Berwick Art Association Plans Downtown Facelift

BERWICK - Residents of Berwick can expect a change of scenery in their downtown area, courtesy of the Berwick Art Association (BAA). The group has obtained permission to paint a mural on the outside walls of Prime Tanning, adjacent from town hall, and plans to submit a draft for final approval early next week.

Obtaining permission from the legal representatives of Prime Tanning was no easy feat, said BAA co-chair Justin Bloom. According to Bloom, the group made calls daily to Prime Tanning representatives for over a month before they finally reached an agreement that would allow the association to paint a mural.

Part of that agreement was the BAA could claim no ownership to the artwork on the wall. This would mean that if and when Prime Tanning is demolished, the group could not take legal action to protect their artwork.

However, the group has already found a “state of the art” method in preserving their work through one or more companies that create digital time montages using GPS and cell phones. The way it works is a company, like Circa, creates an app for a cell phones that enables the phone to access photos of what a certain location looked like in different stages of history, simply by pointing the cell phone at the desired location.

The group plans on documenting the progress of constructing the mural and uploading the photos to Circa. In this way, the Berwick mural will be immortalized in history archives.

“Even if we can only put something up for two years before it is torn down, it’s better than nothing at all,” said Bloom.

The group of artists plan to create a rural scene of rivers, trees and farmlands that runs at least 500 feet along the Prime Tanning wall. Within the rural scene there will be designated shaded areas, outlined by simplistic shapes, that will be made available to the members of the public that would like to contribute to the mural. The end result will resemble a quilt-like design.

“We want to let anyone that wants to participate, including youth groups, have access to the wall,” said Bloom.

Although Bloom said town officials do not oppose the idea, they are not in any position to fund the project. Therefore, the financial obligation would fall solely on the BAA.

BAA founder Erin Duquette, said she has already made contact with several painting businesses that are willing to donate services and materials to prepare the wall for the mural. These materials and services would be given in exchange for a small company logo incorporated onto the wall.

Final approval of the project is pending design acceptance from Prime Tanning’s legal representatives. Bloom said that he also plans on presenting a draft to town officials to make sure they do not oppose to the contents of the design. 

Source

Could you see something like this in downtown Berwick?

Letter to the Editor: Berwick's Possibilities

7 Additions I want to see in

Downtown Berwick: A path to a vibrant and prosperous village center.

Author: James Peter Bellissimo

Photo credit: GLA, A Division of BETA Group, Inc.

It’s not everyday a village has an opportunity to create a downtown from scratch.

Have high aspirations folks!

Because innovative, sustainable ideas that solve problems attract major funding. There are millions  (more on this in future articles) of dollars in Grant money available. The issue is not financial; it is a challenge of vision and creativity, which we all encompass.

These additions serve to spark a whole new local economy that Berwick hasn’t seen before, which could create enough opportunity to employ and sustain local village members. Initiatives like a Wellness Center and Music Amphitheater help to bring people in town, serving as a central draw that other local businesses can thrive of off.

These additions are designed to beautify our environment and bring people together, giving community members a comfortable and most importantly a meaningful way to interact.

So without further ado, here are my top 7 things I’d like to see added to Berwick’s downtown area:

#7 New Welcome to Berwick signs

How about something we can get done right away?

Questions:

Coming across the Somersworth/Berwick Bridge, what are some things that we could add that add to the town’s aesthetics? What would you want to see removed?

What kind of welcome sign would you like to see?

Some notable responses from the survey:

“Where the river meets recreation.”

“Where you always feel at home.”

“A Place to Build Memories.”

#6 Public transportation

I want to see convenient and comfortable public transportation to spots like Portland, ME, I say Portland because I go to school there, (add wherever you’d like to go as well.)  It’s about connecting to other towns.

While it may not make sense at first to give people an easy option to leave Berwick, the idea is that our vision will create enough interest for people to actually want to come into town.

How’s this for a marketing campaign:

Escape the city; come to Berwick, a fresh breath of air.

