10.18.2022 Mass. Cultural Council & Mass Development Press Conference at Battleship Cove

good morning everyone how are you good good I'm gonna put these on these are not just for fashion they're for seeing now uh good morning friends and thank you all for joining us here today on this historic and magnificent Battleship uh to celebrate Massachusetts investments in cultural infrastructure through the cultural facilities fund uh thank you to Megan uh uh for uh having us here today on the battleship I

will say that um this is maybe my fourth or fifth visit to Fall River and I got to sneak in a few times with my son who is a Collegiate marine biologist and part of the reason why I snuck him in was because he is finishing up College this year and when we moved to Massachusetts he went right to Florida so he's got no friends in Massachusetts except his

dad's and so I try to sneak him to our towns and cities that have beautiful awesome waterfronts with great Arts projects so Fall River has been a a place we visited a couple of times the Vietnam memorial is really fantastic congratulations um I am also so pleased to say hello and to recognize some of our strongest cultural sector champions in the state house we're joined here today by state Senator

Michael rodericks and representatives Cara Fiola and Alan Silva thank you so much for being here um and also uh uh and mass cultural counselors just so grateful for the support and Partnership of these Dynamic legislators uh whether due to their committee assignments in the state house or on a local District's priorities right here in Fall River we couldn't ask for a more passionate and driven

effective collaborators than Senator roderick's rep Viola and rep Sylvia mayor Coogan is also here today thank you for your support of the cultural sector Mr Mayor it is a pleasure to be back here in your city today it's wonderful to be here with all of you in person and within such a special and unique space you know about two years ago when I was very new to this job I was invited by rep Viola to tour

the cultural Assets in Fall River and we stopped here at Battleship Cove it's wonderful to be back to celebrate your success today with our partners at Mass development we are not only celebrating 15 new cultural facilities grants but also the launch of this year's cff Grant application period our cultural facilities fund program staff Jay Padgett and Miranda cook and their partner Sean Calvin from Mass

development are here with us and we'll be moving to up to the award Ward room after this program to offer a briefing on the program and answer any questions you might have about the application process I hope you will join them after and learn more about this funding opportunity I now have the pleasure to introduce Theresa Park Senior Executive Vice President at Mass development who has

the exciting job of announcing our 15 new cultural facilities grant program of winners I do feel very fortunate that I get to be the one to share the good news with everyone today so thank you and I really appreciate you having me here to share this great news my name is Teresa Park as mentioned I am with mass development we are the Commonwealth's Finance Agency as well as the limb bank

and just as a little summary of the what we do and the impact that we have so in fiscal year 22 we Finance or manage 356 projects that's investing more than 1.69 billion dollars into the Massachusetts economy so it's a combination of the work that we do with MCC and then delivering the cultural facilities fund and other types of programming that we feel can really make a meaningful impact

in communities like Fall River so we're thrilled to be here with everyone and to highlight the 15 new cff grants which total over 1.5 million dollars enriching the cultural Fabric in many of these places from cities to Suburban to rural communities in the Commonwealth so without further Ado I'd like to go ahead and announce the 15 recipients um I'm just going to go down the list I know that there is a press release

that's been issues so the full details will be included in that document uh but but in summary um we have the berry players uh receiving funding to create an accessible entrance to their theater in Chester is the community Fair association of North Chester Chester Hill and Littleville so making more of an in Regional impact facilitating the handicap access for the to their facilities

in Amherst uh the through the downtown Amherst Foundation there will be a recipient of funding to support the renovation of the Drake I don't know if any of you went to UMass Amherst like I did and have memory of the memories of the Drake but it's good to see the name coming back and that and it being reinvented um to be more befitting of the um current economy um uh Lynn Auditorium and they will be

using the funds to purchase and install an integrated stage lighting system the Middlesex Canal Association Billerica to or some people like to say balerica if you're not from there to complete the new Canal Visitor Center and museum we have the Museum of Science in Boston and they will be addressing some deterioration and structural maintenance to their parking garage by the way anyone here so far from any

of the facilities that I've announced please feel free as I bring it up just raise your hand so that we know um towards the end I'm gonna maybe have you all stand up and just so we could get a like nice round of applause the New England Aquarium and they will be using the funds to upgrade building automation system and then we have it also in Boston the New England historic Geological Society

for um for um for some climate control and Energy Efficiency system in Salem you have the punto Urban Art Museum and they will be established a new headquarter with some additional Services provided including gallery and caffeine gift shops in Gloucester uh Rocky Neck our Colony will be replacing their rear access door as well as doing some facade work in Seekonk we have the Seekonk fire

