City Councilors Embrace Plans for Expanded Downtown Haverhill Art Walk Series

Sarah LoVasco with Hailey Moschella. (Courtesy photograph.)

After a one-year hiatus due to the coronavirus, the Haverhill Art Walk series comes back beginning Saturday, May 8.

The first Art Walk took place during September of 2019 and brought various exhibitions, demonstrations and performances to downtown Haverhill. Invited by City Councilor Timothy J. Jordan, Hailey Moschella, this year’s coordinator, told councilors Tuesday night the walk is expanding.

“It’s an indoor and outdoor event that will take place on the second Saturday of the month, May through September. So, we’re increasing it from a one-time event to monthly. After Art Walk in 2019, we spoke to the business owners who participated. They all experienced an increase in foot traffic during Art Walk hours and supported bringing the event back to Haverhill,” she said.

Moschella said artists and musicians of all ages are welcome to participate. She added this year’s event extends beyond the immediate downtown area, an idea Councilor Joseph J. Bevilacqua said he was very happy to hear. After the year we’ve had, he noted, this will be a needed boost to everyone’s spirits.

“The fact is we’ve been locked up for so long that people are ready to get out and they need an avenue, they need a venue, they need an opportunity to get out and really get a chance to sort of enjoy the world again,” he said.

Moschella said anyone interested in learning more about the event or how to participate should check the Creative Haverhill website.

Also attending Tuesday’s Council meeting were Erin Padilla and Danielle Smida of Creative Haverhill and Cogswell Art Space who spoke about the community’s need for more creative outlets and shared public spaces as the city begins to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at the request of Councilor John A. Michitson, Padilla said one upshot of the pandemic is people are continuing to work from home. As a result, they are less inclined to look for living spaces near their place of employment and instead look for areas that provide amenities and quality of life.

“Quality of live and livability are what people are looking for and livability that a place provides. Things like that include parks, public spaces, cultural facilities, quality of educational services, diversity,” she explained.

Padilla said by investing in programs such as these, as well as cultural and artistic programs are vital in helping the community re-emerge from the pandemic while also helping to grow the economy.

Padilla closed by saying she hoped that, as COVID-19 relief funds become available, the city will consider investing a portion into programs such as these.

Comments are closed.