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NEWS&VIEWS by Jacqueline Bennett

Posts tagged “IMAGINE Main Street

Change Was on Display at 42nd Annual “Art in the Park” in Manchester, Connecticut

Posted on June 9, 2015

Article & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Change was on display June 7 when more than 127 artisans, crafters and other vendors took part in the 42nd Annual “Art in the Park” held in Manchester, Connecticut’s Center Memorial Park. After four decades of being run by the Manchester Art Association, the first Sunday in June slot was kept but this year the event became juried as the reins were handed to new hosts Young @ Art CT and Imagine Main Street under the supervision of a new coordinator, Cynthia Bulaong.   The first-come, first-pick approach of the past for registered participants was scrapped and replaced with assigned spots, interactive art projects were featured, as well as, live performances throughout the day from 10…

“Imagine Main Street” – Strives To Make Downtown Relevant Again

Posted on June 13, 2014

Story & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com  It has been decades since the first mall was built in the United States circa the late 1950s. Soon enough the mall phenomenon usurped the role of  “downtown” as a retail shopping magnet and place to meet across America.   For nearly as long the struggle has ensued to keep “Main Street” and “Downtown” relevant. The Main Street program emerged to assist towns and cities with revitalization. As well, individually communities continue the fight to more than just keep their main streets alive -rather to once again make them vibrant.   An example of efforts to preserve America’s main streets is currently underway in Manchester, Connecticut. The Imagine Main St initiative is celebrating its second anniversary with…

New Christmas Tree for Downtown Manchester Replaces ‘Charlie Brown’ Spruce

Posted on December 6, 2013

Write-up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb  The Christmas season was welcomed into downtown Manchester, Connecticut December 5 with the lighting of a new tree donated by Jeff and Dianne Hedrick. A twenty foot Balsam fir, it replaces a once 37 foot Norwegian spruce that had to be removed after Hurricane Sandy hacked several feet off of it last year. However, left without time to find a different tree for the 2012 holiday season the Downtown Manchester Special Services District decided to decorate the sparse tree and it was dubbed a ‘Charlie Brown Tree’ borrowing from the famed Peanuts series. The ‘Charlie Brown Tree’ drew more than the usual attention to the annual event. Arrival of the new tree just over a month ago…