Though foot traffic from the nearby Insane Inflatable 5K didn’t materialize in downtown Westbrook, organizers are pleased with last weekend’s first “Best in the ’Brook” event.
Widely considered a success was a well-attended “Plein Air Paint Out,” in which more than a dozen artists painted outdoors in various locations Saturday, and then showcased the work at a downtown art space that night.
Saturday’s events were meant to coincide with, and perhaps dovetail off, the nearby Insane Inflatable 5K event at Sunset Ridge Golf Links, which drew an estimated 2,500 people to the course throughout the morning.
Abigail Cioffi, the coordinator for the Downtown Westbrook Coalition, which planned the Best in the ’Brook, said that while Saturday’s sidewalk sale didn’t bring in many people from the 5K, there was a “great turnout” of Westbrook residents.
“I thought the sidewalk sale went really well for the first year,” she said Tuesday. “You never know what to expect.”
Since the city established the coalition, which uses the Maine Downtown Center as a model for downtown revitalization, the group has brainstormed new events to showcase downtown Westbrook as a place that’s conducive to businesses and artists.
“I don’t think we were able to make the connection we wanted with the 5K, just because of time constraints, but people were excited to see things happening, and I know at my coalition table, I was able to connect with a lot of residents that want to know what’s going on in the area,” Cioffi said.
The sidewalk sale featured seven vendors, including local business Weekend Anime and Westbrook author Kathy Eliscu, behind tables lined up in the parking lot behind CVS Pharmacy.
Eliscu, who was selling her novel, “Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess,” said Tuesday that the event went well.
“I sold some books, made some good connections, and it was a gorgeous day out,” she said.
Cioffi said that coalition member Julie York took detailed notes on the event, which she said will help the group better plan for future endeavors.
“So we know what to improve on for next year – what time and date is best, how to better promote it, and so on,” she said.
Stuart Kaul, the director of events for TownSquare Active, which promotes the Insane Inflatable, said this week that attendance was about what they expected, at more than 2,000.
However, the transportation system set up for the event, while convenient for most commuters, avoided downtown Westbrook, making it difficult for the sidewalk sale to benefit from the influx of visitors. A shuttle system was used to bus participants to Sunset Ridge from the Bill Dodge Auto Mall, on the outskirts of the city. During the early afternoon hours Saturday, the restaurants surrounding the car dealership, such as McDonald’s and Amato’s, were busy.
Cioffi said she contacted the shuttle company about adding a downtown stop, but was unsure of the end result.
For future events, she said, “we’ll definitely make sure there’s better communication with the event, the shuttle, and the 5K participants so they know that there are things to do downtown.”
At the table, she was also handing out maps that showed where the nearby artists could be working. About half of the 13 artists were painting from the new river-view office building on Ash Street owned by Rob Mitchell.
Caren Michel, an artist and president of the Westbrook Arts & Culture Committee, was working on a piece from the first floor balcony.
“The others are spread out over the city,” she said, including at the pond in Woodlawn Cemetery, and along Main Street by the Walker Memorial Library.
“It’s a good group for our first plein air event,” she said.
Michel said other residents out and about Saturday stopped by to say hello to the artists. On the second floor, artist Mary Brooking was painting from a view out a large window. Brooking, who runs the Continuum for Creativity art space on Main Street, hosted an opening reception for the artists Saturday night.
On the newly constructed roof deck on the office building, four artists were soaking in the sun while painting views of downtown Westbrook and the river.
Chris Davis, who grew up in Westbrook but is now living in Scarborough, was painting from the corner of the deck, looking over the river to One Riverfront Plaza and Saccarappa Falls. She said she was excited for the reception that evening, but had plenty of work left to do.
This week, Brooking said the reception was well attended, with paintings covering three of the four walls of Continuum’s gallery, some barely dry.
“Three of the works were sold at the opening,” she said.
Brooking said beyond the success of the opening were the connections made between artists from Westbrook and from other areas. She said events like these can lead to more artists working in Westbrook, or supporting programs at Continuum like art workshops.
The Plein Air Paint Out exhibit will be hanging through Saturday, Sept. 26.
Both Brooking and Michel said that the event also received help from other local businesses, including The Baker’s Bench, which donated a continental breakfast in the morning, and Doughboy’s, which provided lunch for the artists.
“I would love to make the plein air festival an annual Westbrook arts tradition,” Brooking said.
Scarborough resident Chris Davis looks out onto the Presumpscot River from the rooftop deck of the river view offices on Ash Street. Davis was one of 13 artists taking part in a Plein Air Paint Out Saturday, part of Best in the ‘Brook Fest.Staff photo by Andrew Rice
Insane Inflatable 5K participants appear to be having a great time as they slide down one of the obstacles Saturday at Sunset Ridge Golf Links in Westbrook. Photo courtesy of Marc Bryce
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