Peabody Main Streets follows the national economic development model of this program with separate committees working concurrently in the areas of Design, Economic Vitality and Promotions.  Twice a year we bring all committees together to learn what each group is working on. It is important to note that many of these initiatives are a collaborative of work between the volunteers on Main Streets, the City of Peabody, City Council, Chamber of Commerce and organizations such as Peabody Access TV and Peabody Cultural Collaborative. We met last week, and the following is an update:

Design:

• Working with PMLP, Cobra head lights (the big old silver ones along Main St) have been replaced with ornamental poles and lower LED lights.  Wood poles from Washington St to Salem line have also been replaced.  Next phase will be retrofitting the antique lampposts with LED lights.
• Riverwalk - city is applying for another grant to move project forward.  Working with Salem to connect Riverwalk and bike path.
• Transportation - $245K has been allocated by state to study next phase of trolley feasibility.  Mayors of north shore communities are pushing an agenda at the statehouse to focus on community transportation.  Peabody, Salem, Beverly and Danvers are also looking into inter-city transportation options.
• Bike Path - a connection to downtown is being considered
• Public Art - looking for ways to expand public art projects beyond utility boxes
• Light up trees on Main Street.  Since there is limited access to power outlets and the desire to avoid the hazard of electrical cords draped along the street, PMLP is looking at alternative ways to light up the trees along the sidewalk along Main Street.

Economic Vitality:

• Looking into how to take advantage of the Opportunity Zone
• How can we increase mixed used developments downtown
• Everything relates back to zoning.  Developers need to increase density to make a project work financially, but are limited by parking and height restrictions. 

Promotions:

• Focus in 2019 was to increase publicity for downtown and businesses, both inside and outside of Peabody.  
  • Produced a Peabody brochure/map in conjunction with the City, Peabody Chamber and Peabody Access TV that was distributed at tourist areas from southern Maine to Rhode Island.
  • Joint ad with City of Peabody in the No of Boston Visitor and Convention Bureau annual guide promoting Peabody as "most playful city".
  • North of Boston Co-op ad in East Coast Traveler guide which targets bus tours to the region.
  • Joint sponsorship with Peabody's Black Box Theatre of Salem Film Fest, featuring downtown restaurant guide on where to dine.
  • "Experience Peabody" ad in Haunted Happenings Magazine highlighting events during October.
  • "Eat, Drink & Be Local" promotion featured 6 new businesses on Main Street during Dinner on Main.
  • Ugly Sweater Crawl during Holiday Stroll generated business for downtown merchants and restaurants, winning national recognition from the National Main Streets organization.
  • 6-month radio campaign on North Shore 104.9 targeting listeners on the north shore and Merrimack Valley to "experience Peabody".

​The City of Peabody and Peabody Main Streets are pleased to announce the city’s first ever community------wide celebration of LGBTQ Pride Month. Six hours of events and activities are planned for Saturday, June 29th at the Courthouse Plaza in Peabody Square.
 
On June 29th, Peabody Celebrates Pride! will begin with a celebration for all ages at 3:00 p.m. on the Courthouse Plaza. The family-friendly event will feature lots of fun including a DJ Kim Collins, face painting, inspirational rock painting with Create & Escape, games and activities with the Torigian Family YMCA, business vendors, food, drinks, and ice cream. This event will conclude at 5:00 p.m. There is no cost of admission.
 
At 6:00 p.m., Peabody’s popular pop-up pub will return in true Pride fashion to the Courthouse Plaza.  Admission will be open to those 21 years and older to celebrate LGBTQ Pride with family and friends. The Pop-Up Pride Pub will feature entertainment from a DJ, an assortment of lawn games, Drag Queens, as well as a few impersonators. The crowd can help themselves to a cold brew from Ipswich Ale Brewery’s beer truck or a drink from the wine bar. Food will also be available for purchase. The event concludes at 9:00 p.m., as Peabody City Hall lights up in rainbow colors. Admission is $5.
 
