Former Undergraduate Council President Rohit Chopra ’04 serves on the city’s Harvard Square Design Committee and has viewed Pinto’s presentations.

“I saw [Pinto’s] vision on how to enliven a street using artwork. It seemed like she had a really good vision...I think she brings a lot of spark,” Chopra said.

City Transportation Manager Kathy Watkins said that a city ordinance mandates that 1 percent of infrastructure projects is set aside for public art. She said the brightening of Palmer Street will fulfill public art component of the Square project.

John DiGiovanni, the president of Trinity Property Management, which owns the Palmer Street Coop building, said that he was at first indifferent to the city public art ordinance but was convinced by Pinto’s plans.

“Jody Pinto gets the concept of weaving public art into the overall improvement of the Square,” said DiGiovanni, who is also the president of the Harvard Square Business Association. “That alley will be transformed.”

Thomas Lee, the program manager of Learning From Performers at the Office for the Arts, said that eight students attended Pinto’s tour of the alley two weeks ago.

Abby E. Carruthers ’04, who attended the tour, said that she was excited by Pinto’s proposal.

“Right now the street seems under-utilized,” said Carruthers, who hopes to be an urban planner.

“If you energize the street...people are encouraged to use it...The possibilities are endless,” she said.

Watkins said that the construction of high-priority streetscaping projects, including the Palmer Street brightening, will begin next fall or spring.

—Staff writer Joseph M. Tartakoff can be reached at tartakof@fas.harvard.edu.