Minneapolis residents have fallen in love. And the object of their affection is the Lake Creature.

On July 8, the Lake Creature mysteriously appeared in Lake Harriet and a strategic viral/word-of-mouth campaign was put into motion. As runners and bikers stopped in their tracks and families made special trips to see this curious lass floating in the murky lake waters, word of her arrival spread like wildfire. She was photographed, videotaped and viewed by thousands.

For a solid week, the hunger of curiosity was only fed through a Twitter account and a microsite, www.lakecreature.com. It was there that people could speculate about her, and speculate they did. In that first week alone, nearly 7,000 people visited the microsite to read about or submit a story describing what she was, where she came from, how she got there or what she’d do while visiting. On Twitter, she was a popular topic and romanced more than 150 followers with direct message and playful quips.

Finally, on July 16, we let the monster out of the bag. The creature, a public work of art sculpted by renowned artist Cameron Gainer and officially titled _[, was presented to the people of greater Minneapolis by the Minneapolis Parks Foundation, a non-profit organization that seeks to enhance the lives of residents by investing in unique park projects. It’s the first of several creative park projects the Foundation has in store for residents — and as an agency, we couldn’t be more excited to be their partner.