now the CRA’s approval depends on how much it’s going to cost the city.
The artists did not present an exact dollar amount to the board Tuesday night, but said the cost for each mural would vary depending on size. And they are asking for funding from the CRA’s budget. City Manager John Szerlag said the board shouldn’t approve the murals until he looks over costs and possible bid options with public works and the city’s finance team.
And the artists said they would also paint utility boxes and add sculptures to bus stops to encourage more people to use public transportation.