“Once again this year we raised the LGBTQ Pride flag at City Hall in recognition of Pride Month,” said Mayor Bettencourt.  “The Peabody Celebrates Pride event on June 29th is another opportunity to celebrate our neighbors, family and friends who belong to the LGBTQ community and to further showcase our revitalized downtown.”
 
The event is organized in collaboration with North Shore Alliance of Gay and Lesbian Youth (NAGLY).
 
LGBTQ Pride Month is celebrated in the month of June and was created to commemorate the Stonewall Riots of 1969 and the struggle for LGBTQ rights in the United States and worldwide. It is also a time to recognize and celebrate the impact LGBTQ people have had on our world.

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Sponsors for the event include: Panos Law Group, Citizens Inn, Gravoc, Laer Realty-Marie Bishop, Phil Richard Insurance, PJ Woods Insurance, and Rotary Club of Peabody.

North Shore Alliance of Gay and Lesbian Youth (nAGLY) is headquartered in Salem with the mission “to honor, respect, educate, and empower LGBTQ youth.” The organization features many programs including youth meetings, an educator and parent group, a middle school group, Trans-cendence, and health consultations. It also hosts frequent workshops and community events. For more information, visit www.nagly.org. 

The Big Apple Circus is in town and proceeds from opening night on April 4th benefits local organizations which a child-friendly focus, including:

CuriousCity Children's Museum
Northeast Arc
Citizens Inn/Haven from Hunger
No Child Goes Hungry in Peabody Program
Peabody School PTO's
Student Health Center at PVMHS

The Big Apple Circus follows the European style "one ring" circus featuring trapeze artists, a dog act, tight rope walking, jugglers and clowns, and a host of other performers.  Purchase tickets, enjoy a fun entertaining family night, and support these local organizations as well.

Click here to  purchase tickets.

Peabody’s Pop Up Children’s Museum Opens March 31st
 
After months of planning, visualizing, creating and coordinating, the pop up children’s museum, CuriousCity, is set to open on Sunday, March 31st.  The museum features 9 exhibits designed to be accessible and inclusive for children ages 2-10. This temporary, 3 month project will run through June 2019 and is housed within the George Peabody House & Leather Worker’s Museum at 205 Washington St, Peabody, MA.

Each room in CuriousCity will explore different themes to help children tap into their imagination, have fun exploring and learning about the world around them. Peaceful City  is a mindfulness exhibit offering yoga and meditation based activities for the whole family; CuriousTales is filled with stories of the world and features a puppet theatre with a 20×8 ft stage where kids will be able to act and play out folk-tale characters; EpiCurious was planned in conjunction with the Essex Agricultural Society, this exhibit uses agricultural education and the USDA “My Plate” model to help children discover the importance of a fresh, healthy diet; GenerousCity pays homage to local financier George Peabody and includes a bank playhouse where children can take turns playing the role of the teller or the customer, access the faux vault, or visit the drive-up window; Cozy City is a sensory exhibit providing a safe, relaxing space for children of all abilities who may become overwhelmed or overstimulated by their exploration of the museum as a whole; CuriousWorld is filled with maps, globes, and a play area to ”visit” the rainforest, desert, oceans and the Arctic.

The largest exhibit space is Discovery City, dedicated to stimulating budding engineers, artists, and builders who want to create, investigate, tinker and immerse themselves in science, technology, engineering, and math. Concepts such as flight, air current, air resistance, and gravity are explored through play and hands-on investigation. Families will be able to learn about our habitat in the Natural History area and examine rock, fossil and mineral samples, fossil blocks, magnification station, life-size animal track books and play the ‘match a track’ game.
 
CuriousCity has been made possible through a partnership with the Essex County Community Foundation and organized by the Peabody Cultural Collaborative whose mission is to unite arts, business and cultural organizations in Peabody to better promote the creative economy and to enrich the cultural life of the region.  If successful, the project could be used to gauge support for a permanent museum in downtown Peabody in the future.