Museum and they will be using the grand funds to repair their historic fire station housing which actually houses thousands of artifacts of importance to their cultural to their storytelling and then in Worthington you have seveners concerts Inc they will be doing foundation work and new windows to better improve the building to support the um the venue and the operations in Williamsburg we have snow Farm the

New England craft program and the funds will go towards renovating into your exterior walls as well as some other interior improvements um a couple more USS Massachusetts Memorial committee Inc in Fall River um and the funds will go towards yay home court and we'll the funds will go towards uh the to restore the stewards birthing compartment aboard the USS Massachusetts and increased signage

exploring the history of segregation in the United States Navy and last but not least the weighing Center for the Performing Arts in Boston they are getting funds to help with their Energy Efficiency given the scale of their theater I think that could go a long way as well as improvements to the Marquee for both the weighing and Schubert theaters um so I also want to take a moment to

give a shout out to our staff I know Sean Cannon and Jen Cohen are here but there are a number of people in working with MCC who've put in all the background work to make this all possible I'm just a voice and I get to like be the the person in front but they're the ones that actually get all the work done so um also shout out to everything that

they've done to get to where we are right now and recognize the importance of how these kind of Investments build a community add that special fiber and add the Vitality that we all sick for in the places that we wouldn't work so I want to thank you for this opportunity and so return the podium back to Michael thank you Teresa it's an amazing amazing collaboration and uh I I just cherish

the times we get to spend together um and I also uh last year we made a number of tweaks to the application in the process to to pretty much try to guarantee that anyone that applied would get some funding so I'm really very excited about this and it's great to hear about some of the projects the accessibility project at the at in Chester for the fair which is really great and I just talking to Megan who

we're going to hear from later tell you about exciting project this morning I heard about scraping of rust off the off the off the part of the building and and a new Hangar and helicopters being painted and all these different projects so we we definitely want to keep taking care of our buildings in Massachusetts we have some of the longest and historic and and the nation's first venue so we

want to take really good care of them um all of this was made possible by our supporters in the legislature and by the baker Polito Administration who in May released its fiscal year 23 Capital spending plan which includes 10 million dollars for the cff grant round again now I would like to introduce three key Partners on Beacon Hill Senator Mike rodericks rep Cara Fiola and rep Alvin Sylvia

good morning everyone I'm State Senator Michael rodericks and congratulations to the recipients of the cultural facilities funds grants this funding is further commitment by the Commonwealth to preserve spaces for art and culture in order for them to flourish cultural and artistic Expressions build in our community's identity Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said of the Museum of Modern Art when men

dedicate an edifice for a common Enterprise they are at once celebrating an achievement and announcing a purpose that statement is as true today as it was in 1939 we celebrate our artists and Massachusetts storied past and announce here today that theaters museums and cultural programs ought to be preserved and improved upon for many generations to enjoy as chair of the senate committee on ways

and means I can attest to the positive fiscal impact these investments will make on Massachusetts cultural economy to preserve and upgrade autistic locations is to invite the public to visit often engage thoughtfully and take pride in the community Battleship Cove in particular represents a unique opportunity to educate the public and our youth about World War II the USS Massachusetts has been a

monument to heroism and sacrifice of Navy sailors since the museum opened in 1965.

our continued support of its preservation makes it a landmark destination for Fall River in a site of honor and reverence for our veterans grants from the state allow this impressive ship to remain open the Massachusetts cultural Council has done a stellar job in rewarding efforts to improve and maintain the locations where art and culture meet I look forward to the tangible changes that

will be made to raise the standards of our autistic spaces and increase the increased accessibility for all who wish to engage in cultural opportunities in the Commonwealth I could not be happier to see the Investments that have been made congratulations to uh to all the recipients thank you to mass development thank you to the mass cultural Council when we created the mass cultural facilities fund back in 2007

