The public has the opportunity to submit feedback on the final four designs for a new city flag that were unveiled Tuesday at City Hall.

The Topeka Flag Redesign Initiative of Forge received more than 260 entries, said Forge leadership team member Leo Espinoza.

Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla said participation in the initiative has shown community engagement.

The project was proposed in July.

"One of the big focuses of this initiative has been to make sure that it's collaborative in nature," Espinoza said. "We've really tried to do that in every step of the process. We have tried to engage as many organizations and individuals from every corner of our community."

The public will have the opportunity to submit feedback on the designs until Jan. 15. The four flags will be shown at community events where people can share their thoughts.

Once the feedback phase closes, a group of local designers will take the designs and feedback and develop a new flag.

"We really want the final flag to be no one's flag so that it is everybody's flag," Espinoza said. "We want the final flag to be a project that is created using all of the feedback that we receive, as well as these four final designs."

The four artists, who each received $875 from Federico Consulting, are:

• Julisa Medina, who designed a sun that also looks like sunflower.

• Linda Merillat, who incorporated elements symbolizing crossroads and continued growth.

• Benjamin Vincent, who depicted the Kansas River.

• Holly Foster, who illustrated the trajectory of Ad Astra's arrow, symbolizing Topeka's future.

De La Isla said she didn't know that a flag project could make a mayor emotional.

"I am sitting here and I'm just in awe with the amount of creativity that each of the artists has displayed," she said, adding that each of the four flags captures something deep about the community.

"I can say for myself, I didn't imagine our flag could look this sexy," De La Isla said.

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