‘It’s going to dress it up’: Zesty mural proposed for Cinergy Cinemas building in Wheeling
Wheeling officials and Cinergy Cinemas are teaming up to bring a little spice — and more than a little color — to the Wheeling Town Center complex.
They’ve proposed adding a 95-foot-wide mural to the west facade of the Cinergy building, 401 W. Dundee Road. Tentatively dubbed “One Village … Every Flavor,” the piece will celebrate Wheeling’s culinary and cultural diversity with images of fresh produce against a vibrantly colored field of geometric shapes.
“It’s going to dress it up,” Village President Pat Horcher said.
The piece is designed to draw the attention of Metra passengers traveling on the North Central line that runs just west of the Town Center complex. Wheeling’s Metra station is nearby.
A QR code that will link to a online guide to Wheeling restaurants will be in the lower-left corner. The site will be updated regularly, Horcher said.
“We’re hoping that the Cinergy site becomes an active part of people’s commutes,” Horcher said. “We want that to be something they actively look for.”
Village Manager Jon Sfondilis said the artwork will serve “as both a work of public art and a community billboard.”
Rockford artist Brett Whitacre is on deck to paint the mural. Last year he created a gigantic, plant-themed mural on the facade of the Uptown 500 complex’s parking garage, across Dundee Road from Wheeling Town Center.
Sfondilis was so pleased with how the first mural turned out, he approached Cinergy with the idea for a new one by Whitacre on its building, Horcher said.
Whitacre loves the locations of the almost-neighboring installation locations. He said he’s “proud and honored” to welcome people to Wheeling with his artwork.
Elements of the proposed Cinergy mural include a halved avocado, a sliced red onion, red and green peppers, a tomato slice, a garlic bulb and a kidney bean. The mural’s title, the village’s name and the village skyline would appear on the left side, along with a jet airplane to represent Wheeling’s Chicago Executive Airport.
But the proposed design is more than a celebration of food. The colored shapes in the background are arranged to resemble the flags of Wheeling residents’ ancestral nationalities, Sfondilis said.
“From Latin America to Eastern Europe, Asia and the Middle East, this palette honors the ethnic and cultural richness of the community,” Sfondilis said. “Each hue and shape reflects the lived experiences and contributions of residents whose stories continue to shape Wheeling’s evolving identity.”
Wheeling will cover the mural’s $60,000 cost. A board vote on a contract with Whitacre is expected Oct. 20.
Even though village hall is pushing the project, village board approval is needed.
Wheeling’s plan commission, which advises the board on development-related issues, will consider the proposal when it meets at 6:30 p.m. at village hall, 2 Community Blvd. The meeting is open to the public and will be livestreamed on the village’s YouTube channel.