In a surprise announcement, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) says that Patagonia, along with several other small towns across the country, has been selected for a pilot project that will give post offices a major facelift. The project, called “Beautify Our Post Offices”, or BOPO, is funded by USPS, the Department of Commerce and the National Foundation for the Arts.
“We believe that this collaborative project will help reestablish the post office as an important component of the community, and will help make the small town post office an attractive and welcoming landmark,” said the project’s spokesperson, Candy Mailer. “It will give post offices across the country a brighter look.”
The BOPO project will entail repainting the building itself and then adding a mural composed of postage stamps to the front wall. Patagonia Creative Arts Association’s Board of Directors was given the task of selecting five stamps that will adorn the south wall of the post office. The Board’s choices included two nature images–one of a bird and one of flowers, because natural beauty is so important to our area, and the images are striking and colorful. “The flowers will look especially nice against the yellow background,” said Adrienne Halpert of PCAA. Mother Theresa is included to represent the humanitarian spirit. They chose “The Cat in the Hat” because it’s a classic favorite of children, and John Wayne because he was a Hollywood icon that loved this part of Arizona.
Five artists will be selected by the town to paint the mural, one for each stamp. Artists will be asked to submit a rendition of the stamp they wish to paint, and their art work will be on view inside the post office for one week with a ballot box by the door. The chosen artists will each receive an economy size roll of “forever” postage stamps, and will be recognized in a special segment on KGUN news. The deadline for submissions is April 31.
The building itself will be repainted in a bright shade of yellow, and the BOPO grant will also be used to repave the post office parking lot. “It’s worth it just for the parking lot” said Patagonia mayor, Ike Isakson. “Maybe they’ll also tidy up the bulletin board.”
