North Adams Merchants Preparing for Solid Sound Arrival

	Chamber President Glenn Maloney opens a session on upcoming events in the city, including the return of Wilco's Solid Sound Festival.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Galleries and merchants are once again girding for a welcomed invasion of Wilco fans this June.

But that isn't the only event hoping to draw visitors — and their wallets — the city.

"[Solid Sound brought] 5,000 people to town the last time it was here ... lots and lots of people in North Adams," said Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art's Jodi Joseph to a gathering of cultural and business representatives. "It's a friendly crowd ... It's a lovely group. .. If you want thousands of nice people to come, invite Wilco to come to your home."

The Grammy-winning band will curate its third Solid Sound Festival at Mass MoCA from June 21 to 23 after skipping a year. The festival offers a variety of special installations and concerts, and alternative fare for all ages.

In the past, that's included kite making and falconry. This year, the focus is more on country living.

"We have a full slate of alternative progams in conjunction with Storey Publishing," said Joseph. The how-to country living publisher, which is also located on the Mass MoCA campus, will offer workshops as varied as beekeeping and how to sharpen axes. It's largely a family friendly event

For those at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Gallery 51 on Monday night, the bigger question is how to get those very nice people on Main Street, into stores and galleries, and eating in local restaurants.

One way may be to talking to an expert guide.

The new North Adams Chamber of Commerce and the city are teaming up for a "Talk to a Townie" promotion in which local volunteers on the Mass MoCA campus will don brightly colored T-shirts that say "I'm from North Adams, ask me anything." (Volunteers, needless to say, are needed.)

The chamber will also be distributing promotional materials including a map and an advertising brochure for restaurants with BerkshireMenus.com, a member of the iBerkshires family. The city has also created a new website, in cooperation with the North Adams Chamber of Commerce, at explorenorthadams.com.

Local artists are also hoping to tap into that revenue stream with the launch of Downstreet Art on Thursday night, June 20, prior to the festival, and encouraging Mass MoCA to get the word out that there's plenty to do if you come a day early.

Jonathan Secor of MCLA's Berkshire Cultural Resource Center said they are looking for ways to advertise the Downstreet Art's last Thursday-of-the-month openings during the summer as a destination for out-of-towners.

"We want people to spend money. We want tourists," said Secor, differentiating the North Adams event from Pittsfield's popular 3rd Thursdays. "We're really looking to bring people with dollars to leave dollars in your store, in my gallery, at The Hub. We're talking economic traffic, not just a feel-good community event."

Veronica Bosley, the city's tourism director, reminds the gathering to grab a list of events on their way out.

The biggest opportunity this summer is, obviously, Solid Sound. Plans are already in the works for activities outside MoCA that will attract festivalgoers when they leave the campus.

Joseph reminded the group that only Lickety Split on the MoCA campus will be offering breakfast — that means hordes of fans looking for an early morning fuel for the long day. At 11:30 p.m., those same fans will be marching out of the museum looking for a place to wind down. There are plans for late-night activities and businesses are encouraged to be opened and prepared.

"People have done a really amazing amount of business," said Joseph. "So anything you can do to overstock as much as you can and keep people fed."

One good sign is all 385 campsites at Solid Ground at Noel Field Athletic Complex are taken. But there's still a deficit of rooms — residents with a spare room or who want to rent their home for the weekend are encouraged to do so through independent site AirBnB.com.  

"As soon as something has been listed, it's gone," said Joseph. "We've never been able to get critical mass."

Solid Sound is just one opportunity, said the evening's organizers, for developing the city into a destination. Talking up the city — whether a townie or not — is another way to do it.

"Our voices are advertising as much as anything else," said Keith Bona, owner of Berkshire Emporium. "Our voices are as powerful as anything else."
 

Williamstown Planning Board Narrowing in on Subdivision Bylaw Changes