 Tickets Go On Sale - March 21st!

The museum will be open to the public on Thursday 10-5, Friday 10-6, Saturday 10-5 and Sunday 12-5 through June 2019.  Admission is $5 per person; some local libraries will have guest passes available.  Admission is free with CuriousCity library passes or WIC/EBT cards and you do not need to reserve tickets online.  All tickets must be purchased in advance, online at www.curiouscitypeabody.org as a limited number of tickets are available each day.    On Tuesday & Wednesday the museum will be open for school field trips and youth group tours by appointment only.  For more information on booking a group visit, email info@curiouscitypeabody.org
 
Free parking is available on Washington Street in front of the Museum. There is limited parking behind the museum. The Museum is also accessible via public transportation. Bus #435 stops on Washington Street at Blaney Avenue in front of the Museum.
 
CuriousCity represents a true city collaboration of organizations including Peabody Main Streets, Peabody Access TV, Peabody Library, Northeast Arc Early Intervention; Peabody Historical Society; businesses including ArcWorks Community Art Center, Eastern Bank, Holden Oil, Kick it Up Consulting, Network Coverage, Salem Five Bank; local artists such as Sheila Billings, Yetti Frenkel and Dirk I. Tiede; as well as generous support from sponsors including North Shore Bank and Lahey’s JB Thomas Foundation.
 
For more information contact:
Camille Bartlett, President
Peabody Cultural Collaborative
camille@peabodytv.com   978-977-0570
www.curiouscitypeabody.org
www.peabodyculturalcollaborative.org

After months of planning, we are one step closer to the opening of CuriousCity, a 'pop up' children's museum in downtown Peabody and looking for some key individuals to play a part in the success!

This temporary play-based children’s museum will run for three months beginning March 31st at the George Peabody House and Leatherworkers Museum. CuriousCity will serve children ages 2-10 and their caregivers in Essex County. Exhibit topics include geography, farm to lunch box, sensory play, stories of the world, mindfulness, banking and philanthropy, and an open-ended creation/building space. All exhibits will be hands-on and play-based and include components that focus on STEAM education, literacy and adult/child interaction.

The ultimate goal of CuriousCity is to demonstrate that a permanent children’s museum can be a successful venture in Peabody so that the children of Essex County will have permanent access to a play-based space devoted to learning and promoting the healthy development of children and families in our community.

Available positions include: (click on title for job description)

Visitor Experience Manager
Visitor Experience Associate 
CuriousCity Volunteer

Application deadline is March 9.  Applicants should send resume and cover letter to Melissa at:
mrobinson@noblenet.org

CuriousCity is made possible through a grant from the Essex County Community Foundation and generous sponsors within the business community.  The museum will open on March 31 from Noon-4pm.  Regular hours will be Tue/Wed: open to private groups/schools; Thu-Sun:  general public.  Details on online ticketing will be announced soon.

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Some people think of a ‘main streets’ organization as a bunch of mom and pop business owners who hold sidewalk sales.  In reality, Main Streets is a national economic development model launched over 35 years ago, with a proven track record in over 2,000 communities nationwide, of creating new jobs and businesses while also rehabilitating countless historic buildings and revitalizing thousands of main streets and disinvested commercial corridors.  Main Streets was developed with the understanding that small steps, small businesses, small deals and small developments can add up to big impact. Building small is sometimes harder, more time consuming and less flashy than building the one big thing, but it is also more realistic, more cost effective and more durable than putting all your eggs into one big project.  A city’s image is formed almost entirely by the perception of the vibrancy of their downtown so by working toward creating a ’destination’, Peabody has the ability to attract and retain residents as well as talent, not just downtown, but city wide.  The Main Streets program  provides a framework to focus on Economic Vitality (working with existing property owners and attracting new investment), Design (creating a look & feel to the district), and Promotions (marketing the destination and hosting events to bring people downtown), allowing multiple priorities to be worked on simultaneously.

