Businesses, community groups, and others interested in Hermiston now have access to a catalogue of professional artwork and photographs relating to the area.
The “Hermiston: You can GROW here” brand was revealed in August, and the corresponding wordmark is intended for use by those in need of professionally-designed artwork that represents the Hermiston area. Those using the wordmark can also access the library of professional quality royalty-free images of Hermiston and the surrounding area.
Businesses looking to differentiate their product or service can use the wordmark and pictures to showcase their affiliation with Hermiston. Community groups and residents will be able to put “Hermiston” on various items like T-shirts, hats, stationary, and other materials to announce their location. The wordmark is versatile and offers professional-quality artwork which simply says, “Hermiston,” and can be used alongside business logos and identifiers. Various media outlets which need graphics that depict Hermiston are encouraged to use this logo which conveys the message of the area, without an overt association with any specific entity or organization.
Files of the wordmark and the royalty-free photographs can be accessed through the city of Hermiston’s website. Because the overall message of “growth” is generally broad, it allows the user to pair the artwork with a picture that represents their specific emphasis, and thereby forces the viewer of the two to associate Hermiston with growth in all its forms, whether it’s growing a business, growing a family, growing personally, or growing a watermelon.
“This brand gives the community an identity that isn’t tied to any specific entity or purpose other than ‘growth,’” said Mark Morgan, assistant to the city manager. “That allows community members to be very creative in their usage of it and apply it to their individual needs.”
The new community identity of “growth” came out of the work of the Hermiston Futures Task Force. The Hermiston Futures Task Force was born as a result of the 2010 U.S. Census figures which showed that the city had officially become the largest city in Eastern Oregon. The numbers, indicating that the area had grown by more than 36 percent since 2000, prompted community leaders to come together to plan for growth well into the future. One of the top priorities that the group heard from the community was the need to establish an identity befitting a growing community which has become a leader in the region with a continually diversifying local economy.
The Futures Task Force brought together community members from a broad range of backgrounds to tackle the issue of pinpointing Hermiston’s identity. The Community Identity Sub-Group is made up of 17 Hermiston area leaders in agriculture, healthcare, industry, tourism, media, education, and economic development. The resounding message from the year-long discussion of the group was, “you can grow here.”
