Save FitchburgTaking Back Our Community

Tonight, there are 2 fun events planned in our city.

The 1st one is the “Off the Wall Art Party”, which will be held at Rollstone Studios at 633 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA.

Admission is $5 and all proceeds benefit the Fitchburg Cultural Alliance.

The Art Sale and Auction begins at 6pm and ends at 9pm.

There will be live music from 9-11pm with food and refreshments.

Come support your local art community!

For more information please visit Rollstone Studios online at http://rollstoneartists.com

Secondly, there will be the “Icebreaker” Party at the Fitchburg Senior Center located at 14 Wallace Avenue, right around the corner from Rollstone Studios from 7-10pm.

The party is to commemorate the one year anniversary of last years December Ice Storm. There will be live music, dancing, food and a cash bar.

Admission is $10 with all proceeds from the event going to the Fitchburg Senior Center.

So get out and have some fun while helping to support to great programs within the city!

Admission is $10 with all proceeds

The Coalition to Save Fitchburg has established the $5 Foundation with the hope of raising $50,000 in donations for repairs and upgrades for the Fitchburg Public Library.

This will be the first of many worthy causes the foundation hopes to raise money for.

Our thought is that if we can get 10,000 people to just donate $5 towards a cause we can make a major difference in the community.

If you wish to donate please make your check or money order to:
$5 Foundation

Please mail your donation to:
The Coalition to Save Fitchburg
PO Box 278
Fitchburg, Ma 01420

From the Telegram and Gazette, “Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray announced at a press conference in City Hall this morning the release of $5.5 million toward the state’s share of reimbursements for expenses incurred by communities after the Dec. 11-12, 2008, ice storm.”

Fitchburg might receive their share of this money as early as next week.

A special thanks should be given to State Representative Stephen DiNatale who fought so hard for the city of Fitchburg and its residents after the ice storm; both against Unitil and for financial reimbursement.

The Coalition to Save Fitchburg, with the help of local businesses, is planning a Holiday Festival on Main Street from 12-4pm, Saturday December 12th.

Some participating businesses will be handing out candy and baked goods to children and their families, while others will be offering a free raffle for gift certificates available to their establishment.

Rollstone Church at 199 Main Street will be opening their sanctuary to the public during this time.

Their will be carolers and a number of charity groups looking to spread a little holiday cheer to the less fortunate.

Then, from 4-6pm, their will be a parade in the upper common to celebrate the turning on of the holiday lights.

Their will be candy and hot chocolate for the kids, and a surprise appearance by the man in red himself; Santa Claus!

A special thanks to the city councilors, city hall, and donations from Unitil, Rollstone Bank and Trust, Sentinel and Enterprise, Hannaford, Walmart, The Pride and BJ’s Wholsale to help make this holiday season a little brighter in Fitchburg.

If your business would like to participate please contact Rich at 978-345-4300 for more information.

See you Saturday!

Kris Boothroyd of Free Idea Clothing will be the Guest Lecturer at Monty Tech High School, Wednesday December 9th, at 2pm.

He will be speaking to Mrs. Guzman’ 11th grade Entrepreneur Class; coving the Story of Free Idea clothing, the success and failures, and the key points behind Branding and Viral Marketing.

Kris, a Fitchburg native, and young entrepreneur would like the chance to give more lectures like this in the near future.

Update: Kris’ lecture has been reschedule to Thursday, December 10th at 2pm due to the snow storm.

The Elm Street-Area Neighborhood Association will be meeting December 9th at 5:45pm at 185 Elm St in the Fitchburg Art Museum.

Also, there will be a press conference earlier that day at 45 Johnson St at 2:45 announcing the rehab “of a Three Family Home at 143 Marshall Street completed; New Sidewalk installation along Elm Street (High Street to the Playground) by the City of Fitchburg; Rehabilitation of 45 Johnson Street, a single family home. Upon completion, this home will be sold to an income eligible first time homebuyer. This home is financed by the City of Fitchburg’s HOME funds.”

