New mural brings fresh look to downtown Milton

With a nod to the past, but an eye on the future, the new downtown wall mural unveiled this week aims to capture the unique aspects of life in Milton.

Commissioned by the Downtown Milton Business Improvement Area (BIA) in partnership with Arts Milton and STEPS Public Art and funded through several sources, the mural was created this fall by artist Omar Hopkinson and his team and incorporates vibrant colours while spelling out “Downtown Milton” over a map of the town’s historic core.

As well, using the letters in the town’s name, the mural showcases several themes:

• M – Multiculturalism
• I – Interest
• L – Lifestyle
• T – Timelessness (First Nations)
• O – Old Milton
• N – Nature

“Building beautiful, welcoming public spaces downtown helps to attract people to the heart of our community to meet, shop, dine and explore,” said Rachel Shuttleworth, Executive Director of the BIA. “This new mural is an opportunity to enhance the vibrancy of our downtown and support local businesses while promoting local arts and culture. We are grateful for the support from FedDev Ontario and from the partners, artists, local businesses, collaborators and volunteers that helped make this mural a reality.”

Located in the Spice o’ Life Parkette at the corner of Main St. E. and Charles St., the new mural replaces the previous design that had been in place since the 1990s. The old mural had deteriorated over time and ultimately replaced because of extensive repairs that needed to be done to the wall by the property owner. The new artwork makes reference to the previous mural and a plaque is being installed at the site to recognize the original painting.

Thursday’s unveiling was attended by MP for Milton Adam van Koeverden, Mayor Gord Krantz and a representative of the office of MPP for Milton Parm Gill. They were joined by members of the BIA, Arts Milton, artists and contributors.

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