To date,  $4.2 million has been invested in infrastructure upgrades and improvements; 40 new housing units have been added, 11 projects currently in development and the Lease it Local program provided $27,000 to help launch 3 new businesses including Create & Escape DIY Workshop, Granite Coast Brewing and Jovi Boutique.   Through a façade improvement program 16 buildings have been updated and 50 signs upgraded or replaced.  There have been 28 public art projects, 54 trees planted or replaced and 6 river clean up projects.  Downtown is being marketed as a destination through a partnership with the North of Boston Visitors and Conventions Bureau, livepeabody.com website, social media channels as well as marketing campaigns.  Annual events such as the Pop Up Pubs, Pop Up Markets, Nightmare on Main Street and Holiday Stroll attract hundreds of individuals and families who are then exposed to our restaurants, performance venues, retail stores and service providers. 

​Although Peabody Main Streets works closely with the City of Peabody, it is an all-volunteer driven organization, formed in 2016 as a non-profit entity working to create a desirable place to live, an enjoyable place to visit and a supportive place to build a business. Funding for projects comes mainly from grants and revenue generated by events.  

The City of Peabody along with MassDevelopment and critical support from Northeast Arc have designed a project to help encourage shopping local at the holiday times, while simultaneously providing a brick & mortar location for general merchandise/gift shop type vendors to grow their business in downtown Peabody.

The "Exchange" will kick off November 24th, 2018 during the Peabody Main Streets Holiday
Market at the Knights of Columbus and then transition to the ArcWorks Community Art Center and run until December 21st. 

Vendors types include, but not limited to:
- Vintage goods
- Collectibles
- Records
- Candlemakers
- Soap makers
- Woven crafts
- Wood crafts
- Original knitted items
- Original sewn items
- Designers or Graphic artists, specifically Northshore/Peabody themed items
- Other items that market administrators feel are relevant to our visitors.

Obtain an application, click here

PROJECT VISION:
CuriousCity is a temporary pop-up children’s museum in downtown Peabody that inspires curiosity, a love of learning and the healthy development of children ages 2-10 years old. CuriousCity will feature hands-on, play-based exhibits designed and created by local artists/ designers. The pop-up will run for three months in the spring of 2019. At the conclusion of the pop-up, exhibits will find permanent homes in organizations (including, but not limited to, libraries, schools, businesses) in Essex County to continue to provide play based learning to families and children.

Local Artist/ designers interested in getting involved are asked to submit a proposal to design and construct play-based exhibits in one of several categories. Submissions due October 24th, 5pm.

Download an information packet and application,  click here. 

​​A "black box" theater is just that - a venue that has no formal structure and can be adapted to many uses.   ​
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Northeast Arc recently redeveloped the former warehouse space at the Arcworks Community Art Center, 22 Foster Street in Peabody, to create a theater that will be an anchor in the city's downtown cultural district. The venue provides employment opportunities for local actors, musicians, set builders, ticket sellers and concessions workers. Additionally, the space will provide educational and recreational opportunities for as many as 7,800 youth annually.

Open for less than a year, the space is being utilized by many different groups from live concerts and comedy shows to cocktail parties & birthday celebrations.
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On October 20th, Accidentally on Purpose will return with a Live Improv and Comedy show, which will be their 4th appearance in the Black Box!  Improv allows for audience participation in terms of ideas and themes that the actors will incorporate into their performance - so no two shows are ever alike!  The last 2 shows have sold out.  Doors open at 6p, performance at 7pm.  This is a 21+ event.  Cash bar.  $20 General Admission.  $18 Senior/Students.  Purchase tickets here.   

For information on renting the theater for your performing group, holiday party or celebration, please contact Lisa Geczi at 978-548-5854.