OPINION: Leavitt’s Bakery Mural was a “Fantastic Addition”

Grace Gange

She/Her

Contributor

5/3/24

I have been going to Leavitt’s Bakery in Conway, New Hampshire, my entire life. Picking out a pastry every Friday before school was the highlight of my week. The bakery was always a dark red color with nothing to grab your attention except the yearly Christmas tree sale sign – until somewhat recently.

A group of my peers from the local high school painted a mural for the bakery. The mural is brightly colored with an arrangement of pastries and a pastel sunset behind them. The mural is loved by Conway locals and is one of the few changes that have been made recently to the area that hasn’t hurt the integrity of the Mount Washington Valley. The brightly colored sign grabs the attention of not just the local crowd but the tourists who visit the valley, making it a fantastic addition to the bakery. 

Though the mural felt like a beautiful incorporation into the town to the local residents, not everyone agreed. Officials for the Town of Conway said the massive pastry mural on top of Leavitt’s Bakery must be taken down. Zoning officials claimed that, because baked goods cover most of the mural, it is an advertisement instead of a piece of art. Sadly, the sign – at ninety square feet – is also four times bigger than the local sign code allows. 

A little over a year ago, Sean Young, who owns the bakery, brought a federal lawsuit against Conway, stating that the town is violating the business’s First Amendment right to keep the mural in place. Town officials said Young should have asked for permission to put up said “sign,” but “the whole point of the First Amendment is that we don’t have to ask government officials for permission before we get to speak; we get to be the ones to decide what to say or what to paint,” an attorney for Young said. 

What started as a nice piece of volunteer work done by local kids has been transformed into a major political issue. Most people you will speak to believe that the mural should stay put, as it adds something more to the valley, but officials will play it down to taking advantage of the valley’s youth to make such an elaborate and flashy advertisement. 

Editor’s Note: An ordinance passed in Conway on April 9, 2024, established new criteria – including approval from the planning, zoning, and select boards – for art on commercial property, according to the Associated Press. But, as Young’s lawsuit awaits trial in November, the fate of the bakery’s mural is unknown.

Grace Gagne ’27 English Ed major and member of the Honors Program.