Man offers $2K for city flag design

A Topeka businessman who works statewide has seen the effects of Wichita having a cool city flag.

John Federico, who along with owning a local consulting business serves as executive director of Leadership Kansas, was wowed by what happened there, and he would like to see those efforts replicated in Topeka.

"I’ve seen firsthand over the years the pride that the flag has provided the city of Wichita," he said. "I’ve been a little envious of it. It’s a rallying point for pride in the city. One of the byproducts of what I try to do in running Leadership Kansas is instill pride for the state. Topeka is, I think, in great need of pride for the city, from younger people that are living in Shawnee County."

When Federico learned about the Forge initiative to redesign Topeka's flag and work to make it a centerpiece of community pride, he reached out to see how he could help.

Gabriel O'Shea, executive director of Forge, the city's young professionals association, said Federico is bolstering support for the flag redesign by offering a $2,000 award to the winning designer. In addition, to encourage involvement from young people, Federico will offer $1,000 for the best design from a middle-school or high-school student.

Federico's decision to support the redesign efforts, which was announced in July, led Forge to extend the design deadline from the end of August to the end of September, O'Shea said.

At Topekaflag.com, designers and artists can see the requirements for submitting a flag design. Included are themes and a color scheme — green, gold and blue.

Federico is excited to see the results, and he emphasized that the new design must be "cool."

"That’s where I think the challenge is. You want it cool so people are proud to wear it," he said. 

Once a design is selected and approved by the Topeka City Council, it will be open-sourced, meaning that anyone can use the design. In Wichita, companies have incorporated parts of the city flag onto T-shirts and logos. That ease of use that doesn't stall anyone with copyright issues has been part of its success, Wichita officials have said.

"I talked to a politician from Wichita of some notoriety," Federico said. "He said, 'When this effort started in Wichita, I thought it was the stupidest thing ever. People have two flags — they only have room for two flags. Kansas and the U.S. flag. What are they going to do with this other flag? I couldn’t have been more wrong. It has become almost incredible the enthusiasm it's created and how it's framed.' "

O'Shea said Forge hopes to receive 100 or more designs for the selection committee to consider. There is a possibility that the final design will blend entries, too.