Give people an option to take a bus into town = less cars = less traffic, more walking and this means more business for local shops.

#5 Berwick Resource Center

Much like the library, where you can go to and “rent,” but instead of books or movies, you’d be renting essential equipment, tools and machines that help get stuff done around your house or for the community. Having these resources readily available, open access, allows for things to get done in the moment. And besides, not every single person in our 7,000+ member community needs a screwdriver right? Not just limited to tools either, how about exchanging skills?

How valuable would it be to have local skill-trades? Want to learn about carpentry? Great, Mr. _____ has been doing it for 25 years, oh you have a skill to offer the town? Awesome, let’s share our gifts and learn to exchange locally.

Photo credit: Century 21 Newson Associates

Potential Location: 25 Sawmill Hill Road

Potential other uses for this building: Restaurant, Function Facility, School (Day Care, Pre-school, Dance, Ballet, Yoga, Gymnastics, Karate), Retail (Grocery, Gym etc.), Town Recreation area and facility.

This location is right across the street from the Salmon Falls River!

 

Source

#4 Intellectual Café
A place you go to cultivate ideas. The whole environment is set up for collaboration and inspiration. Also a place where you can grab something delicious and healthy!

Example: treehouse institute creates “unique physical spaces to foster collaborative creativity.

#3 Berwick Rec Center

I play basketball. It’s a great way to build instant connections, community is found through common unions.  How much could our local athletes benefit from having a place to play sports? Maybe something like the USM field house in Gorham Maine. You could also do track, indoor soccer. Hold tournaments and competitions for all ages. This building could double as a Wellness Center, something like Health Food Store and Yoga By Donation in Portsmouth.

Photo credit: University Of Southern Maine

#2 Greenway trail system

A greenway trail system, accessible to bikes and horses, would be a unique and pleasing way to get to different points of the downtown area. Connecting the library, Berwick Rec Fields, new Resource Center and Rec Center;) and Downtown, throughout the town.

During the winter, we could get around by snowshoe and XC skiing.

Trail connections could also connect to neighboring towns

#1 Berwick Outdoor Amphitheater

Human expression, music brings people together, it transcends perceived differences. It’s a tool that has been used since, well ever by our species to connect. This amphitheater would serve as a central draw for the downtown area. Local restaurants, specialty shops in Berwick would majorly benefit from 500-1,000 people in town.

Potential Cultural Event:

How cool would a New Year’s Winter Music/Arts festival be in town?!

 

Source - Brunswick Outdoor Arts Festival

Could you see something like this in town?

Comparison: Cochecho Arts Festival – Dover NH

“The Friday Night Headliner Concerts are the signature Series of the Festival, with average crowds ranging from 1,500 to 2,500 per night.  Music lovers of all ages flock to Henry Law Park (Corner of Washington St and Henry Law Ave) with picnic blankets, lawn chairs, friends and family to enjoy music in a setting that truly epitomizes the charm and sense of community found only in New England cities as vibrant and historic as Dover.” Source

What about our rural culture?

What would you rather see? 

Photo Credit: St. Germain Collins Environmental Consulting Group

Photo Credit: Statesman Journal / Timothy J. Gonzalez

The additions suggested keep in mind that we want to stay away from overdeveloping and looking like a concrete mess. Comfort, sustainability and aesthetics are extremely important.

“Do we have the “market to make these additions tangible?”

We have 10,000 cars that drive through our town daily to get somewhere to do something that’s obviously vacant from our town. There are 50,000+ people within a 25-mile radius of our town.

“What about parking and traffic flow?”

Needless to say, this is essential to figure out. We attempted to address in these challenges in this initial sketch, which was completed after our first Charette  on May 2^nd . If you have any ideas, please to share!

There’s so much more to discuss!

I hope this article got you thinking about what’s truly possible! But of course these are just possibilities. To make stuff like this happen it will require our town to get on the same page! I’ve seen some amazing things already in our community and I’m inspired. I’ve called Berwick my home for my entire life of 24 years and intend to stay.

