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Date: 5/7/2019
CHICOPEE – On the evening of May 17, downtown Chicopee will be awash in light and music as part of Lights On Art & Culture, an initiative to literally shine a light on the city’s businesses and arts. Lights on Art & Culture is a collaboration between the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce and the Chicopee Cultural Council.
Downtown Chicopee is “alive and well,” said Jessica Roncarti-Howe, president of the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce. To draw attention to this, businesses on Central Street, Exchange Street, and some on Front Street stay open from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and leave their lights on. That’s not all, though.
There will be a dance party, complete with a DJ, outside of the old library said Susan Knightly, chairperson of the Chicopee Cultural Council. She said businesses will have light towers outside and hold raffles, there will be giveaways, food trucks, a bookmobile, and a capella music. The SilverBrick Mills on Front Street will have examples of one-bedroom and studio apartments for people to tour and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority will be supplying a van to shuttle people from the library to the mill.
This is the third Lights On Art & Culture event. The first was in September 2018, and was followed by another this February. They are planning on having them quarterly, said Roncarti-Howe. Knightly said the goal is to continue to bring people together in an informal way.
“Take the strange out of stranger,” Knightly said.
“It gets a little bigger each time,” Roncarti-Howe said. It has prompted more neighbors to come out and more businesses have been leaving their lights on.
“People are curious about what’s new and exciting,” said Roncarti-Howe. At the same time, she said, it is also driving people into established businesses.
Some of the businesses that plan to be open for the event include GoodWorks Coffee House, Botanical Yemaya, and Horseshoes and Hand Grenades. There will be a gallery show at oOps! an art experience that night, as well.
Knightly said the question the Cultural Council asked themselves was, “How could we build the social capital of the businesses that are there?” It’s part of an effort in what Knightly called, “creative placemaking,” that looks at spaces to build community.
The Transformational Development Initiative, run through Mass Development, awarded the Chicopee Cultural Council a $12,000 grant. TDI helps to look at partnerships that could be created within a community. As part of the grant, the Cultural Council partnered with SilverBrick Mills.
Knightly said the Chamber of Commerce is helping to build a stronger business community. They’re trying to encourage young people from the colleges to start small businesses in Chicopee. Due to the renovations of the Mills, Knightly said she expects 1,000 new residence within three to five years.
“People love being from Chicopee,” Knightly said.
Knightly sees Lights On Art & Culture as just the beginning. She said she would love to see an art center in the old Library, which is currently vacant. The Cultural Council is looking for funding to do an event along the Riverwalk. They also have plans for a “Fantastical Fall Festival” that will be held in a different Chicopee village each year.