The Redmond Arts Commission is sponsoring a design competition to develop a special Centennial logo or icon for the City of Redmond’s 100th Centennial in 2012.

This logo or icon will be used on all marketing materials for the Centennial celebrations throughout the year as well as added to stationary, the city’s website and other citizen publications.

The Arts Commission has offered a $500 stipend to the designer whose logo is chosen.

Redmond incorporated as a city on December 31, 1912 when the birth of Ernest Alexander Adams brought the city’s population to 300, the number required by state law. The driving force behind incorporation was the ability to tax liquor sales – the funds of which were needed to finance a waterworks system.

The overall concept behind Redmond’s Centennial is the pioneer spirit that has existed in Redmond even before its official beginning in 1912.

“Redmond was founded by true pioneers; men and women who came up the Sammamish River to a beautiful, yet untamed wilderness,” commented Mayor John Marchione. “We have been pioneering ever since – first logging and farming, now microchips and bio-engineering, while in the future we look towards a diverse economy with businesses thriving in both the downtown and Overlake.”

The competition is open to anyone who lives or works in Redmond. The details for the competition submission and the specifications required are on the city’s website at www.redmond.gov/centennial.

Redmond’s Centennial will kick off at Redmond Lights 2011 and culminate in a special celebration at the end of 2012. Throughout the year, special new events will augment Centennial celebrations incorporated into existing community events and all will carry the special Centennial logo or icon.

The deadline for submissions is June 20 at 5 p.m. For more information, contact Lisa Rhodes, Events & Marketing Administrator, at (425) 556-2360 or larhodes@redmond.gov.