JACKSON, Mich. — The city of Jackson Public Arts Commission showed City Council Tuesday night what a new city seal could look like.
Jackson officials are moving away from the image of Andrew Jackson on the current seal.
Public Information Officer Aaron Dimick says the city wants something more directly linked to the city itself.
“We have Andrew Jackson on our seal right now but the only connection we have to him is that he’s just named, he’s our namesake. There’s no direct connection to the statue that the seal is based on,” Dimick said.
The requirements for the new seal will need it to be circular, say "City of Jackson" on it and reference 1829, which is the city's founding year.
The Public Arts Commission has two designs. One symbolizes Jackson’s history with an oak tree that represents “Under the Oaks” where the Republican Party was believed to be founded in 1854 along with a railroad track.
“That symbolizes Jackson’s history as a railroad hub but then also references our history of being involved in the Underground Railroad so even though there was no physical railroad it’s a metaphorical representation of that,” Dimick said.
The other option depicts two oak leaves with the downtown skyline in silhouette with flashes of green and blue representing the Grand River.
Public comment has been mixed on what the seal should represent.
“I think they wanted to fit in more with modern times you know, which is that they’re generic so to speak of the downtown logo. Which is understandable because that’s the way this community is moving. More inclusive and that’s what you’d like to see more of. It’s a problem when there’s not inclusion and there’s just seclusion,” Jackson resident Kevin Elliott said.
The renderings aren’t finalized yet and will be headed back to the drawing board for some small tweaks before Council members make their decision.
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