Board works on new logo for village
By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
A depiction of East Troy’s signature landmark – the historic village square – will almost certainly remain a part of the community logo in the years ahead. But officials are considering tweaks to the imagery with grander marketing ambitions on the horizon.
During a brainstorming-filled Committee of the Whole meeting Aug. 24, the Village Board discussed creating a revised Village of East Troy logo and, perhaps, adopting a tagline.
Village Clerk-Treasurer Eileen Suhm presented the board with 11 possible logo variations, and nearly all images depict the gazebo that sits in the heart of village square. Some of the possibilities note the community’s founding in 1900, while others emphasize East Troy’s main forms of industry: farming and technology.
During the recent discussion, a few questions were tossed around, from a fiscal standpoint, about embarking on the branding project. But most officials – elected officials and municipals staffers – are backing the effort.
Suhm said she felt the current logo was ambiguous and did not necessarily project what East Troy is.
“I think it does project a more professional image,” Suhm said of having a uniform logo and tagline on all village communications. “We want it to be clear to people who we are and what we are trying to represent.”
Trustee Ann Zess said she envisioned the effort as an extensive planning process aimed at bringing prospective residents and businesses into the community.
“Branding is not just about creating a tag line and a logo,” Zess said. “It’s something you become.”
While there are variables at play, the village is hoping to work with the East Troy Community School District and the East Troy Area Chamber of Commerce to create what Village President Randy Timms coined “a united front.”
Timms and Suhm have been tasked with digging further into the possible logos and crafting a potential tagline. Their recommendations will be brought to the Village Board for further deliberation and possible action at a later date.
