Some Minneapolis citizens are eyeing a change for their city flag, but its initial designer isn't on board. Reports from Star Tribune reveal Louise Sundin, the architect behind the emblem as a schoolgirl in 1955, feels the design still stands strong. Her creation, a blue-and-white piece featuring city symbols like a building for arts and education, a cogged wheel, and a square for labor and industry, is dear to her. Sundin stated, "I still think it looks fairly contemporary compared to the ones they're looking at for the state, but that's just me."
In contrast, a local news outlet, Southwest Voices, has launched a contest for a fresh Minneapolis flag design. Taking advantage of the momentum surrounding the redesign of the Minnesota state flag, the outlet is calling for submissions until January 15, 2024. Interested parties should email their designs to [email protected], as per the contest announcement found on their website. While Sundin isn't swayed by the notion of the changes, many locals haven't seen the flag nor know it, with one rarely-spotted hoisted above the U.S. Bank Plaza.
It's worth noting the Minneapolis flag isn't as prominent in the city's visual identity, not seen above City Hall, on city letterhead, or at news conferences also mentioned by the Star Tribune. The flag does have a home constrained within the City Council chambers, tucked away in obscurity. With the spotlight being on the state flag's controversial imagery leading to its replacement, the city's banner seems to have been lost in shadow, prompting a potential renaissance through this contest.
The community-powered challenge by Southwest Voices is set outside of official channels, hopeful to stir the city into adopting a new flag through public engagement. The process promises a bracket-style voting system that lets the community choose the winner.
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