BATH — It started as a few, and by July it may be many.
The City Council in 2013 approved a flag design that reflects the city’s shipbuilding history. That flag hangs in the Council Chambers at City Hall, and outside the building. Only a few others exist.
But lead designer Jeremy Hammond, who worked with the city’s Flag Committee on the project, is hoping the flag will be seen all over downtown this July during Bath’s annual Heritage Days celebration.
Hammond, a former Bath resident who now lives in South Portland, has begun a Kickstarter website campaign called “Flag of Bath Maine” to raise funds for production of at least 30 flags. As of Monday, $817 of the $1,100 goal had been raised, with 31 days to go.
“Since the flag is so new, the only way to acquire a real tangible version of it is to get an expensive custom flag job done,” Hammond said March 25. “You can improve the cost if you order them in bulk, so I’m using Kickstarter to leverage the purchasing power of the community collectively, so that I can get a much lower price per flag.”
He does not expect much profit from the venture, but Hammond said any extra revenue could go toward buying more flags, and possibly donating them to local schools.
The top half of the flag depicts a golden ship against a red background, while the bottom half has two wavy blue lines, against a white surface.
Those who contribute at least $5 get a 24-square-inch Bath flag sticker. For $10 they also get a hand-held Bath miniature flag, and for $35 they receive a 15-square-foot knitted polyester flag with two grommets, which is standard for poles. Finally, pledges of at least $45 earn all of the above.
Hammond has not set an upper limit on how many flags are made, noting that since there are major discounts for high quantities, if a lot of people contribute to the campaign, many flags could be donated to the city to fly on Independence Day.
“I’ve put it out there as just an example of what can be done with the flag,” Hammond said.
Alex Lear can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 113 or alear@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @learics.
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A Kickstarter website campaign is underway to raise funds for at least 30 city flags to be displayed around Bath.
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