Thanks to the generosity of a local foundation, the City of Powell now has all the funding it needs to create and install a new downtown mural.

City leaders have been working over the past year to replace the aging artwork that adorns the Powell Bean Mill, along Coulter Avenue. The city secured a $32,200 grant from the Park County Travel Council last year and chipped in $15,000 in city funds, but even after some in-kind donations, another $10,000 was still needed to complete and install the 53-foot-high mural.

Looking to close out the fundraising, “we approached The Moyer [Community] Foundation — and they thought it was a great idea,” said City Administrator Zack Thorington.

The nonprofit organization agreed to contribute the final $10,000. Established by longtime Powell pharmacist Willard Moyer, the foundation provides grants to “charitable, religious, scientific, literary or educational purposes within and for the direct benefit of Powell and its residents.”

City council members formally accepted the “generous” donation at their Feb. 5 meeting.

The Moyer Community Foundation’s name will appear on the bottom of the mural, alongside the logos for the Travel Council, the City of Powell and Ryno’s Rental, which is providing the equipment for the installation; a crew already borrowed a lift from the company to check the space’s measurements. 

Treasure Valley Seed, which owns the historic bean elevator, has also lent its support to the project — agreeing to not only host the city’s new mural but also to cover the electric bill for nighttime lighting.

The current mural celebrates Powell’s 1994 recognition as an All-America City and features a portrait of the city’s namesake, John Wesley Powell. But after two-and-a-half decades of rain, snow and sun, the piece is showing its age.

In conjunction with the Plaza Diane Community Center for the Arts, the city issued a community-wide call for a new design last fall. The winning creation from Powell artist Jeremiah Howe depicts the sun setting over Heart Mountain. A starry sky is seen above the mountain with a field of barley below. Text notes Powell’s 1909 founding and welcomes visitors to the city.

The new art is tentatively scheduled to be installed this spring, with the sign company planning to ship the mural to Powell by May 1.

“Hopefully we can get that ball rolling,” Thorington said.