A crowd of more than 40 artists, patrons, and community members gathered with the Estes Arts District Board on Saturday afternoon to celebrate the EADs new headquarters and recognize the honor of being named a Colorado Creative District by the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.
The EAD is an umbrella organization representing the various arts organizations and artists in the Estes Valley community, including painters, sculptors, glass blowers, ceramic and fiber artists, leather makers, writers, poets, musicians, dancers, songwriters, filmmakers, storytellers, actors, brewers, and chefs.
The nonprofit’s new headquarters – a lime green building with purple accents, a few steps behind Earthwood Collections on Elkhorn Avenue – percolated with people, music, and food for an Estes Chamber ribbon cutting.
Colorado State Senator Janice Marchman, Larimer County Commissioner Jody Shadduck-McNally, Estes Park Mayor Gary Hall, along with Town Trustees Frank Lancaster and Bill Brown, joined in the festivities, along with Sarah Leonard, Visit Estes Park’s new CEO, and Colleen DePasquale, president of the Estes Chamber.
Dana Paiment, the Visit Estes Park destination development senior manager and co-chair-president of the EAD, and Lars Sage, the other co-chair-president, were the official ribbon cutters.
Greg Miles, an Estes Park musician, painter, mixed-media artist, and a founding member of the EAD, spoke before the ribbon was cut to proudly announce that the “Estes Arts District is the officially recognized and certified Creative District entity for the Town of Estes Park.”
The recognition was achieved over several years and three applications involving extensive planning, compliance, and site evaluations with the State of Colorado.
Miles explained that the designation, governance, reporting, responsibilities, branding, and statewide recognition belong to the Estes Arts District as the certified entity.
“Any organizations in Town, whether that’s an arts business, nonprofit, studio, gallery, or an artist, are absolutely welcome to describe themselves as ‘located within the Estes Creative District,'” said Miles.
The new designation comes with a $10,000 grant, which needs to be matched locally, and marketing assistance from the state to promote the area as a creative district.
“Arts districts like this spark economic growth in ways that few other investments can. They attract visitors, support local jobs, and help small businesses thrive, but just as importantly, they help us build the kinds of communities that we want,” said Marchman.
“This is kind of a funky little town, and now we’ve got a funky little arts district, and I just love that,” said Marchman.
Leonard, who joined Visit Este Park this week as the new CEO after serving as president and CEO of Visit Longmont, spoke about the importance of a community being recognized as a creative district within the visitor industry.
Before reading the proclamation, the mayor, a musician, joked that after Marchman’s reference to Estes Park being a “funky little town,” he had the song “Funky Town” going through his head.
“Now therefore, be it resolved, I, Gary Hall, Mayor of the Town of Estes Park, Colorado, do hereby proclaim and celebrate the official recognition of the Estes Arts District as a certified Colorado Creative District, and commend all those whose vision, collaboration, and perseverance have contributed to achieving this milestone. Let this certification serve as a symbol of our community’s ongoing commitment to creativity, collaboration, and cultural prosperity,” Hall proclaimed.
Plein air artist Linghui Wang set up her canvas and paints outside the EAD building to capture the scene in the courtyard as people gathered for the celebration.
As soon as the ribbon had been cut – not once, but twice, to gather everyone for a photo – people stepped back inside the small gallery space to warm up with some foods catreed by Marty Metz of Chef’s Kiss, sip cups of warm cider and red wine, and listen to music by SnowBelt Bluegrass, a bluegrass and folk duo with Ann Mills on the violin and Max Miller on the guitar.