Located in the center of Arizona, the town of Fountain Hills is known for its impressive fountain. When constructed in 1970, this local attraction was considered the world’s tallest fountain, as it sprays water to a height of 560 feet. And it’s obvious that the structure has since become the immutable symbol of the town, being the central element of the Fountain Hills brand identity.
While the town’s authority has recently carried out a rebranding, the famous fountain has received a fresh, more modern design in the new logo of Fountain Hills. As is often the case with local brand updates, the facelifted visual identity is aimed at livening up the town’s life by welcoming more residents, visitors, and businesses. According to Amanda Jacobs, the head of the Fountain Hills Department of Economic Development, the rebrand will hopefully help the town flourish for generations to come.
The old emblem of Fountain Hills was introduced in 1989, depicting the structure of the spurting fountain against a background of mountains and the rising sun. That round logo also included the circular inscription in a serif font “Town of Fountain Hills Inc. 1989” and the town’s slogan “All that is Arizona”.
As the Town Council’s PR manager, Bo Larsen, admits, the logo served as a signature for many local institutions that used it in their own variations, and it eventually appeared that the town didn’t have a cohesive identity. This fact alone was sufficient for the authority to initiate a rebranding. Besides, the image really looks outdated, being far outside of the modern trends of logo design.
A prior survey among local residents showed that the majority believed the fountain was still the town’s brightest asset and should be saved for the new logo. Another idea expressed by the respondents was that the most valuable qualities of Fountain Hills appeared to be its cleanness and safety.
All of this served as the basis for the design of the new logo, which, while focusing on the fountain, reflects the natural beauty of the area as well as the values of the local community. As a result, the traditional symbols of Fountain Hills were reworked in a simpler manner and designed with a brighter color palette. Thus, the mountains’ red symbolizes the beautiful landscapes around the town, and the yellow sun means bright prospects for the future. The fountain itself has received a clean and a visibly dimensional design. And finally, the Fountain Hills lettering in a sans font below looks quite modern.
