Luckily for me and my fellow pizza connoisseurs, Uptown is bursting at the seams with pizza options. Better yet is being within close walking distance of several places, and having yet more options within delivery distance. Proximity to a good pizza place is a neighborhood essential for me. It’s not really appropriate to say it’s the glue that holds a neighborhood together, but I don’t think I’d be too far off to say that a community’s quality of life is directly related at least in part to the number of quality pizza joints available to its residents. They soon began brainstorming ideas for the project, and he said he loves the result.ĭe Bruin, who has two years left in Orbis, said he plans to continue with the initiative to bring more art to Ankeny.Ĭhris Higgins covers the eastern suburbs for the Register.Pizza. 'When they walked in, it was an immediate yes,' Harrington said. His business was the first the Orbis students reached out to. Kevin Harrington, the owner of the Leaning Tower of Pizza, has been thinking about putting a mural up for years, but doing so privately can be pricy. 'People are in awe right now because it's not something you see every day,' said Johnson, a spring graduate from Ankeny Centennial who said she's been making art ever since she could hold a pencil. The students wanted something vibrant that also fit the vibe of Uptown, and they interacted with people who were out and about in the neighborhood to ask about what they wanted to see included. The colorful and retro comic-style mural includes whimsical elements, like a skateboarder delivering pizza, and nods to Ankeny's past, like a vintage lamppost. More: Brother and sister from Ankeny turn alumni banquet into four-generation family reunion

'I figured I should try to do something like that in Ankeny, not just in Des Moines,' he said.

De Bruin, who will be a junior at Ankeny Centennial this fall, said he's been making art for a few years now, including doing commissioned stencil pieces and fashion design and interning with a muralist in Des Moines. The goal for these students was to incorporate more art into Ankeny.

The mural grew out of their work in Orbis, a project-based learning program in the Ankeny school district where students pursue ways to solve problems and improve the community. A new mural sprung up on an Ankeny landmark this month, kickstarting a student effort to bring more art to town.Ĭaeden De Bruin, Katie Johnson, Emma Bresson and Isaiah Stearns were involved in bringing the mural to the side of the Leaning Tower of Pizza, 512 S.W.

Leaning tower of pizza uptown