The Buzbees worked with Project 7 Designs out of Des Moines to create a “pizza disco” vibe, and while Michele said she didn’t immediately have the exact finished product etched in her mind, she presented mood boards that helped it eventually come to fruition. Project 7 is no stranger to the family businesses as the company played a key role in the rebranding of Wayward Social and the recreation of old advertisements now plastered across the walls of Zeno’s. P7 Co-owner Katherine Hutchison is also one of Aaron and Michele’s best friends.

“Shel gave us high level imagery, mood board, general direction and sort of said ‘Do your take on a pizza disco, essentially. So she gave us that direction, and our team came up with two totally different options to pick from, and they picked the one that you see today,” Hutchison said. “Where I sit in the whole equation is moreso from the project management standpoint of things, like what’s feasible with the budget, the time, access to the wall using boom lifts and scissor lifts and all sorts of different things, and also weather because eventually it gets colder. We also really wanted to cover the whole thing. We didn’t want to just do one part of it.”

Because the front facade at Zeno’s was redone in 1974, Michele felt that a ’70s themed mural would be a perfect fit to replace the previous one featuring the late T. Nelson Downs, better known as “The King of Koins.”

“We thought it was pretty fitting to stick with that mid-70s era vibe, the heyday of Zeno’s, if you will. One of them. One of many,” Michele said with a laugh. “But (the goal was) just kind of matching the interior to the exterior.”

The new mural, which was created in partnership with Project 7 Designs, also runs along the building’s south wall.

Designer Kira Bliss, who took the pizza disco idea and ran with it, presented two final options to the Buzbees, and the one they chose is now on display for passersby to see whenever they’re driving downtown or stopping in for one of the restaurant’s classic tavern style pizzas.

“We had a couple different versions and revisions and styles going on, but yeah, they gave us that initial pizza disco (concept). So it was a pretty clear direction for this one. We knew it was gonna be pretty groovy and cool,” Bliss said.

Bliss had helped revamp another mural in the past, but this was the first one she had essentially designed from scratch in conjunction with her team. The work started on Sept. 25. It took about three weeks to paint and was fully finished in mid-October.

“It was pretty one to one ratio from the initial design to what was put on the wall. It doesn’t quite have that ‘Whoa’ effect when it’s on paper, but when you step back and see that it’s wrapping around a whole building, you get that (feeling of) ‘Wow, I put that on the wall.’ It’s crazy,” she said.

What the Buzbees didn’t know as they dove into the project was that they were dealing with “unrealized storm damage” to the east and south walls, and it was causing infrastructure problems.

“We thought we were gonna do some patchwork,” Michele started.

“And we ended up having to redo the entire eephus. Both sides, we had to redo entirely, so our budget took a blow with that work, but thanks to the trust and American Express, we were able to accomplish the main part of our goal but also have necessary repairs to our infrastructure that we did not necessarily realize were as big of an issue as they were,” Aaron finished. “And had we just done those repairs, it would’ve just been a blank wall. So now we’re lucky, we’re blessed. We’ve gotta replace the historic mural that was there before with some fresh life.”

Despite the level of planning that goes into them, Hutchison added, projects like these almost always require the parties involved to adjust on the fly, but they tend to work out in the end.

“It’s an honor and also sort of a lot of pressure. I feel like there’s a lot of eyeballs on that building and a lot of people that love that brand and have for a really long time,” she said.

Another major objective was to add more vibrancy to the downtown area, and based on the reactions they’ve received so far, the owners of one of the community’s oldest and most beloved eateries feel like they’ve achieved it.

“It’s been overwhelmingly positive. It’s fun. It’s colorful. There’s no real deeper meaning that’s behind it other than just being fun and a 1970s pizza party. That’s really it,” Aaron said.

For P7, it’s the biggest mural the company has ever been involved in, and Hutchison doubts they’ll ever make one larger. Additionally, Bliss, a native of Sergeant Bluff, hopes the mural will inspire other small-town kids to embrace art and “brighten up their world.”

“We just wanted to spark joy and add color. I think that’s something that’s important in public spaces and things like that, you know, just bringing a little whimsy and joy to people’s day,” Hutchison said. “We’ve painted a lot of things. We’re a team full of designers, but we each have our own artistic talents, and projects like this are really fun for us because it allows us to get away from the computer and put a paintbrush in our hand and be outside.”

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.