Rutland CE to present at SolarFest

The Rutland Creative Economy will be at SolarFest this Sunday from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. as part of a presentation entitled, "Rutland: the Connected City." They will be joining representatives from the DRP, RAFFL, and Sustainable Rutland to discuss the work being done throughout the community. Here's a description from SolarFest's workshop guide:

"As Rutland City seeks to reinvent itself, it is finding strength in its connections. Connections to surrounding farm lands, connections between people within the community, and connection to statewide efforts and trends. In this workshop, the presenters will share some of what's happening - and seek input from the audience about how a small city in a rural state can build toward a sustainable future. Presenters: Mark Foley, Jr., Tara Kelly, Jim Sabataso, and Mike Coppinger."

Friday Night Live kicks off

Friday Night Live kicked off last Friday with a huge turnout. Lots of people, lots of food, and lots of live music. Kudos to the Downtown Rutland Partnership; it looks like it's going to be another big season. See the video from WCAX after the jump.

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Special award offered to 100th "The Blood in this Town" donor

Here's some news from our friends at Great Jones Productions: One lucky donor who supports “The Blood in This Town” will soon own a piece from “this town’s” artistic royalty. Renowned Rutland artist Peter Huntoon has generously donated a watercolor print, “Fall on Center” to “The Blood in This Town,” the documentary‐in‐progress about Rutland, its record-breaking blood drive, and the city’s revitalization. As part of the film’s fundraising campaign, the donated print will be awarded to the 100th person who makes a contribution to support the film. 

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Work begins on the Creek Path

Big news from our Recreation Committee. Work is underway on the first phase of the Rutland Creek Path. Read the full story at the Rutland Herald. (Photo by Vyto Starinskas / Rutland Herald.)

New committees news, CE in the Herald

Big thanks to everyone who came out on Tuesday night for the two development workshops. There's a lot of work ahead for the 2 new committees, but as the meetings demonstrated there is a lot of new energy behind them. The follow-up meetings for both groups are tentatively as follows:

BRANDING: Tuesday, May 4 at 6:30 p.m.
MUSEUM: Thursday, May 6 at 7 p.m.

Both meetings will be at the Dana Rec Center. These dates are subject to change. A formal email will be sent out net week, and any changes will be posted here.

In the meantime, check out the Rutland Herald for the article on Tuesday's meetings.

Development Workshops scheduled, community involvement encouraged

The Community Forum has come and gone. Now, it's time to get to work. You're once again invited to participate in the development of the two new CE initiatives that were selected at last month's Forum. An organizing meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 20 at the Dana Recreation Facility on East Center Street. This meeting will run from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The NEW strategies are:

• PROMOTING RUTLAND’S BRAND – and the development of green space downtown.

• CHILDREN/RAILWAY MUSEUM – developing new and existing visitor attractions.

These two initiatives were chosen, by the community, from dozens proposed during an open public forum held at the Paramount Theatre on March 31. If you are interested, have information pertaining to, or can aid in either of these two initiatives we strongly encourage you to attend these workshops.

For more information, call 775-0871 x211 or e-mail us.

We hope to see you there!

The Blood in this Town trailer

UPDATE: Check out Nina Keck's piece on The Blood in this Town on VPR.

In case you missed it the other night at our Forum, check out the trailer to The Blood in this Town -- the documentary currently in production "about Rutland, Vermont, their record-breaking blood drive, and what it means for America." View the trailer here.