The Edgartown beautification committee, whose mission is to bring aesthetic improvements to the town not covered by taxes, has begun a fund-raising campaign to beautify the gateway to town.

Committee member Carol Fligor would like to see a sign at the Triangle that says Welcome to Edgartown, established 1671.

Mrs. Fligor, who with her husband, Dick, ran a retail clothing store in Edgartown for 44 years and closed shop nine years ago, said she has been working to improve the entryway to the town for five years. Her inspiration comes from Donaroma’s Nursery on Upper Main street.

“The entrance to Donorama is so uplifting,” Mrs. Fligor said. “Ever since they have done their wonderful work, I have been trying to get someone to do something about our town.”

Anne Vose, chairman of the beautification committee, said: “We’ve been thinking that since the town has changed [with business development spreading into Upper Main street], you are truly entering Edgartown at an earlier point.”

Discussion within the committee began about a year and a half ago, Mrs. Vose said. The committee’s other projects have included putting up over a dozen reproduction antique lampposts along Main street, and over 30 planters. In the summer baskets of geraniums are hung from the lampposts. The committee has also placed benches for sitting in strategic spots around the downtown area.

The committee’s annual budget is $10,000.

Members are now hoping to raise about $40,000 in private contributions for the gateway beautification project.

The committee envisions a landscaped green space with a handsome welcome-to-town sign in the small island near the Square Rigger Restaurant; the area now hosts a collection of traffic signs and signs promoting the local Rotary Club schedule, the Lions Club and identifying Edgartown as a Heart Safe Community. Drawings have been prepared and the committee hopes to engage the services of Joe Uranker, a woodcarver who lives in Oak Bluffs, to make the sign.

Mrs. Fligor and her husband spent $1,000 of their own money to conduct a survey of the patch of land. “The town owns the property, but I think the state has a lot to say in this. We think we have cleared everything,” Mrs. Fligor said.

Other members of the committee include Gerret Conover, Christina Miller and Cammie Naylor.

The committee’s goal is to complete the project by the spring of 2012.

Tax deductible contributions to the Edgartown Beautification Committee may be sent to P.O. Box 5158, Edgartown, MA 02539.