(Fairport, N. Y. – May 14, 2018) The Fairport Industrial Development Agency (FIDA) is pleased to announce that the Public Art Installation and Trail Improvements project has been completed at Thomas Creek Wetland in the Village of Fairport, New York. The project is funded in part by a $50,000 matching grant provided by the New York State Canal Corporation through the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council.

Recognizing that connecting the arts community to the canals can promote economic development and community engagement, FIDA worked with the Fairport Public Art Committee to commission artists to enhance the pedestrian connection between the Thomas Creek Wetland Walk and the Erie Canalway Trail in the Village of Fairport.

Accenting the new butterfly garden is an analemmatic sundial utilizing salvaged canal stones created by Vanessa Sheldon from Rochester, New York.

“As a promoter of environmental stewardship, I felt compelled to create a sculpture that pays homage to what was once coined “The 8th Wonder of the World,” explains the artist her choice of material.

Artistic directional signs were created by Joy Taylor from Red Hook, New York. Her design convinced with its simple shape and interactive “see-through” quality.

“My signs pair depictions of iconic features of each trail with the trail names. The lettering and the images are cut out so that viewers can look through them into the landscape itself,” says the artist about her work.

Wayside Contractors of Macedon was awarded the construction contract. Greenman-Pedersen Inc. of Rochester served as engineers for this project. The project site is located approximately 1⁄2 mile east of the village center, at the eastern end of Liftbridge Lane East.