Calling local artists, Mission launches recycling program

The City of Mission calls on local artists to submit their work for the opportunity to design and paint a mural on the new recycling drop-off building. 

When the city received a $25,000 grant from the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council, they decided to use the funds to set up Mission’s first recycling drop-off center located at 15th street and Kika De La Garza Loop. To engage and interact with the community, Mission is reaching out to local artists to collaborate on the building’s exterior artwork. 

“Right now we do not offer curbside recycling. So basically this is like a stepping stone into possibly offering it in the near future. But we want to start off with at least this,” Administrative Coordinator for the Sanitation Department Anais Chapa said. “We’ve had a lot of citizens reach out asking for a program. This is kind of our first step towards that. So when we do a grand opening, our plan is to educate our residents on proper recycling — what can be dropped off, what cannot be dropped off — so that we can start building up towards having a curbside recycling program.”

Chapa said they prefer a local artist from Mission, but anyone from the RGV can apply. Creators will need to fill out an application and submit a rough draft of their design to give the city an idea of their vision. But the city hopes the piece will incorporate a recycling theme combined with Mission’s history, culture or native plant life. 

The deadline is Nov. 30, but if there are not enough submissions, Chapa said they will extend the deadline to Dec. 15. The city’s Keep Mission Beautiful board will vote and select the artist. Depending on the number of submissions, the board will also decide if they want a single artist or more than one to work on the project. Both solo and group artists can submit ideas. 

“If we do get enough submissions by Nov. 30, then sometime by mid December we would have chosen the design. And then hopefully by February, the latest, have it completed on the building,” Chapa said. “And then once it’s all completed and we fix up that area — we’re going to be planting native plants and putting up signage — then we plan to host a ribbon cutting and grand opening for our recycling drop off.” 

The city has not officially launched the drop-off program, but there are currently recycling bins at the location available for public use. The $25k grant will also go toward installing drop-off chutes. 

Throughout the years, the city of Mission has become more proactive in cleaning up the community by creating various initiatives. City leaders implemented beautification ordinances and a beautification committee. But most recently, Mission became a Keep Texas Beautiful affiliate. KTB is a statewide program that partners with cities and provides grant opportunities for beautification and cleanliness. 

“We want our streets to be clean, we want to have a beautiful environment for our residents. We want them to be proud of where they live,” Chapa said.