The Melrose Messenger

Creative Alliance and Chamber of Commerce Host 4th Annual Arts Summit

By Ellen Putnam

On Saturday morning, members of Melrose’s arts community and supporters in business, government, and the nonprofit sphere met at the Knights of Columbus for the Melrose Creative Alliance and Melrose Chamber of Commerce’s fourth annual joint summit. Participants discussed how businesses and artists can work together for the benefit of all, and brainstormed ideas for two upcoming citywide events.

On May 3rd, the Creative Alliance and the Chamber of Commerce will be partnering with the City of Melrose for a celebration of the city’s 175th anniversary. After a city-sponsored celebration at Memorial Hall, families are encouraged to dress up as swans and cygnets to “waddle” through Melrose, enjoying a picnic lunch and making stops at Follow Your Art, Molly’s Bookstore, and many other participating businesses and organizations for family-friendly fun.

Creative Alliance member Yael Mazor shared that she had the idea for the event at last year’s summit. Inspired by the Boston Public Garden’s Duckling Day, Mazor asked, “How cute would it be if Melrose had our own celebration of families?” centered on Ell Pond’s iconic swans, Mel and Rose.

If successful, Make Way for Cygnets could join the Summer Stroll, Victorian Fair, and Home for the Holidays as a citywide event that families look forward to every year. The Creative Alliance and Chamber of Commerce are still taking input from individuals, businesses, and organizations with the goal of involving as many people and groups as possible.

The Creative Alliance has also taken over planning Melrose’s Pride celebration after the city Human Rights Commission stepped back from hosting events last year. As with the 175th anniversary celebration, the Creative Alliance intends to help businesses and artists collaborate on an event that all residents can enjoy while celebrating diversity in our community.

Saturday’s summit began with an address by Mayor Jen Grigoraitis, who expressed her thanks to the city’s creatives for making Melrose “a community that consistently punches far above its weight in the arts and cultural realm.”

Grigoraitis also shared her concerns about waning support for the arts in the current national moment: “Every day in the news,” she said, “we learn new ways that the federal government is stripping funding from all aspects of our lives, including its support of arts and culture, and we will feel that here at home. We are watching national institutions like the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian museums contend with tightening restrictions around what is considered art, often solely based on who made it. It is a time of a lot of darkness and fear and worry, and especially in those moments, we need to uplift and support those of you that bring beauty and creativity and community, however you as the creative define it, into our shared world.”

The mayor also talked about upcoming city initiatives to support the arts, including applying for Cultural District status from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Referring to the city’s current financial challenges and a potential override vote in the fall, she said, “We can pursue big ideas for the City’s future - goals like economic development, cultural initiatives, conservation and recreation - but we must first secure the City’s present.”

The summit then featured a panel discussion with incoming Creative Alliance President Michael Rosenberg, Follow Your Art Community Studios (FYACS) Executive Director Kris Rodolico, and Beth Locke, who is the Executive Director of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce.

Rosenberg, who is a Melrose resident, shared some insights from his work as the Arts and Culture Planner for the City of Somerville, and Locke shared thoughts from her work in Arlington.

“Ten years ago, Arlington was at the same point you’re at now,” said Locke. “Since then we’ve created a great fabric of community and connectedness, and the businesses have benefitted, too.”

Jen Leclerc of the Creative Alliance, who co-moderated the panel, noted that the value of the Creative Alliance, especially as Melrose looks into becoming a cultural district, is its ability “to look at the creative sector as a whole and advocate for artists.”

Sam Hammar, the other moderator, added, “We can also do overall marketing and communications so artists and businesses can just do their thing.”

Locke shared that one of the keys to Arlington’s success has been their ability to liaise with town government through the economic development director. In her address, Mayor Grigoraitis noted that this is one of the positions at City Hall that has not been filled since last June’s unsuccessful override vote, “leaving us without a dedicated City employee to engage with our business, arts, and culture communities.”

Rodolico pointed out that FYACS aims to fill some of these gaps in Melrose. “Our goal is to build a creative community,” she said, “with access to the creative experience for everyone.” She referenced the Create Your Opportunity program, where high school-aged artists are mentored at FYACS and eventually create a commissioned work for a local business. Victoria Hill Wine, Spirits and Gourmet will be one of the business sponsors this year - “come for the art, stay for the wine,” Rodolico quipped.

One of the questions the panel discussed was how performers can find venues in town that fit their needs. “At our first summit, that was the number one concern people raised,” said Leclerc. “Every artist or organization has varying needs, and it’s not one-size-fits-all.”

“We want to house other organizations” at FYACS, added Rodolico, “but we have some constraints. We don’t need to make money from an event, but we can’t lose money. One of our goals as an organization is to be able to offer space to other organizations at a lower cost.” This year, FYACS began hosting concerts in their living room space, which can fit up to 50 people, and outside on their patio.

Mark Morgan, who is affiliated with the Beethoven Society of Melrose and is the music director at a church in Lexington, suggested that houses of worship may be an underutlized resource in terms of event space. While churches have sometimes served as venues for non-religious performances in the past, Morgan noted that declining attendance since the pandemic might make some religious institutions more interested in an expanded role in the larger community.

“Since COVID, there’s been an effort in many churches to change how they interact with the community in order to survive with dwindling resources. It might not be the easiest conversation to have,” he added, “but churches are starting to see it as part of their mission to serve as a community resource and host events, not just with the goal of bringing more people into the church. It’s a huge amount of underused space.”

For smaller events, spaces like Molly’s Bookstore can also be used in creative ways. “I always say yes,” said Molly’s owner Andrea Iriarte Dent, “We’ll figure out how to make it work.”

Chris Robinson, co-founder of Think Outside the Vox, brought up the topic of Artificial Intelligence, which is entering into the creative sphere with AI art generators, writing, and more. “Are we concerned it will compromise our creative space?” Robinson asked.

“I know this is the wrong answer,” Hammar responded, “but I asked ChatGPT to help me come up with a set of songs for an event, and it knocked it out of the park. AI can create the groundwork, and give people the space to be creative.”

Lily Van Cleave of the Melrose Cultural Council added, “I hear over and over again that the AI train has left the station. I know artists who use it every day as an administrative assistant - it makes time for the artists to do their work.”

“Especially as artists,” Robinson replied, “we need to think about environmental justice. AI makes computers work exponentially harder, and that squashes ecosystems that much faster.”

Sarah Bolha and Jim Bracciale, the co-chairs of the Melrose Cultural Council, also spoke briefly about the current grant cycle. “This has been a transitional year,” said Bracciale, explaining that after the Messina Fund for the Arts was folded into the Cultural Council, that increased the funding the Cultural Council was able to provide, and allowed for two funding cycles this year.

“These events positively impact local businesses,” shared Bolha, noting that many people who attend cultural events in Melrose also eat at a local restaurant, or stop into a local coffee shop or gift shop.

To learn more about the Melrose Creative Alliance or make suggestions for their upcoming events, visit their website.

Posted April 3rd, 2025