SEQUIM — The city’s new logo depicts a wave-like swirl with a river running through it and a shaft of grain below.
The Sequim City Council voted in the new brand in a 5-1 vote Monday with member Susan Lorentzen absent and member Don Hall opposed to the idea.
The logo was designed by Rusty George Creative of Tacoma in a contract for up to $8,000.
Mayor Ken Hays said he was in favor of the new logo because of its unique design.
Unique design
“It didn’t start out as my favorite, but I decided I liked it for several reasons,” he said.
“One, I feel like in today’s world and culture, it is important to have a mark — and in a purely graphic way rather than a pictorial way because everyone has the same story logo, which isn’t even really a logo.
“I thought option one was strong in that regard.”
He said he also liked that it was instantly recognizable and that it paid the most tribute to the area in its colors, the symbolism and sentiment.
Hall said he voted against the new logo because he felt the old one could have been brightened and used.
“I’m not saying that I like the old one, but I wanted them to at least look at the old one and see if it could be improved,” he said.
“I spent a few minutes with the old one and made an oval shape and added a lavender leaf and improved the mountain view.
“I was out in the booth at the Irrigation Festival last weekend and interviewed about 40 people, and about 35 of those liked the old one better.
“I just think they are making a mistake.”
The task of designing a new logo was broached after the council decided that the old logo — which was designed by a local high school student in 1975 — needed an update, said Barbara Hanna, the city’s communications and marketing manager.
Coming into new era
“The old logo worked very well for us, and people are very fond of it, and it has been used in several iterations,” she said.
“But I think that the feeling was that we were coming into a new era and time, and now especially with the ability to use digital, it was time to have an updated look.”
The new logo will be slowly phased in on printed materials. It will be replaced on digital platforms as soon as possible.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
