Here come the dinosaurs.

A new paleolithic period will be dawning soon for Greater Binghamton. Anyone who drives around the region next summer will be rubbing elbows with 100 5-by-5-foot fiberglass dinosaur sculptures. The dinosaurs are part of a project called "Ya Gotta Have Hart," and are based on the familiar and lovable "Gronk" from the comic strip "B.C.," drawn by the late Johnny Hart of Nineveh.

However, these are no ordinary Gronks. They'll each be decorated and designed by a local artist.

Many other cities have undertaken similar projects. For example, Toledo was invaded by giant frogs; pigs "went on parade" in Seattle; decorated mermaids swam through Norfolk, Va., and Toronto has been stampeded by art-enhanced moose sculptures, among others.

The Binghamton whimsical art project "will put us on the map," project Co-Chair Alfred Lavker of Lavker Enterprises said. "It is has everything going for it. It is a project that promises economic, public relations and enhanced reputation for creativity and the arts for the area."

New York State Assemblywoman Donna A. Lupardo, D-Endwell,who serves on the honorary committee for the project, also is very excited about it.

"Public art helps transform public spaces and can bring a community together," she said. "We have really fabulous artists in our community and this will give us a chance to showcase their talent, while reinforcing Binghamton as an emerging arts community."

How it works

It may look like an invasion of large lizards, but the Binghamton project is a very creative philanthropic scheme.

Here is how it works: The 3-D fiberglass critters are designed by Mason Mastroianni, who is Hart's grandson and now draws the "B.C." strip. Each dinosaur will be "sponsored" locally for a fee. Sponsors, whom organizers hope to have in place by September, will have their pick of local artists, who will each then get their own personal Gronk to decorate, design or paint as they see fit, "adding their own individual flair to each dinosculpture," said Maggie Martin, executive director of the project.

From summer 2009 to winter 2010, the dinosaurs will be stationed at city parks, schools and intersections from the west end of Riverside Drive to the east end of Conklin Avenue. Maps will guide tourists from one dino to the next.

After the installation is over, the sculptures will be auctioned off with funds going to local charities, including the Binghamton Philharmonic, Tri-Cities Opera, Boys & Girls Club, Broome County Community Charities, Inc., and other educational and cultural organizations.

"I am honored they would use our strip for something like this," said Bobby Hart, Hart's widow. "And since the money raised will go back to the community, well, that is always good."

Similar projects in other communities

Public sculpture projects in the same vein in other areas have been tremendously successful. In tiny Kearney, Neb., where a flock of giant crane sculptures nested in 2003, more than $75,000 was raised. Cleveland, Ohio, has hosted successive "Guitarmania" sculpture projects, and more than $1.6 million has been raised, benefiting that city's United Way and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum.

Jim Dible, president of the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership in Erie, Pa., and former publisher of the Erie Times News, said a frog sculpture and two GoFish! public sculpture projects in Erie over the past few years raised significant monies for local charities there. "They did more than raise money, though," said Dible, whose newspaper sponsored a fish sculpture for about $4,000. "It was an amazing tourist attraction in both cases for people who visited the area, and for people who lived here and had visitors."

Erecting the Erie frog and fish sculptures took "a lot of work by volunteers to get off the ground both times, but it had more than a financial return," Dible said. "There was a positive ripple through the community. We all thought, 'Wow. We can do something like this?' and 'Isn't it fun?'"

Although the last of three exhibitions was in 2002, some of the Erie, Pa., sculptures can still be seen today, Dible said. At the airport a fish with wings still stands; there is one at a local high school and another at the Splash Lagoon Indoor Waterpark, among others. "They still look great," Dible said, adding that it was "100 percent positive and generated money for an art museum and a college fund, but also created a buzz around the area that still exists to this day."

How Binghamton could benefit

Bringing such public art sculptures-for-charity to Binghamton was the brainchild of Don Bernardo, senior trust officer at Visions Federal Credit Union. Bernardo, originally from Greater Binghamton, lived in Erie, Pa., when one of the Go-Fish sculpture projects was installed. Bernardo was impressed by the marriage of art and business in the name of local causes. He brought the idea back with him when he relocated his family here. Today, he is one of four local business leaders serving on the "Hart and Soul" working committee.

Local sponsors, Lavker said, will have opportunity for publicity as their names will be mounted on the sculpture they support. Local artists will have a chance to create a large public work, and local charities will be the ultimate beneficiaries. Even the city of Binghamton itself is accruing publicity as a city sponsor.

A few of the designated sites for Gronk sculptures are the Binghamton Zoo at Ross Park, Court Street, city parks and perhaps even Binghamton City Hall. "Some will be herding, others will be out grazing solo," Martin said.

About six sponsors have sent in checks already, Martin said, including Nelson's Lamp Lighters, Time Warner and Behlog & Son Produce. After the Gronks are auctioned off next summer, expect to see them appearing throughout the area landscape, in surrounding towns and villages as well.

"What I love, is it is about downtown and attracting people to the urban core," Martin said. "It is accessible. It is enlivening. This art is for everyone."