City leaders have given the green light for a new mural of the fastest man in the world to go up on Main Street.
At the Oct. 13 city council meeting, city leaders gave their approval to move forward with a 40-foot-tall mural, which will honor the world champion sprinter and Olympic silver medalist Fred Kerley, a hometown hero, on the Ford Ground Storage Tank at 1606 N. Main St.
“There is nothing more beneficial to the community than seeing one of your own at the Olympics,” said District 4 Councilman Robert Garcia. “Him coming home … to me this is almost, if not bigger, than Samsung (Austin Semiconductor).”
In a presentation to council, Assistant City Manager Jeff Jenkins said due to Kerley’s busy schedule, the mural needs to be finished before February 2023.
“One of the challenges on this project, and why we need to move it along quickly, is that Fred being the fastest man in the world, it’s hard to catch him sometimes,” Jenkins said. “Fred is getting ready for the Olympics in 2024 and 2023 is a very heavy running season, so he has said he will be here in February.”
The mural will be completed by local artist Adam Davenport, who has done several highprofile art installations in Taylor, including the sculpture of Bill Pickett at Second and Main Streets, and the duck statue at the Duck Pond, the high school football stadium.
Jenkins said Kerley’s team chose a rendering of the athlete running in his World Athletic Championship 100--meter run in Eugene Oregon, for which he won the gold medal.
Jenkins said supporters would be able to donate to fund the project, which will cost $47,00, and be paid under the city manager’s spending authority.
In addition, Jenkins said Nike, Inc. had expressed interest in helping to pay for the mural and may even attend the unveiling ceremony in February.
At the meeting, Mayor Brandt Rydell introduced Kerley’s former Coach, Mike Tennill, who was in the audience.
Tennill said Kerley was an extraordinary person who deserves all the recognition he is receiving.
“He is an amazing young man who deserves all the credit and success that’s come his way,” Tennill said. “He is something else.”