The Fitchburg Historical Society will be doing a historical tour of Fitchburg houses this Saturday from 1pm-4pm.

Some of the houses on this years annual tour have not been open to the public in many years, with 7 stops in total along the way.

This is a great chance for all ages to experience the heritage and rich history that is the foundation of Fitchburg’s birth and growth.

Ticket prices for the tour are:

$15 for seniors and historical society members
$18 for general admission
$20 the day of the tour

Tickets can be pucrchased in advance at:

Fitchburg City Hall (718 Main Street)
DeBonis Davin Florists (900 Main Street)
Homestead Primitives (408 River Street)
The Fitchburg Historical Society (50 Grove Street)
Shack’s (446 Main Street)
Mill No. 3 (85 Westminster Street)
Elliot’s Jewelers (63 Whalon Street)
Trudie’s Treats (3 Lancaster Ave, Lunenburg)

All proceeds go towards benefiting the Fitchburg Historical Society.

The Public meeting scheduled for December 8th at Rollstone Church has been rescheduled for Thursday, December 10th at 6:30 pm.  It will still be held at Rollstone Church at 199 Main Street.

We still encourage all local residents and business owners to attend and to voice there general concerns about Fitchburg as well as being able to hear what is being done to bring a positive change to our community.

The reason for the change in day is because of the primary being held on December 8th for the US Senate seat left vacant when Senator Kennedy passes away; so please remember to vote!

Again December 8th’s meeting will now be held on December 10th at Rollstone Church at 6:30pm.

We look forward to seeing you there!

The Social Enterprise Group of United Entrepreneurs (SEGUE) has opened the Good Wil Holiday Wreath Shoppe on Main Street next to the old Fitchburg Theater.

The group, mainly comprised of teenage high school students, are getting their chance to operate an actual business, which in itself is a great educational experience for young entrepreneurs.

The Good Wil Holiday Wreath Shoppe, the third business to establish themselves in the Theater Block District in the past two months, will be selling traditional holiday wreaths and garlands until December 20th.

Their hours will be Thursday through Sunday, 12pm – 7pm.

This seems like a great opportunity for both the students and Main Street, who will not only be learning from their time spent working but also revitalizing an area that has been abandoned for several years and in need of a make over.

Hopefully this will be a sign of things to come as a few more businesses make their way back on to Main Street and bring life back into the city.

The Finance Committee approved a $90,000 Public Safety Grant on Tuesday night aimed at targeting and finding a solution towards many public safety issues in the city of Fitchburg.

One of the most talked about issues for the past year tired directly towards public safety has been street lights, or the lack their of.  As part of this proposal, 300 street lights will be turned back on using money from this grant.

The break down of funds, according to the Sentinel and Enterprise, is as follows:

$45,000 to the Department of Public Works for street lights, clean ups (graffiti, etc) and trash removal

$25,000 to the Board of Health to hire two part-time code enforcers.

$20,000 for legal work provided to the city by City Solicitor Michael Ciota

Though the street lights seem to be a big issue in the city for public safety, the hiring of two more code enforcers for the Board of Health should not be overlooked.  It isn’t a secret that our Board of Health has been over worked and limited by the number of inspectors they had on the street, in the office or in the court room.  Public health is a major part of a city’s safety and well being, and I believe that this $25,000 will go a long way with the Board of Health in targeting and prosecuting health code violators, as well as educating the public and schools on current health issues that effect us everyday.

I am surprised to hear nothing mentioned though about added officers or possible cameras in high crime areas, especially since we heard no new officers would be hired with the federal stimulus money the city has been awarded by the state.  I’m guessing this is an area of discussion that will continue over the months to come.

The full Fitchburg City Council will meet next week to decide whether or not to approve the Mayor’s proposed package for public safety.

For more information please read the following article at the Sentinel and Enterprise: http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/ci_13864420