Although the city administration had hoped to launch a new flag last year, it doesn’t appear that the one recently designed specifically for the city of Toledo will be hoisted up a flagpole any time soon.

In August, Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz’s administration presented the new flag design to Toledo City Council for approval. City spokesman Gretchen DeBacker said at the time that the design would be adopted as part of the city’s wholesale branding strategy for 2023. In particular, the flag would be launched in conjunction with 419 Day or April 19.

Toledo’s current flag features the city seal and has been used since 1994, after replacing the original rendition adopted in 1909.

Donning an eight-pointed bright gold star and blue and white diagonal colors, lifelong Toledoan and Hanson Inc. designer Jacob Parr created the new flag concept to invoke a sense of “city pride.” Mr. Parr was not solicited to create the design, but rather took it upon himself to submit the flag concept to the mayor’s office.

It was then presented to council on Aug. 9, but no further action has been taken on the issue, said councilman Nick Komives, who supported presenting the proposal so it could be discussed in a public format.

“It ended up in limbo,” Mr. Komives said recently. “It’s not like it was any of our priorities to make this happen quickly, so it just hasn’t gone anywhere.”

While response to the flag design ran the gamut from those who loved it to those who did not, some individuals also questioned the process, and inquired if anyone other than Mr. Parr could also submit a design, Mr. Komives said.

Although Toledo City Council never formally voted to adopt it, the city administration continues to support the new flag design Ms. DeBacker said last week. In fact, she said that “quite a few people” have already embraced and incorporated it.

“We still remain excited about it and committed to it,” Ms. DeBacker said. “But we definitely understand that people want education and feedback about how we got the flag and the design, and understanding what it all means.”

Mr. Parr has designed logos for several local brands, such as Fowl and Fodder, Equality Toledo, and the VProject coronavirus vaccine initiative.

While also experiencing the evolution and growth of the downtown area, Mr. Parr brought forward the proposal after realizing that Toledo’s flag design hadn’t been considered in over two decades. He spent six years studying flag design while also crafting hundreds of renditions before settling on the final flag concept for Toledo. Part of that process involved learning from experts the principles of flag design.

“Most of the time was allotted to on and off researching, digging into Toledo’s history, and the proper processes of flag design before I could even come up with an idea of what it should be,” Mr. Parr said Monday. “I am forever the optimist and I am still very excited and I still stand behind the work because it’s something that I really believe in.”

He acknowledges that while he has been thinking about it for a long time, other people have not and may have been surprised that such a proposal was being offered. He also believes that a community forum and additional input would help to ensure all opinions are rendered before moving forward.

Mr. Parr invested his own time to develop the design; however, once he began meeting with city administrators to finalize the proposal and make additional changes, he received approximately $9,000 in compensation. Mr. Parr also launched also launched a website about the design at http://www.jacobparr.design/reflag-toledo.

“This is something that I created purely out of hometown pride and love,” he said. “I would be lying if I didn’t say that it would be exciting to be known as the guy who got to bring forward a new design for the flag. Of course, there is an element of excitement to that for me. But it was really about just getting it done and making something happen in the community.”

Ms. DeBacker credits Mr. Parr for taking the initiative to develop and create something special for Toledo.

“He’s just a real talented guy and he’s just trying to do something [for the city],” Ms. DeBacker said. “I definitely do not think it’s a dead issue. We will be bringing it back in some form or fashion in 2023.”

First Published January 16, 2023, 8:15 p.m.