After weeks of preparation, a local dream finally took flight at yesterday’s State College Borough Council, when council members approved Nov. 13 as the unveiling date for the newest addition to the downtown art scene: a mural outside McLanahan’s wall on Allen Street and Calder Way.

Two hundred individuals participated in the design process of the mural and created the theme, “Dreams Take Flight,” which focuses on the community’s hopes and dreams for State College. Incorporated into the mural are three winning submissions selected from a poetry contest.

More than 500 local residents, students, alumni and visitors to the State College community helped paint the mural this past summer, with the age of artists ranging from 4 to 88. This past Friday marked the finishing touches to the mural.

The mural, organized by the Community Arts Collective, is made up of 102 separate panels, each 5-foot square, that brought together reach 170 feet in length. The mural panels, made from a non-woven fabric called “pellon” that is expected to last at least 25 years, will be pasted on to the wall with a strong adhesive and coated with an anti-graffiti finish.

Check out pictures of the mural’s past progress here.

In other news, Penn State sophomore Lienard Chang educated council members about the potential benefits of a bike-share program and encouraged them to adopt a similar one in State College.