At the most recent Perry City Council meeting, they made a decision about moving forward with the “In the Shadow of the Rails” art project.

The goal of the project is to put a piece of artwork in a similar theme at every location along the Raccoon River Valley Trail. The idea was conceived in Waukee, and several communities along the trail have already pledged their support and begun fundraising. Perry is one such community, and after the meeting they are one step closer to making it a reality.

The Council was tasked with deciding what the City’s artwork will look like, and they were given three different options. In the end they all agreed the option of single posts at two locations was the best choice. The pieces will be placed at the trailhead near Caboose Park, and near the crossing of Highway 141. The next step is to raise more funds for the project. The City will need a little under $12,000 to fully pay for the artwork and installation.

As far as a timetable for when the “In the Shadow of the Rails” project will begin in Perry, City Administrator Sven Peterson says it’s currently up in the air. “The schedule was possibly this fall, but the first installation down in Waukee I think is taking a little bit longer to install than they had expected. So it’ll probably be next spring into summer some time that they’ll get out. I know Dallas Center is doing one, and then Greene County is also doing several installations throughout the County. It should be an exciting project, and it’ll be nice to kind of tie in all these communities together in a visual way.”

To hear more from Peterson, listen to Wednesday’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.