Mesa quietly implements new city logo

Red, amber and blue. Mesa's new logo has those colors on three plateau-like shapes stacked up one over the other. The city is quietly phasing in the logo without much hoopla, keeping in mind the "tough economic times," said Mesa spokesman Steve Wright.

It's been used on some electronic documents such as media releases and fliers, but the city plans to implement the change in phases. That means items such as existing stationery and business cards will not bear the new logo until the existing stock is depleted.

The soft launch was timed with the city getting a fresh set of leaders, including a new mayor, Wright added.

The logo also scraps use of the line "city of Mesa," replacing it with "Mesa AZ." The idea is to represent Mesa not as a government entity but as a community, Wright said.

The city's motto - "Great People, Quality Service" - also gets the boot because many felt the city did not need a tag line, Wright said.

The official address for Mesa's Web site will change from cityofmesa.org to mesaaz.gov, although people will be able to reach the site using the old address as well.

In the new logo, the red represents the Red Mountain, the amber color is the hue of the desert and blue represents the skies, Wright said. The old logo, as still seen on the city's Web site, is an M-shaped mountain range, showing sunrise. It has been around since 1986.

The previous city council had approved the new logo. The council had initiated the hunt for a new logo in late 2006. Two of three principals at Catapult Strategic Design, also Mesa residents, Art Lofgreen and Brad Ghormley, offered to do the work for free after hearing about the city's tight finances.