Fayetteville has a new city seal.
The City Council on Monday agreed to revise the city seal. The item was part of the council’s consent agenda.
With three proposed options, the council opted for the staff recommendation of a new seal in red, white and blue with a star and the words “Fayetteville North Carolina” depicted on it.
The vote was 6-4 with City Council members Johnny Dawkins, Courtney Banks-McLaughlin, Larry Wright, Antonio Jones, Chris Davis and Mayor Mitch Colvin voting to approve the package of consent items.
Council members Shakeyla Ingram, Kathy Jensen, D.J. Haire and Yvonne Kinston voted against the motion to approve the slate of consent items.
There was no discussion on the seal during the meeting, which is not unusual for items on the consent agenda.
The council had discussed the issue during a previous work session.
Earlier this month, the City Council voted to delay documenting a description of the new design in favor of making some slight changes. Jensen made a motion to return the city seal to the design team to possibly remove the “City of” text from the logo.
In late December, the council incorporated the new seal as an official insignia for the City Council. It is to be used for official Fayetteville documents, ceremonies and other uses.
For decades, the city seal contained an image of the downtown Market House, a controversial landmark primarily because slaves had once been sold there.
The structure became a focal point again in late May 2020 when protests were staged around the Market House following the death of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. Two people set fire to the building.
The building has since been repaired, according to City Manager Doug Hewett.
Throughout the summer of 2020, protests continued around the Market House.
In the aftermath of those demonstrations, the council voted to change the old seal and gather recommendations on how the Market House could be repurposed.
Michael Futch covers Fayetteville and education for CityView TODAY. He can be reached at mfutch@cityviewnc.com. Have a news tip? Email news@CityViewTODAY.com.