We’re a gateway to Maine, let’s be a shining example of what a vibrant community looks like!

Until next time,

James

Do you agree? Disagree? I would love to hear your comments.

Feel free to post on the Facebook page

Or e-mail me @ Bellissimo247@Gmail.com

Painting the Town Red

BERWICK - Berwick’s newly formed art association aims to “paint the town red” next month in a kick off to the group’s agenda on upcoming community events.

On August 24, at 11 a.m., members of the Berwick Art Association (BAA) will gather at the Lady of Peace church on Saw Mill Road in Berwick for a live sketching session. A mysterious woman, modeling a fabulous red gown, will pose for local artists as they form a collaborative sketching session.

Members of the community, artistic, non-artistic or just plain curious are invited to attend and participate in the day’s events. Professional photographer, David Mendelson will be on site throughout the day documenting the occasion.

“This event will serve as a testing ground for future art fairs,” said BAA member and local artist Erin Duquette.

The group has coordinated the event with realtor, Bill Green, who is currently trying to sell the old church for Reverend John Skehan. According to Duquette, Green was more than willing to help the BAA with a site location to host their assembly.

“It’s also providing an opportunity for the church to be seen and attract a potential buyer,” said Duquette. “So it was a win-win situation for both parties.”

The BAA was also quick to form an alliance with the art community in Somersworth. BAA member Justin Bloom said the group has been invited to participate in the Hidden Treasures art fair hosted by Friends of Somersworth. The event, scheduled for September 28, would raise money for charity by donating at least 50 percent of art sales.

“I will donate art,” said Duquette. “I want to see Somersworth succeed in their arts because its just as important.”

Another project the BAA hopes to aspire to includes helping Richard DeCosta of Scarborough with set design for an opera. DeCosta has a series of YouTube videos that are collectively forming his grand vision of an opera about aliens that seek freedom from domination.

More locally, the BAA is currently working to obtain permission to create a mural on the outside walls of Prime Tanning.

At the July 17 BAA meeting, members discussed what they would like to see on the wall, who would be part of the creation, and what costs it may incur. Currently, the group feels that they do not have the support of the town on this project because of the likelihood that Prime Tanning will eventually be demolished.

Member Gloria Houlne said the wall mural could serve as a vision for what the space could be in the future, like a park or a café scene.

Bloom said that he would love to work with the Berwick school district to get students actively involved in the process.

“I could think of seventy kids that would be dying to do something like that,” said BAA member Stefanie Lynn.

The group meets weekly at 5:30 at the Berwick library and welcomes artistic members of the community to participate. For more information on upcoming events visit: www.berwickarts.weebly.com

Source

This is not the mysterious woman. This is not the red dress. To see either, attend the event.

Trails Committee Steps Forth in Berwick

BERWICK - A new committee in Berwick was born this week when the Trails Committee held their first successful meeting Thursday night at town hall. Town planner, John Stoll, and Downtown Vision Committee co-chair, Jessica Sheldon, met with three volunteers that expressed interest in developing trail systems in Berwick.

The group immediately identified the need to create a networking between locals that can contribute information on where existing trails are located.

“There are a lot of people that know a lot of trails and it would be great if we could get them all together and make this information known to the general public,” said Berwick resident Ben Watts.

Sheldon suggested a semi-formal dinner where potential stakeholders could gather and start conversation with each other on what could be done if they worked together to create a trail system.

The committee mapped out the trails they knew existed and advanced to brainstorming ideas for new trail systems. Some of the areas that were under discussion included Cemetery Road, Blackberry Hill Road, Pine Hill Road, Diamond Hill Road, and the elusive area between Logan and Dobson Road where the little known Penny Pond is said to exist.

Town Planner, John Stoll maps out existing trails with Berwick residents Ben Watts and Natalie Gould at the first Trails Committee Meeting in Berwick.

“Penny Pond isn’t really a pond, it’s more of a marsh right now,” said Stoll.

Stoll also spoke of the possibility of creating a trail system on two parcels of land off Blackberry Hill Road that were donated for land conservation.

