Erie Mayor Joe Schember has big plans to install murals on the city’s two bandwagons.

Here is more on this public art project and what folks can expect to see in the future.

City officials said that several Erie events may be canceled this summer, the bandwagons will be decorated and ready to go when events resume.

“I welcome these kinds of opportunities and dreamed of them over the 26 years that I spent in prison. To at some point in some way give back to the aesthetic richness and beauty of the Erie landscape,” said Antonio Howard, Community Muralist.

Antonio Howard is the artist behind the murals. His work can be seen all over Erie including his most recent work at the Whole Foods Co-Op on West 26th Street.

His new project, the bandwagons, are used at nearly 40 events across Erie County in regular summer.

“You can see them at Celebrate Erie. You can see them at the rib fest and at so many different places. So these bandwagons are important and they go all around Erie and we want to make sure they look great when they do,” said Aaron Loncki, Marketing Strategist for the City of Erie.

Mayor Schember said that these murals on these bandwagons demonstrate Erie’s commitment to arts and culture.

“Erie arts and culture has been doing a lot of good things to move art out and make it more visible and this is another huge step in the right direction,” said Mayor Joe Schember, (D), City of Erie.

The executive director of the Erie Arts and Culture, Patrick Fisher, said that the organization provided guidance for this project.

Overall Fisher describes the process as a win for everyone including the city, the artist and the community.

“As Antonio represents there’s a really big value that’s derived from community based arts and then specifically with Antonio’s story you have this story of restorative justice,” said Patrick Fisher, Executive Director of Erie Arts and Culture.

The artist said that these murals will be complete in about a two month time period.