It's Thursday afternoon at Greenlife Grocery, and County Commissioner Tim Boyd sits with artist Jack Wyrick, her laptop computer open.
The two are going over plans for the newly elected commissioner's first big project - the Bachman Tubes in East Ridge - and they're talking about murals.
Wyrick says she's still working on the design she and another artist, Shaun LaRose, will put on the outside walls of the tunnel.
"We're evoking the pioneering spirit of East Ridge," Wyrick says, describing an image that will be a mix of urban scenes, the city skyline and mountains.
The sketch is not ready yet, but the canvas is. The walls of the Bachman Tubes leading into East Ridge are, in Mayor Mike Steele's words, "just not very attractive."
"If you look at those retainer walls today, they're ugly, they're dirty," Steele says. "When you go in and out of the tunnel, that's the impression you get, and to have some life projected in that tunnel through a mural, I think, would just be outstanding for the community."
Boyd, who's committing $10,000 to $20,000 of his discretionary money to make the mural a reality, said he got the idea from the East Ridge Revitalization Program.
Program President Greg Ezell said one of the group's goals is beautifying Ringgold Road from the tunnel to Interstate 75. The group sees the tunnel mural as part of the larger idea, he said.
"All the prep work will be done by our organization," Ezell said.
Boyd said the artists want to get as much painting done as possible before November and will resume the project in the spring.
Steele said East Ridge will help by having its employees ensure the safety of the people working on the mural.
Boyd said his discretionary money won't cover all the costs since it's a "huge piece of art." Some materials and equipment will need to be donated, he said.
"I'm just trying to facilitate it and make it happen," Boyd tells Wyrick. "I think it's vitally important East Ridge see some action. No more talk."