On Tuesday, June 24, 2008, the "Northampton Design Forum" was formed under the umbrella of Available Potential Enterprises, Ltd (APE), a non-profit arts organization based in Northampton.  The Design Forum, whose members include Northampton citizens interested in fostering quality urban design, decided to invite the Notre Dame University Urban Design Studio here in September.  The Notre Dame group will consist of six graduate students led by Professor Philip Bess, who described the program at a public presentation held on June 2.   The students will spend a week engaging with the community and offering design recommendations following the principles of sustainability and traditional urban design. 
 
The September event will be held downtown at the new APE Gallery at 126 Main Street, where it will be highly visible and accessible to anyone who wants to participate.  Additional meetings may occur in other locations to make it easier for residents to participate. This "design festival" is intended to be an enjoyable way of engaging people in a continuous interactive process running from September 7 – 13.   The goal is to generate excitement about urban design and sustainability, offering opportunities for public participation, feedback, and informal give and take. This will support and assist the City of Northampton in implementing the City's Sustainability Plan by increasing public understanding and awareness of the importance of urban design. The week will include ongoing formal and informal discussions of work in progress, focusing on drawings that bring to life many of the recommendations in the Sustainability Plan.  The Northampton Design Forum intends to involve all segments of the community, especially businesses, institutions, minorities, and citizens who do not usually participate in City planning processes.

Images from Window's first event on June 13, 2008 

A.P.E. office spaces at Window.

March 2008 

After the sale of Thornes Market to new owners in 2006, A.P.E. signed a one year lease to continue it’s programming and events on the Third Floor and to have time to look for a new location in the center of town. That search resulted in the purchase of  Window, LLC, a five story building at 126 Main Street, Northampton, just a few doors down from Thornes Market.  A.P.E.’s one year lease with Thornes was over at the end of September 2007 and A.P.E. will leave Thornes the end of January, 2008. A.P.E. will open a new office and begin to develop new programs at Window, LLC, beginning early in 2008.

During its search for a new location in 2006-07, A.P.E. began conversations with other arts organizations, the city and members of the community about the need to keep the arts vibrant in Northampton, in particular, how to keep spaces open and affordable.  Identifying different spaces and buildings became part of that conversation and resulted in A.P.E. writing a Feasibility Grant for the Cultural Facilities Fund, a newly created entity through the Massachusetts Cultural Council, to administer state funds awarded to projects devoted to cultural development and advancement.   A.P.E. received a $18,750 matching grant to study the feasibility of creating a community arts center in the former Northampton Institute for Savings, located at the corner of Gothic and Main St. in the center of town.  A.P.E. was the only recipient of this grant in Northampton!

A.P.E’s concerns revolve around the issue of affordable space for artists to create and show work in the center of town.  It is a well known fact that a number of spaces devoted to the arts are in jeopardy at this point in time and A.P.E. is at the forefront of leading the effort to retain, hold and find ways for the community to own buildings for the long term so that the arts can remain an essential part of the fabric of this community.    A.P.E. is using the model of the land trust to explore the idea of a community “arts” trust, that would enable the community to purchase and hold spaces in town for arts and culture, thus creating real sustainability for the arts to thrive.

If you would like to be kept informed or would like more information, go the following links and add your name to our mailing list!

http://www.massculturalcouncil.org/facilities/facilities.htm

http://www.schumachersociety.org/about.html