High River is about to get a beautiful, functioning piece of art, as an artist has been selected to re-design the Centennial Stage in George Lane Park.

Calgary-based industrial designer, John Greg Ball, was awarded the $2,500 prize and says it's a huge honour to be selected, especially since lived in town until he was 18 years old.

"(My friends and I) spent a lot of time on the stage with our skateboards and bikes, just riding around being kids. And the whole park itself is a rich space with lots of activities," he says. "For me, it's a really special park."

Ball's winning design was selected through a public-voting process, and was then approved by a final advisory committee consisting of representatives from the High River Rotary Club, Highwood Lions Club, The High River and District Recreation Board, the Arts and Culture Advisory Committee and the Town of High River.

Ball says when coming up with the design, he wanted to stay true to High River's history, while at the same time adding some modern aspects.

"The first thing I thought about was how the shape of the stage was designed in 1967 for the Canadian Centennial, I thought that was interesting to try and keep that shape because it's part of the town's recent history," he says. "And then I went quite a bit father back to the Medicine Tree, which is a big story for High River. The tree has magical qualities and was a special place for early settlers."

Ball says he added some modern flair to the design by including LED lights that will illuminate the stage at night.

He says people will be able to select a colour they want the lights to be, which he says will be great for events like Canada Day when the stage can be lit up in red.

The project has been made possible by Rotary International, which donated $100,000.

The next step will be to hire a builder who will follow Ball's design specifications, and the stage is expected to be completed by fall of 2015.