“Just because it is conservation land doesn’t mean that we can’t create a trail on it,” said Stoll. “It means we can’t develop on it.”

Stoll suggested that landowners in the area may be in favor of the idea due to rumored squatters that were sitting on “land that wasn’t technically owned by anyone.”

The most feasible idea that came from the brainstorming session was creating a trail that ran from the Berwick Police Station to the Library. 

“Seeing the town owns all that land, it would be relatively easy to create a trail there,” said Stoll.

“The library is a great community asset but it’s a scary route to walk,” said Berwick resident Christine Irvin.

The idea was a hit with Sheldon who stated one of the things she would like to see most in Berwick was a way of connecting downtown to other parts of Berwick by trail.

Berwick resident Natalie Gould said adding a sidewalk in that area might be a possibility by means of utilizing a grant program called Safe Road to School.

“Well, I can tell you it’s certainly not a safe road to school right now,” said Sheldon.

The committee concluded the meeting by drafting a list of businesses, potential stakeholders, and organizations they could call upon for help in their efforts to move forward with the trail development tasks. The list included, but was not limited to, Eastern Trail Association, Rails to Trails Program, Salmon Falls Nursery, SAD 60, Great Works and PSNH.

“We want this to be a positive experience that nobody is going to be against and everybody is going to want,” said Stoll. 

Source

 

 If you could add a trail anywhere, where would it be, and why?

Horsepower Drives Berwick in a New Direction

BERWICK - With the development of new ideas for Berwick’s future, the Downtown Vision Committee (DVC) is calling on residents for more “horsepower”.

During the July 1 DVC meeting co-chair Jessica Sheldon announced that the DVC has created a “spider wed effect” in forming other town committees. As we’ve created a vision for what Berwick residents want to see in their downtown, we’ve identified needs for other committees, said Sheldon.

Currently, there are several other committees being born in Berwick. These committees include trails, culture and events, river front development, preservation and heritage, economic development and sustainability.

It is likely once the DVC reaches their goal of outlining a plan for the former site of Prime Tanning and Berwick’s river front area, the committee will morph into an economic development committee. However, that is just one aspect of the many changes that Berwick will face in the coming year.

The Trails Committee is already well underway, said Sheldon. On July 11, there will be a meeting at 6:30 in town hall to identify members to serve on this committee and gather feedback from residents to outline goals for Berwick trails. Based upon recent meetings of the DVC, it is likely that there will be some discussion on creating a trail from downtown to Penny Pond.

“It’s time we start loving our land actively,” said Sheldon.

The Culture and Events Committee would be responsible for developing community events, like farmer’s markets, art shows and annual celebrations.

There is already one person from Berwick’s recreation department that has volunteered to work on this committee. With ideas like a 5K race in the fall, followed by a haunted tour, this committee is off to a great start, said Sheldon. 

One of the first goals of this committee would be to develop an annual celebration that showcases Berwick’s unique status in the seacoast.

“The antique car show at the 300th Year Celebration was such a huge success perhaps Berwick should consider doing that every year,” said Sheldon.

Source

The Riverfront Committee would be responsible for the preservation and development of the riverfront. This would include ways to clean up any potential residue pollution from Prime Tanning, as well as protecting it from future contamination. This committee would also face the possibility of assisting the town in acquiring riverfront property for recreational use.

“The success of this town is not in constructing new buildings, its in constructing a sense of community,” said Sheldon.

The Preservation and Heritage Committee would be responsible for creating and maintaining Berwick’s historical values. Currently, Berwick’s only “museum” is located at the town hall and is accessible by appointment only.

“Prime Tanning’s smoke stack may an eye sore now, but it could be a landmark or observation tower that pays tribute to those that worked, served and died at Prime Tanning,” said Sheldon. “We want to preserve its historical value.” 

Berwick resident, Ginny Charron, who was present at the DVC meeting suggested the possibility of a farming museum. 

The Economic Development Committee would assist in developing guidelines for new businesses. One method in controlling what types of businesses can set up shop in Berwick may be through the use of form based zoning, explained town planner John Stoll. 

