Dog Mural To Replace Skip's Dollar Bills

The collection of defaced dollar bills covering the inside walls and ceiling at Skip’s Bar & Grill may be gone, but bare walls won't stand for long. 

“People were upset at first [about the dollar bills] because it was personal for them,” longtime Skip's employee Karen Chamusco said. 

But "removing it was a blessing in disguise," said owner Skip French. 

Two months ago, a Dunedin fire marshal on a routine inspection explained that the money and photographs that covered the walls and ceiling posed a fire hazard and had to be taken down. 

“She was just doing her job,” Chamusco said.

Chamusco and French have been business partners at the popular, laid back downtown beer bar for more than 20 years. 

Although they were sad to see the décor go, “it forced us to get creative and might have been the push we needed to do something new,” French said.

French and local artist Anna Hamilton Fields brainstormed and came up with an idea for a mural at the entrance of the bar. It will occupy the space once filled with pictures.

Similar to the mural on the outside of the building, it will depict dogs in a bar setting. Customers can pay for a spot on the wall and have their furry friend featured there.

A idea for a personalized dog mural was a collaboration.

"We talked about [the outside mural] for about two years and finally did it. Every one of those dogs is someone's pet. People love it," said Fields.

It was also a good way to offset costs and have the mural pay for itself. Fields' murals became so popular she co-founded non-profit organization Murals for Mutts.

When the mural is finished, Skip’s will host an auction and donate all proceeds including the dollar bills to Dunedin Doggie Rescue. Skip’s also plans to also use the auction as an adoption event for Dunedin Doggie Rescue.

“We’ve always been involved with the rescue, I even got my own dog from there,” French said.