A total of 90 bike racks to be installed on the Promenade from Laurier Ave. to the Queensway will frame public artworks designed by 27 local artists.

The first 30 designs, crafted from 1/4-inch panels of plasma-cut stainless steel, are scheduled to be installed this fall, with the remainder to follow in step with the reconstruction project.

Artists submitted designs to a jury comprised of members of the Bank Street Promenade Business Improvement Area, the Centretown Citizens' Coalition, and the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. The selection committee was overseen by a group of artists and the city's project landscape architect.

"We gave the artists some criteria. We wanted (the designs) to fit within the site and within the community," said city cultural planner Karen Nesbitt. "So a lot of them have connected with the Bank Street North community and are relevant to that particular location."

The selection committee fielded 169 artist proposals and presented 50 designs for public consultation last month. The winning designers share a $45,000 purse from the public art budget.

"Normally when we do public art, the artist does the fabrication, because they are such unique pieces. In this case, we're undertaking the fabrication and they provided the designs," said Nesbitt.

The public art display will join similar projects on Bank St. in the Glebe, where sculptures will be erected beginning in 2010, and a Wellington St. West project featuring fire hydrants sculpted from stone.

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