Form based zoning is a zoning method some towns use to define when and what they would like to see enter into a specific geographical location. According to Sheldon, Dover had great success using form based zoning to develop their town.

“The key to Dover’s success was letting the residents depict what they wanted in their town and not letting the zoning be micromanaged by outside sources,” said Sheldon.

The Sustainability Committee would serve as an “umbrella” for all the committees listed above, ensuring that all followed an outlined code of conduct that reflected the environmental concerns of the town.

“It’s about using our resources to the best of our ability and making sure that whatever new projects we take on have a low impact on our earth,” said DVC member Serena Galleshaw.

The next step for DVC is creating a brochure that outlines the results of the survey that was sent out to residents back in April.
Link to survey:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/envisionberwick

“I haven’t seen the kind of horsepower I’ve seen in this town in the last six months, for many, many years,” said DVC member Paul Boisvert. “Berwick is currently looking at an opportunity that only comes once in a hundred years.” 

Who will get behind the wheel of Berwick's future, and who will get left in the dust? 

Source

          Would you like to see an Annual Car Show in Berwick?

Berwick's Future is Now

BERWICK – The Downtown Vision Committee (DVC) met Monday, June 24, to discuss the results of their second charrette, which was held on Saturday, June 22.

The word “charrette” refers to a collaborative session where designers or architects work together to find solutions to a design problem or project. The French translation means “cart” or “chariot”. In 19^th century Paris, student architects worked in groups on design projects. A charrette would be wheeled through the group of students to collect their work. Often times the students could be found putting the finishing touches on their work on the charrette and would be said to be working “en charrette” or “in the cart”.

This is very much the same scene that is currently taking place in Berwick, except there seems to be a desperate shortage of “student architects” working on the project.

The biggest challenge that the committee faces is not getting enough input from Berwick residents on the endless possibilities that the town has in front of them, said DVC member Serena Galleshaw.

The committee holds a meeting the first Monday of every month, open to the public, to discuss the proposed ideas for Berwick’s future. They have sent out a survey to every Berwick resident asking for input. They have also hosted two “charrettes” asking Berwick residents what they would like to see in their downtown district now that Prime Tanning is no longer in operation, and consequently no longer polluting the town’s greatest asset: Salmon Falls River.

Only six people participated in the June 22^nd charrette. Senior project manager, Arek Galle, who works as a landscape architect at GLA was present at the June 24 DVC meeting to discuss the results.

“The biggest idea that came out of Saturday’s charrette is taking Main Street out of the equation,” said Galle.

When the bridge between Somersworth and Berwick is under construction next summer, the section of Main Street that runs in front of Berwick town hall will be closed to traffic. It will be a perfect dry run for the idea, said DVC co-chair Frank Underwood.

There are currently three base models for the downtown vision project that reflect the opinions expressed by residents. These drafts are separated by how much “green space”, meaning recreational land area, the town would like to incorporate into the downtown space formerly occupied by Prime Tanning.

Arek Galle from GLA reviews current drafts for Prime Tanning space

The first model reflects 10 percent green area with 45 percent residential, and 45 percent business. The second draft reflects 40 percent green wrapped in business with virtually no residential. The final draft reflects 75 green with a mix of residential and business. 

 

Galle explained when a town creates an outdoor destination, it also creates a place for businesses to thrive. It all about finding the right balance, said Galle.

One potential project that showed big promise was bringing in a micro-brewery because the there is already an existing water treatment tank on the proposed site, said Galle.

“When I cross the bridge from New Hampshire into Berwick I want to see the riverfront, I want to see businesses, but most of all I want to see people,” said Galleshaw.

Little known to most Berwick residents there is an underground river that runs beneath the Prime Tanning site. Although, there has been some talk of bringing it up to land level, the general consensus is currently against the idea based on concern of flooding and maintenance costs. However, Galleshaw suggested creating a pedestrian trail that runs along its path.

