Documentary Blog
Reviving a city with the arts

New Bedford, Massachusetts has long been on the arts scene radar.  They have been hosting their AHA! Nights since 1999.  Recently, Umass Dartmouth has completed a policy analysis on the effect this particular program has had, economically, on New Bedford. 

Excerpt:

 AHA! (Art, History & Architecture) is New Bedford’s free Downtown Cultural Night and collaborative cultural organization. The AHA! mission is to be a cooperative venture dedicated                   
to invigorating the downtown New Bedford cultural scene.

The project accomplishes this through:
  ·   presenting second Thursday FREE cultural nights
  ·   inviting local and regional artists, cultural groups
      and  educators   to  present their work and ideas
  ·   spearheading cooperative marketing
  ·   being a forum for the AHA! Partners to convene
      around shared topics
  ·   contributing to the City’s Creative Economy initiatives.

The analysis is striking.  The study showed that directly, and indirectly, New Bedford’s Aha! Night pumps more than half a million dollars into the economy annually.

Those of us who have been following the arts, and seeing how it has improved cities, and brought people to cities for the past decade will not be surprised.  However, it is great to have concrete proof that The Arts, and the Creative Economy works. 

This shows, hands down, that the arts are making a big difference to the economies of cities that are embracing them!  Kudos to all the hard-working people that have made this happen over the past 10 years.

Incidentally, after Pawtucket Rising showed on Rhode Island PBS, I was approached by Aha! to show my film.  The film will be showing May 14th around 7PM at Aha! Night in New Bedford.  You can find out more as details are solidified here:  Aha! New Bedford.

Full Umass Dartmouth Aha! Economic Impact Analysis and Program Evaluation
http://www.umassd.edu/cfpa/docs/aha2008.pdf

http://www.nbedc.org/news/news285.htm

Pawtucket, Rhode Island is the city that inspired my film, and inspires this blog.  Pawtucket is a city that didn’t take no for an answer when told they would never be able to catch Providence.  Pawtucket saw a niche and they filled it.  The Providence renaissance had been in effect for quite some time, the city is still to this day building, changing and growing.  There is just one problem with Providence.  It is too successful.  Like any city on the move, it will eventually find itself in a predicament.  The costs will rise, and those who don’t rise with it, will inevitably no longer be able to live in the city they love.  This happened to Newport, Rhode Island, my home city.  There are fewer and fewer of those who grew up in Newport still living there.  In Providence, the rents went up, and the artists who could no longer afford them had to move out.  Pawtucket saw a chance.  Pawtucket found a way as a city to market directly to those artists who were being displaced.  They built it into their core city values, and they are having a tremendous success.  The city of Pawtucket’s plan is to be a city that works with the arts, and artists, to keep them around as a part of the fabric of the community.

This blog will endeaver to follow Pawtucket in its quest.  The blog will also cover anything related to the Creative Economy, The Arts, and city planning for the new Creative Economy.  Please bookmark this blog, or add us to your reader, so you can follow along as I learn more and more about this topic.