Over the two-day project, the white cluster outlines of flowers, butterflies and birds surrounding each individual letter of the mural were filled in with splashes of pink and red.

CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - More than 50 volunteers including local families, city council members and community members gathered over two days on Saturday, Sept. 12 and Sunday, Sept. 13 to help paint a 50-foot portion of a beige residential block retaining wall along Auburn Boulevard starting at Cobalt Way.

Retired councilmember Jeannie Bruins, and current council member Porsche Middleton and Dr. Jayna Karpinski-Costa each took brushes in hand to lend their creative flourishes to the mural.

Clad in light yellow-green safety vests, volunteers added bright yellow paint to each of the large block stenciled letters, spelling out “Welcome to Citrus Heights.”

Passing motorists along Auburn Boulevard frequently honked their horns in encouragement throughout the day as multiple design elements were artfully added to the mural transforming an unremarkable cinder block retaining wall into a refreshing, colorful artistic statement.

Just behind the large block letters a panoramic light blue sky was painted along the full length of the mural. Once dry, brown, gently rolling hills were then painted in between the letters.

Over the two-day project, the white cluster outlines of flowers, butterflies and birds surrounding each individual letter of the mural were filled in with splashes of pink and red.

Once the mural is fully completed and dry, Citrus Heights Arts director Gigi Rayford said a protective anti-graffiti coating will be applied at a later date.

Painting took place between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days with music, a pizza lunch, water and snacks provided to volunteers.

The original mural artist, Erse, who provided the general outline the volunteer painters followed, will return to the wall to do his final touches in the coming days, Rayford said.

Over the two-day period, the Citrus Heights community has generally completed the first phase of the mural, but the overall project is not yet finished,” Rayford said.

“We’ll return at a later date to complete the second half of the wall,” she said. “Before Phase 2 of the mural project begins, the final design will be presented to the city of Citrus Heights for design and approval,” she said.

The community mural project is being coordinated by Citrus Heights Arts with participating private property owners and the city of Citrus Heights to bring some much-deserved tender loving care to the soundwall.

A previously completed panel near the corner of Auburn Boulevard and Cobalt Way identifies Auburn Boulevard as part of the original U.S. 40 and features a red and white milepost sign with a guidepost marker set against blooming orange poppies that the city of Sacramento is just 14 and a half miles away.

“The new “Welcome to Citrus Heights” themed mural along Auburn Boulevard helps reflect the deep pride its residents have in their city, and in their neighborhoods,” Rayford said.

Rayford especially thanked Ron Ferns, a long-time Citrus Heights resident and jogger, for his multi-year efforts to clean up trash and clutter along the length of his jogging route and then plant flowers from his garden in the bed along the soundwall to help beautify the route.

Last weekend, Ferns was among the early group of volunteers ready to pick up a roller and brush to help paint the community mural.

Volunteers carefully walked around some of the flowers and plants in the flower bed along the soundwall which Ferns had previously placed that are surrounded by a thick layer of fresh bark supplied by the city of Citrus Heights.

Ferns said he’s looking forward to the completion of the two-day mural project and the ongoing nurturing of the flowers which will bloom again next spring.

The non-profit Citrus Heights Arts is dedicated to enriching the cultural fabric of the city by promoting creativity, connection, and accessibility through the arts.

For more information about Citrus Heights Arts, and future mural projects, visit: www.citrusheightsarts.org or email: [email protected].