For years, Overland Park’s city flag has been ranked among the worst in the country.
Set on a white background, the flag is adorned with the words “Overland Park, Kansas” and its slogan: “Above and beyond. By design.”
“It makes a great business card,” said Ted Keyes, secretary of the North American Vexillological Association. “But it fails in the fundamental purpose of a flag, which is signaling at a distance.”
The Overland Park City Council will vote next month to adopt a new city flag. The leading option features a green and white color palette and is adorned with the image of a large tree.
Keyes, who also compiled the publication “‘Good' Flag, 'Bad' Flag: How to Create a Great Flag,” called it a huge upgrade.
“It's simple, it's got meaningful symbolism, It's got three colors, there are no lettering or seals on it, and it's very distinctive,” he told KCUR’s Up To Date.
The North American Vexillological Association has compiled guidelines on strong flag design, including these five principles:
- Keep it simple, so that a child could potentially draw it from memory
- Use meaningful symbolism
- Limit the number of colors to just two or three that contrast well
- Don't use seals or writing of any kind
- Be distinctive
- Ted Keyes, secretary, North American Vexillological Association
