Pittsfield Parks Commission OKs New Art Festival, Hears Wahconah Park Update
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A new arts festival is coming to The Common at the end of September.
On Tuesday, the Parks Commission OK'd the first Local Love Arts Festival at The Common on Sunday, Sept. 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It is being held by Downtown Pittsfield Inc., in collaboration with the city and other organizations.
Managing Director Rebecca Brien said this is, in part, a fundraiser for DPI to help further other activities it does.
"It is basically up to 50 vendors selling art," she explained. "We have proposed three food trucks, along with a beer garden and children's activities off to the side, just to make sure that our family-friendly regulars have something for the kids to do."
DPI is partnering with Pittsfield's Office of Cultural Development and Berkshires Jazz, which will incorporate its summer showcase that was previously rained out.
Brien is hoping for a good turnout of about 500 people based on the number of people that attend First Fridays events downtown.
She said the intent is to make this arts festival a little bit more elevated than the First Fridays at Five events, which Mayor Peter Marchetti launched in 2024 to combine the beloved Third Thursdays and the First Fridays Artswalks. Only those who make their own handmade products will be accepted to vend.
This event is also in collaboration with DPI.
There will be as many as four food trucks, and the section serving alcohol will be separated and monitored.
Commissioners commented that they like the continuity and collaboration, and that the event sounds organized and like it checks all of the boxes.
DPI's website says the event will "celebrate the incredible talent of Berkshire County's artists while creating a vibrant Downtown experience filled with art, music, food, family activities, and community."
A portion of the proceeds from the festival will support Downtown Pittsfield, Inc.'s ongoing work to promote local businesses, public art, placemaking, and community events throughout Downtown Pittsfield, the website explains.
During Tuesday's meeting, Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath delivered updates on city projects, including the razing of Wahconah Park.
He reported that the grandstand demolition is still lingering, and emphasized that "It's not a result of us. It's a result of the [Department of Environmental Protection] looking over very, very closely with high scrutiny, the demo plans for the project."
"All of the hazardous material has been abated from the building. It's completely cleared out of any hazardous stuff. It's now just a matter of getting what's called the non-regulated portions of the building, which is just the steel, the uprights, the facades, the railings, all that stuff that's non-hazardous," he explained.
"That all has to be approved, and DEP apparently is just dragging their heels. We're constantly pinging them. We want to see this move, but it's going to happen; we're just in the middle of sort of a complicating issue."
Pittsfield has put together a request for proposals for the new grandstand, as required by the state, and formed a pre-qualification committee.
McGrath reported seeing stacks and stacks of admissions come in.
"There's a lot of interest, I think, from vendors to be pre-qualified, and only those that are pre-qualified can then bid on the project," he said.
"… The city's strategy is to bid the project, even though at this moment in time we don't have the definitive financing plan, but that's okay. We can still put this out to bid to those pre-qualified bidders. Ask them to deliver a backup price, and that'll help the mayor narrow down exactly what this will cost when we see a range of pricing and what the low bid number is."
Tags: arts festival, public parks,
