To cull down the list of finalists for Salem’s future flag, Brian McKinley had to sort through heaps of emails from people scoring each of the potential options.
He said there were 175 submissions and with the help of judges, they narrowed that number down to 25. Feedback from the Salem Planning Commission, a newspaper poll and other judges then helped narrow down the options further.
Now, there are four flag options before the Salem City Council. Two feature the Capitol building, one has a cherry blossom and one looks similar to Salem’s existing flag.
“There was never a clear winner by any means in any of the culling, but these four were clearly the ones people were looking at,” said McKinley, who has been trying to get a new flag in Salem for years.
One of the options for the new Salem flag. The cherry blossom and star represent the state capital. The blue represents the Willamette River. (Courtesy/Brian McKinley)
The council will vote to choose which flag they want and to adopt it at a date that has yet to be determined.
During Monday’s City Council meeting, City Manager Steve Powers said, “Any of those four would be a fine choice.”
McKinley told councilors, “All I want to do is have a flag that is as beautiful as the lovely city we all inhabit.”
One of the options for the new Salem flag. The blue stripes represent the Willamette River and smaller creeks. The red circle symbolizes Salem’s Cherry City nickname and the eight columns on the Capitol building stand for the eight city wards. (Courtesy/Brian McKinley)
Salem’s flag was adopted in 1972. It is considered “bad” by national flag standards, in part because it says the word “Salem” on it. Few city residents know of its existence. One flag is hung in the city council chambers at City Hall.
McKinley, a former city planning commission member, hosted a flag contest from September 2020 to July 2021. A submissions committee made up of residents, members of the North American Vexillological Association (flag enthusiasts) and national judges reviewed the submissions and evaluated them based on design guidelines from the association.
The rules include keeping the design simple enough to draw from memory, two to three basic colors, no lettering or seals and must be distinctive. It should also include meaningful symbolism, like the French tri-color flag which used to represent the French Revolution’s goals for liberty, equality and brotherhood.
McKinley said the association was insistent that creating a new flag needed a lot of buy-in from the community.
“The point is to create a culture of ‘This is Salem. This is us. This is who we are,’ and to give that feeling a banner to kind of rally behind. And the hard part wasn’t getting support oddly enough,” he said.
One of the options for the new Salem flag. This flag reworks the elements and colors of the current flag ” in a prominent, central, eye-catching position.” (Courtesy/Brian McKinley)
McKinley said it would be difficult to change a flag that everyone knows and loves, like in Portland or Chicago. But in Salem, because of the lack of knowledge about the flag, he said he instead had difficulty overcoming apathy.
He said if a new flag is chosen, he plans to buy a bunch of flags and “prime the pump,” so they’re hung in local businesses and other locations.
McKinley wants to see one flying on one of the flag poles in front of City Hall and the police station.
“I think Salem will be well-served with a new symbol. I mean, maybe you’ll see it on cop cars even. That’s kind of the thing if you see it being used by our divisions and our groups here in Salem, Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce, then you know you’ve got something that people can really attach to,” he said.
One of the options for the new Salem flag. This option is most similar to the city’s current flag. White represents peace, blue sky and water, gold for the harvest, and green for the land and hope.
Previous reporting: Salem man seeks to retire city’s obscure, “ugly” flag
Contact reporter Saphara Harrell at 503-549-6250, [email protected].
JUST THE FACTS, FOR SALEM – We report on your community with care and depth, fairness and accuracy. Get local news that matters to you. Subscribe to Salem Reporter starting at $5 a month. Click I want to subscribe!