DVC member Judy Haley stressed the importance of bringing taxable revenue into Berwick.

“Berwick residents vote ‘no’ for the new visions they hear about because they are taxed up to here,” said Haley indicating eyebrow level. “We need to bring new tax space into town because voters need to know that these things [recreational ideas] are going to be supported.”

Planning Board member Niles Schore, pointed out that Berwick resident who took the survey that was sent out in April don’t know the results. Schore suggested a brochure including those results be sent out to Berwick residents. This is the next project that the DVC plans to tackle.

The goal of the DVC is to wrap up the vision process by fall and present the gathered information to the selectmen so the town can move into action.

“This is a big project with big horizons,” said Galle. “The future is now.” 

What do you see in Bewick's future?

Grants or Ghost Town?

BERWICK - The sky is the limit where Berwick's grant possibilities for downtown revitalization is concerned. On Tuesday, June 18, guest speaker, Chuck Morgan from Southern Maine Regional Planning Commission, spoke to Berwick residents on the subject of potential grants that Berwick may want to consider for its downtown district.

Morgan presented an extensive amount of information on various grants that were available through the state of Maine for residential, municipal and business development. He outlined which loans were relatively easy to obtain and which were more difficult. According to Morgan, more and more grants are requiring matching funds from businesses and municipalities.

"It's typical that businesses will supply matching funds," said Morgan. "Typically, the matching funds do not come from municipalities." 

Town officials were already aware that Berwick qualified for the Environmental Protection Agency's Brownfield grant program, which would apply to sites like Prime Tanning that present an environmental risk factor. However, there were several other possible grant programs that were brought to light at the June 18, meeting.

Many of the grants Morgan spoke about were part of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. 

One such program was the Maine Economical Development (MED) program, which invests in Maine's high-growth businesses. This program starts around $30,000 in possible grant funds. These grants are used to established venture capital funds that have a plan to retain or create jobs in Maine. At least 51% of the jobs created under this program must be filled by low to moderate income persons.

"With all the towns that I have worked with, filling that quota has never been a problem," said Morgan. 

Morgan used Kennebunk as an example of a Maine town that benefited from the MED program. Kennebunk used this program to extend water and sewer lines to new businesses. 

Other CDGB programs Morgan spoke about included the Micro-enterprise Assistance (MEA), and the Workforce Development Grant (WDG) program. The MEA grant offers a maximum of $25,000 to assist small businesses. The WDG program will award up to $100,000 to any business that creates a job training program which addresses the skill shortage faced by Maine employers. 

"The beauty about the CDBG is almost every community in Maine is eligible for one of these programs," said Morgan. "However, most of these grants are very competitive and they have limited resources."

A program that came very strongly recommended by Morgan was the Pine Tree Development Zone program. This program works by greatly reducing state taxes for up to ten years for new businesses in Maine. In year 2011, there were over 300 Maine businesses that were part of this program. Eligible sectors included but were not limited to manufacturing technology, environmental technology, information technology and financial services. 

"My personal feeling is every manufacturing business in Maine should be a part of this program," said Morgan. "It is available anywhere in the state and it's not a hard application." 


However, not all the programs Morgan presented were grant programs. He also spoke about loan and bond programs from the Finance Authority of Maine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

"There is not as much activity in these programs because they are loan programs," explained Morgan. 

The suggestion of Berwick taking on grants or loans to improve the downtown area, met serious opposition by planning board member Ken Poirier. 

"Be careful about grants," said Poirier. "There is a town in Indiana that is in debt over the same thing Berwick is trying to do here."

Jessica Sheldon of the Downtown Vision Committee (DVC) was interested in exploring the idea of grants further and asked Morgan what steps needed to be taken to apply for these grants. 

Morgan suggested that Sheldon and the other committee members obtain samples of applications to aid them in the process. Morgan offered to review any applications before they were submitted. He also advised the committee to do their home work, have data available and make sure of eligibility before going through the application process.

"These things take a lot of work," said Morgan. "So make sure you're eligible." 

Source

  Do you think Berwick faces this question?