A new public art initiative is looking to engage Kyle community members and inspire creativity and discussion.

Rock the Porch pairs community members with rocking chairs. Participants are asked to make their chairs "thought-provoking, interesting and maybe even a little bit weird," according to the project's website.

According to an early May news release announcing the initiative, the project is sponsored by the Plum Creek development in Kyle and will be similar to the Cow Parade in Chicago and Guitar Town in Austin.

Sean Claes, a 10-year resident of the Plum Creek neighborhood in Kyle, knows exactly how he's going to decorate his chair. Claes said he plans to utilize photos from his blog, https://kyledailyphoto.blogspot.com, to create a "decoupage" tribute to the neighborhood using items such as pictures or colored pieces of paper to decorate.

"I decided that it would be a neat thing to have a rocking chair that is representative of Plum Creek using people and things within Plum Creek," Claes said. "It will be a mixture of photos that I've taken, and I'll probably go out and take some new ones because there have been things springing up in the last few years."

Claes and other participants will have until July 20 to work on the chairs. On July 28, the chairs will be placed in public areas throughout the Plum Creek neighborhood and city.

Designers among the 15 chairs in the initiative include Kyle City Council members, a Hays CISD art teacher, a mother-son duo and more.

Kyle Mayor Lucy Johnson said she and the rest of City Council plan on fleshing out their chair's design at the council's retreat in June.

"The mayor doesn't lead alone," Johnson said. "I wanted to bring the council in on it, too. I think it will be a fun project to work on."

On May 31, Claes' unassembled chair kit was delivered to his family's home in Plum Creek. He said he has already enlisted the help of his two daughters and plans to get assistance from his neighbors in the area that he and his friends refer to as "The Ditch."

"Our neighbors are loving the competition, so it'll be a Ditch effort," Claes said.

For information, visit https://plumcreektx.com/rocktheporch.