It’s official. The red geranium is now Albert Lea’s flower.

Just a few months after the “Bloom Where You’re Planted” campaign kicked off — encouraging every home and businessowner in Albert Lea to plant a red geranium in their front yards — the Albert Lea City Council voted Monday to designate it the city flower.

The idea behind the campaign was to unite the city and make it beautiful.

“People just seemed to embrace this project,” said Karen Trow, chairwoman of the Appearance and Attitude Committee of the Land Between the Lakes Action Team. “It just seemed to be something that people grasped. Every place I’ve gone they seemed so enthused at doing this.”

When the campaign began, it was under the hope that soon the red geranium would become Albert Lea’s flower and every time someone would come into the city from out of town, they’d see all of the flowers and think “there must be something going on here,” Trow said at the time the project started.

Several organizations in town came together for the campaign, and after much response from the community, planners want to expand it even more next year.

“This is one that would enhance our whole community and show us working together on one thing to show our unity and our city pride,” said Mary Ellen Johnson, president of the Albert Lea Downtown Association. She talked of many other cities that have plants and flowers officially designated.

Also, the red geranium is a hardy plant that is easy to take care of in this state, Johnson said. It requires only a little bit of water — but not a whole lot — to stay alive.

“The red geranium makes everybody smile,” said Joyce Nixon of Oak Park Place. “It just makes everybody feel good … We can further bloom and we can make our city be a positive and move ahead with this.”

Councilor George Marin asked how the group came up with using the red geranium.

Councilor Vern Rasmussen was the only member of the council who voted against the action. He said he did so because he thought this was something that needed further attention from the community before it went up for vote.

In other news, the City Council:

– Approved an agreement with the Albert Lea Public Library Foundation for a used book store and coffee kiosk in the lower level lobby at City Hall.

All proceeds of sales would be used for gifts to the library, and the book store would be open for at least 15 hours each week.

It would cover 500 square feet of space.

The arrangement will be reviewed annually.

– Approved limited deer hunting on city-owned land beginning Sept. 13 and going through Dec. 31.

Because deer are being sighted at the airport, the hunt will be held to keep deer moving away from the airport property.

To participate, applicants will pay a $10 entry fee, and then 40 people will be selected randomly to hunt. Applications would be submitted to the city engineer’s office by 3 p.m. Sept. 5.

This would be the 11th year of the deer management archery hunt and would be run in a fashion similar to past years.

Last year, only one deer was killed.

– Voted to change the parking hours on Newton Avenue between Clark Street and Fountain Street from two-hour parking to eight-hour parking. The change was made because of an increased number of employees working in the downtown area.