Calls for creative and artistic submissions are underway for a new flag design in Lehi.

Aspiring flag-makers or residents who want to embrace their artsy traits are encouraged to submit up to two designs between now and May 31.

The city’s website explains the contest as a form of embracing the city’s heritage past while looking toward the future. The goal of the project is to deploy a flag that reflects the spirit of Lehi.

Lehi’s current logo was adopted after a redesign in 2015. According to Mayor Mark Johnson, a city flag was not incorporated during that process.

“Someone made the decision to place that new logo on a white background and have it printed as our flag,” Johnson told the Daily Herald. “There has been some discussion for over a year that we needed to correct that and create a flag that follows vexillology (flag study) standards.”

Lehi’s current flag incorporates the logo, featuring a blue and green design over a white background. The design has well-known city landmarks and says “Pioneering Utah’s Future.”

The mayor says the logo represents the city well, but a logo is not a flag, he explained.

“A flag is a more simplistic representation of a government entity. It should not have words or complicated graphics and should be easily identifiable when viewed from afar,” Johnson said.

The city is not only opening up the contest for residents to design the new flag, their input will be welcomed as well.

A flag design committee, incorporating Lehi residents, local business leaders, educators, members of the Point of the Mountain Chamber of Commerce, the Lehi Arts Council, flag enthusiasts and city employees, will review and narrow down the entries.

The public also will get to rank the contest finalists during the summer.

The City Council and mayor will give the final thumbs up on the winning design Aug. 13.

Lehi will join a host of other Utah cities like Ogden and Cedar City that recently adopted new flags.

“We are aware of other cities that have taken this step and have looked at the process they went through, but I have not engaged in discussions with them. We understand the rules of good flag design and want our flag to be uniquely Lehi, representing our heritage and future,” Johnson said.

Last month, nearly a year after the state Legislature green-lighted the new state flag, Utah’s new banner officially began flying at the state Capitol.

Johnson said Lehi isn’t trying to mimic the state’s new flag efforts. “This discussion started quite separate of that situation. We also do not have a flag. We have a logo that has been mistakenly used as a flag. I understand the confusion, but we hope to do our best at clarifying that there is a difference, and a flag can represent our great community in a similar manner as our logo does,” he said.

Reaction on Lehi’s official social media pages were mixed when the city announced the redesign contest. One concern raised was how this process may impact residents financially. Lehi’s official Facebook account responded to multiple comments by assuring them that taxpayers will not be affected.

The city explained that money is allocated each year from the approved budget for special projects. A certain amount is used for the purposes of branding and marketing.

The winning designer will be awarded a prize of $1,500, and the city estimates another $1,373 would be spent to print the flags, according to one response to a concerned resident on Facebook.

Some of the basic contest guidelines include creating a simple design — something a child could draw from memory — that uses no more than three colors and has no text or seals.

“I have witnessed some marvelous artistic talent in or city. I am really excited to see what our local talent submits. I expect we will have some very creative designs,” Johnson said.

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