Thanks to support from the Marian Anderson Fund of the Mankato Area Foundation, “CityArt in the Alley” offers a positive focal point for residents and visitors, helping strengthen community spirit during a period of major street reconstruction.

Mankato Free Press (May 2026) — The city of North Mankato will welcome a new outdoor mural focusing on the arts this summer, with artist applications due by Wednesday to organizer Twin Rivers Council for the Arts. The large-scale exterior mural is part of CityArt in the Alley, which aims to bring vitality, support and community participation and help exhibit the role of the arts in shaping places, said Stacey Straka, city art committee chairwoman for Twin Rivers.

The new mural will be on a highly visible exterior wall at NaKato Bar & Grill in lower North Mankato. The initiative is being developed in response to the Belgrade Avenue reconstruction project. Artists are invited to propose work interpreting one or more of the following themes: the arts in North Mankato, the city’s creative “art vibe” and the value of the arts in community identity and economic vitality, according to a Twin Rivers news release. The selected artist or artist team will receive a $6,250 commission. The call is open to individual artists and artist teams, with local and regional artists from Minnesota and surrounding areas encouraged to apply.

Applications are due Wednesday. The mural launch and community engagement event is May 31, with installation continuing through July 18. “I think it will sit as a testament to how they have historically valued the arts and in particular public art,” Straka said. “The city of North Mankato has a very nice public art collection and is continuing to invest in that with these types of creative placemaking opportunities.”

The CityArt in the Alley Community Mural is underwritten by the Marian Anderson Fund of the Mankato Area Foundation.