On Friday, June 13, 2014, the Town of Chestertown and RiverArts will host a public meeting from 10 a.m. to noon at the Garfield Center for the Arts to initiate a Public Arts Master Plan for the Town’s waterfront area. The Master Plan will describe how public art can be integrated into public and private spaces primarily along the Town’s waterfront area, from the foot of High Street to Radcliffe Creek and including some of the historic downtown. Pedestrian connectivity is an important concern. Three themes identified by local stakeholder groups will guide the creation of the Plan: art, environment, and history.
“Chestertown is one of the most beautiful and historic towns on the Eastern Shore,” said Mayor Chris Cerino. “By focusing on the arts, the town can capitalize on its amazing setting and natural resources, its history and small town vitality, its relationship with Washington College, and the creative capital of its citizens.”
Lani Seikaly, President of the RiverArts Board of Directors, said “as one of only two communities in Maryland to receive a National Endowment for the Arts Our Town grant, Chestertown has a wonderful opportunity to distinguish itself as an arts destination.” As described by the NEA’s Our Town program,“communities across our nation are leveraging the arts and engaging design to make their communities more livable with enhanced quality of life, increased creative activity, a distinct sense of place, and vibrant local economies that together capitalize on their existing assets. The NEA defines these efforts as
the process of Creative Placemaking.”
The public meeting will be led by Ziger/Snead, an architectural firm with a national reputation for design excellence. Architects from Ziger/Snead will present preliminary findings based on research of existing planning documents and plans, as well as site visits. Public comments will be solicited at the meeting. Steve Ziger, partner at Ziger/Snead, says that “as a design firm with strong ties to local and national arts programs and communities, we are excited to help Chestertown determine ways that the arts could be central to its identity. We believe the ingredients are in place for Chestertown to become a regional model as a place that values the arts as a way to bring the community together and celebrate the human spirit.”
Funding for the Public Arts Master Plan is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts Our Town grant program and the Town of Chestertown.
For more information, contact Kees de Mooy at the Town of Chestertown, 410-778-0500 or [email protected].
Hope Clark says
Editor,
Sounds great, but who working a daily job can make a public meeting at that time? Why not have it on a weekday evening or a weekend morning when more community members can make it?
Robin Faitoute says
I agree with Hope. This opportunity is exciting. Wish I could attend. For those attending…
For precedent, I suggest looking to the little gem, Pierce’s Park, along Baltimore Harbor’s Pier 5 (behind the IMET building). It’s a magical–and sustainable–space that incorporates interactive sculptures (including a musical fence), areas for gathering, open space for unstructured play and multiple raingardens. For further inspiration, the Exploratorium’s outdoor exhibits on their San Francisco campus and nearby Fort Mason encourage observation of place-based phenomenon–including wind, tide and even the changing color of water. Some of the installations are sculptures in their own right.