05/21/2026
We've seen a lot of conversation about the City's branding project, and we want to make sure everyone has accurate information. Here's what's actually going on.
"𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘁 $𝟳𝟰,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗼."
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: The logo is one small piece of a much larger, still-ongoing project. This is about more than a visual update — it's about how Lebanon tells its story, builds community pride, and supports local business and economic development over time.
The full scope includes:
✅ Brand story, community narrative
✅ Advertising/messaging concepts
✅ Social media templates
✅ A complete logo family, including variations for city departments — including utilities
✅ Brand style guide
✅ Color palettes and typography
✅ Photography and graphic asset sets
✅ Wayfinding and signage concepts
✅ Branded promotional item concepts
✅ Building signage concepts
✅ Website design
What Council saw on May 11 were the results of an extensive research and brand development process nearing completion. What circulated online was a photo of a screen — taken at an angle — showing one variation of several logo concepts. It's worth noting that an identifying mark is one of the smaller components. The brand story, community narrative, and creative strategy are the more significant parts of what's being delivered.
"𝗡𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆."
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: Community input was intentionally built into this project from day one. Here's what that actually looked like:
🔹 A familiarization tour of Lebanon
🔹 15 one-on-one interviews with local stakeholders and officials
🔹 4 focus groups with 49 community members participating last fall
🔹 200 community surveys completed online
🔹 342 outsider perception surveys completed
🔹 A full digital audit of the city's messaging
In December, the community survey was posted on this page, shared in groups, and distributed via press release. In total, more than 600 Lebanon residents, business owners, and community members participated in the process.
"𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲?"
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: The City issued a formal public request for proposals more than a year ago — the same competitive bidding process used for any major city contract. More than 15 firms specializing in municipal branding responded. Not one was closer to Lebanon than the Kansas City and St. Louis areas. Every proposal was reviewed and scored by a panel before a firm was selected.
"𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁."
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: Nothing has been finalized or implemented. As this project is completed, the plan is to phase in any new branding naturally — meaning as vehicles are repainted, signs are replaced, or decals are updated on their normal maintenance cycle, the new look would simply replace the old one.
We know that any time a community updates how it presents itself to the world, it generates strong opinions — and that's a healthy part of the process. Everyone has different tastes, and that's okay. But it's important to understand that this project isn't just about a logo. It's about how Lebanon shares itself with the world, supports its businesses, and builds on the pride that already exists in this community.
