Water-themed crosswalk mural is ‘see’worthy

GROSSE POINTE CITY — Something “fishy” happened last week in The Village — but it’s a good thing.

On May 8, a group of about 40 Girl Scouts from Defer Elementary School in Grosse Pointe Park volunteered their time and creative skills to paint a water-themed crosswalk mural on Notre Dame Street, near the exit for the parking structure. The Scouts hailed from Troop 77458 — made up of third graders — and Troop 78081 — consisting of fourth graders. The project was intended to make crossing the street safer for pedestrians.

Posterity Art & Framing Gallery owner Michelle Boggess-Nunley said she and other adult volunteers prepped the crosswalk that morning by painting waves, dots and white fish on the pavement. The scouts then spent time in the afternoon applying colorful designs to the plain fish, using a special acrylic paint made for masonry.

“We were trying to draw attention to the crosswalk, make it safer for families to use,” Boggess-Nunley said. “Also, it serves as public art and a great way to involve our local youth.”

Cindy Willcock, executive director of Main Street Grosse Pointe, said studies show painted crosswalks are 50% safer than ones only denoted with a sign.

“I think we’re always looking at ways to bring public art into The Village, but also looking for ways to make it safe, and painted crosswalks increase safety,” Willcock said.

They originally planned on adding the decorative crosswalk to the intersection of St. Clair and Kercheval avenues, but with St. Clair undergoing reconstruction in that area, Willcock said they realized the mural would get destroyed.

Grosse Pointe City Mayor Sheila Tomkowiak was on hand to watch the mural unfold.

“I’m so excited about this,” Tomkowiak said. “It will be interesting to see if it makes people slow down.”

Painting a crosswalk in an area not on Kercheval has benefits beyond beauty and safety, since there are other Village businesses on side streets and at the back of some buildings.

“It really helps to bring awareness and highlight areas that aren’t on Kercheval,” Willcock said.

Alivia Parhan, 9, a fourth grader from Grosse Pointe Park, was looking forward to painting a fish.

“I’m excited about showing my art skills and my art designs,” Parhan said.

Grace Malefyt, 10, a fellow fourth grader, said she was looking forward to painting “a creative fish from my own design.” 

She said she had never done anything like this before.

The Scouts were divided into two groups, with one group painting at a time.

Third grader Ainslie Tremblay, 8, of Grosse Pointe Park, painted a purple moon on her fish, which also featured red, yellow and teal sections.

“This fish was inspired by my dream fish,” Tremblay said. “I tried to make it look cheerful.”

Some of the artists had different goals.

“It has red stripes to look fierce, like a tiger,” said third grader Aggie Dunn, 8, of Grosse Pointe Park, of her fish.

Charlie Rossi, 8, a third grader, applied colorful patterns to her fish, which she painted yellow.

“I was trying to do a pretty fish you never actually see in the water,” Rossi said.

Tomkowiak called the mural “a very clever way to slow traffic.”

“I’ve seen it done in other communities and I’m delighted to see we’re doing it here,” Tomkowiak said.

Boggess-Nunley said they would be putting a sealer on the crosswalk. While she said it might need some maintenance if any of the paint chips, she said they believe it should last for at least a couple of years.

“We’ll keep it looking nice,” Boggess-Nunley said.

Cara Rossi, troop leader for Troop 77458, said this is a service project for the Scouts.

“One of the elements of Girl Scout law is to make the world a better place,” Cara Rossi said. “We thought this was a great project. And the girls love art.”

She said she was happy to hear that the mural would remain in place for at least the next couple of years, so the Scouts could see it whenever they visited The Village.

Tomkowiak said she’d like to see murals like this at all The Village crosswalks.

Willcock agreed.

“Hopefully, if this is a successful project, we’ll do more,” Willcock said.