Selma just got a new face.

When driving into the city from any of its gateways &045;&045; U.S. Hwy 80 East and West, U.S. Hwy 22 East and U.S. Hwy 14 East &045;&045; new signs can be found welcoming visitors to Selma.

According to Elizabeth Driggers, director of the Selma Community Development Office, the professional appearance of the signs help portray a positive image of Selma as drivers enter the city. The signs, which were erected last week, came after a year’s work by Driggers’ office to get the signs in place.

Patty Sexton, with the office of community development, pointed to the sign’s bottom where a space for upcoming events can be attached &045;&045; the Battle of Selma, for example.

The permanent portion of the sign gives tourist information &045;&045; Selma’s major industry, according to Sexton.

Selma City Council President George Evans said city signs are common in many other cities.

Mayor James Perkins Jr. said Selma’s gateways were important because they deliver the first impression to anyone entering the city. Anything that could be done to improve the entrances to the city was a plus, he reasoned.

Selma’s new entrance signs could be just the beginning of a Selma sign revolution. The next step, Driggers said, will be to look at directional signs and the aesthetics of signs.

Driggers’ office will try to formulate a unified sign plan, which would promote the idea that all city signs fit into Selma’s character &045;&045; along with directing people to various city locations.

The office of community development is looking to Mobile as a model. Future sign plans would come in two phases &045;&045; entrance and directional. The entrance phase includes the four signs erected last week. The directional sign phase includes signs within the city as well as markings for historical neighborhoods.