Palmer Launches Commonwealth Places Crowdfunding Campaign for Fitness Trail
$14,000 goal to win matching grant through MassDevelopment’s Commonwealth Places Initiative
June 15, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Meggie Quackenbush, MassDevelopment, 617-330-2011 & 857-208-2777 (cell)
mquackenbush@massdevelopment.com
Jonathan Berk, Patronicity, 617-750-6008
jonathan@Patronicity.com
Alice Davey, Town of Palmer, 413-283-2614
adavey@townofpalmer.com
MassDevelopment, the Quabog Valley Community Development Corporation, and the Town of Palmer today announced a new campaign through the civic crowdfunding platform Patronicity and the Commonwealth Places initiative. The campaign will help the town transform an existing athletic field into a multi-purpose fitness trail featuring fitness stations and a walking path with commemorative benches. Laviolette Field Fitness Trail will increase traffic along Main Street and create a new downtown focal point by encouraging people to spend more time in the area.
“MassDevelopment is pleased to support yet another Commonwealth Places campaign—our 18th to date—and delighted with the success of the program in its efforts to renew community spaces across the state,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Marty Jones. “The Laviolette Field Fitness Trail project will improve the physical character of the village while also encouraging more Palmer residents to visit and engage with their downtown.”
Laviolette Field is located in Three Rivers, a village in the western section of Palmer. MassDevelopment worked with the Town to create the Village of Three Rivers Revitalization Study in March 2017, the recommendations from which inspired the town to launch this Commonwealth Places campaign.
If the campaign reaches its crowdfunding goal of $14,000 by August 10, 2017, at midnight, the project will win a matching grant with funds from MassDevelopment’s Commonwealth Places program. Learn more and donate at www.Patronicity.com/Palmer.
“We hope to capitalize on the outdoor economy in Palmer,” said Gerard Charette of The Revive Three Rivers Committee, a group of Palmer residents and organizations dedicated to revitalizing the Three Rivers area. “People are interested in being outside and enjoying outdoor recreation and our location along Three Rivers makes this project a great opportunity to capitalize on that economy.”
Commonwealth Places is a collaborative effort from MassDevelopment and Patronicity that leverages public support for placemaking projects through crowdfunding and a matching grant from MassDevelopment. The program engages residents in the development of strategic projects in their towns and cities. The program has supported successful campaigns across the Commonwealth, from Northampton to Hyannis. Communities, nonprofits, and other entities can learn more about these successful projects, donate to ongoing campaigns, and apply at www.massdevelopment.com/commonwealthplaces.
MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2016, MassDevelopment financed or managed 352 projects generating investment of more than $4 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are projected to create about 8,200 jobs and build or rehabilitate about 4,200 residential units.