Our intention was to ensure that all of our artistic and cultural spaces throughout the Commonwealth especially the small ones the big ones do pretty good they have large endowments right and they survive but it's the small ones that add so much vibrancy and Life to communities throughout the Commonwealth we wanted to make sure there were opportunities for them to get necessary funding for them to grow and to thrive

so thank you everyone for being here and please take the opportunity to tour this amazing ship think about it and it's when this ship was in active service and it was for years and some of the service was very high level combat service it's it's been it's been hit a number of times by enemy shells there were always over two thousand young men living on the ship and when they where they were not engaged in

active combat activity they were scraping and painting and cleaning and maintaining these there's tons of steel on salt water so now that these two thousand uh resident maintenance custodians are no longer on board it takes a lot of work to maintain this vessel on the water so and we thank everyone for helping preserve what we call Fall River Statue of Liberty the welcoming sign as you enter the city

over the Braga Bridge thank you all thank you Senator great to be here with you all on the battleship pleased to be with you all and celebrating some of the amazing organizations that are receiving cultural facility funds in this grant round congratulations to Battleship Cove and all the recipients I had a cousin visit from Georgia this past weekend and her nine-year-old twin grandsons they're a

perfect target audience they were here they roamed the ship they ran around they had a ball and she said boy that was fabulous and Fall River looks amazing so it was really heartwarming and thank you Megan and your team for doing all of this um thank you to the mass cultural Council and mass development for your work in administering these well-deserved funds these investments in the physical infrastructure of our

cultural facilities bolster Massachusetts tourism and creative economies as house chair of the tourism Arts and Cultural development committee I'm proud to support these Investments and to work with mass cultural Council as they continue to promote and invest in the Arts and Cultural sectors the cultural facilities fund allows for our Commonwealth's non-profit institutions to focus on Capital Improvement

Statewide including design repair renovation expansion or construction of non-profit cultural facilities These funds allow organizations to plan for the years ahead and help to ensure that our cultural assets will be here for future generations with many organizations still feeling the effects of the pandemic the continuation of Grant programs such as the cff provide stability and reliability these Investments are

increasingly necessary and important as many creative organizations are dealing with years if not Decades of deferred maintenance here in Fall River the south coast and across the Commonwealth are called our cultural institutions need continuing support I'm proud that speaker Mariano chairman Aaron mikowitz and the entire House of Representatives continues to see that importance along with our very own

Senator rodericks chairman of house Ways and Means Committee his whole body and our local delegation who join us every day in supporting these efforts along with our mayor we together will be able to continue to fund Mass cultural Council and as a state and be able to continue to help facilities like our USS Massachusetts expand programming adapt to technological changes and assist with

continuing this message mission for decades to come with that in mind this is not just about organizations receiving funds today but also the opening of the next application of the round of cff funds Fall River and the Narrows has also received These funds it's important that any of you interested please take advantage of course they'll be on site here to answer your questions please if you're not here

today reach out to them or reach out to one of us and we will be sure to connect you to the MCC thank you again Mass development for the role you continue to play and congratulations again to today's recipients as house chair of this committee I look forward to continuing this work with all our partners here to make sure that our cultural organizations continue to be supported as we move forward thank you very much

good morning everyone it's still morning thank you Mass cultural Council Mass development um my remarks are going to be kept about 30 minutes or so so I just saw I know uh Senator rodericks alluded to the maintenance on board the ship you know and congratulations to all the recipients uh but uh you know it it was a city at one time 80 years ago um and in 1965 I was 12 years old you can

figure that out I was selling tickets uh to come on board the ship 50 cents well the price hasn't gone up that much and it's very difficult to maintain this ship so any any contribution Any Grant is so important to maintain that it's this massive vessel but so important to not only not only the city of Fall River but to the entire Commonwealth in the country this is the largest World War II museum Fleet

in in the country very important as we look uh back at our history as a Marine Corps veteran during the Vietnam conflict um we've seen countless numbers of veterans come on board and visit so this is very important with regard to maintaining this vessel and continuing uh that aspect of our culture and and as we move forward thank you all very much uh thank you Senator and representatives

thank you so much for your support uh it's fun to partner with you I am so pleased to welcome Fall River mayor Paul Coogan thank you well this is very special so good morning and it's a pleasure to be here with everybody today I want to thank Michael Bobbitt Teresa Park and obviously the mass cultural Council and mass development for this lovely program this grant program that helps so many

organizations across the state and it's great to welcome everybody and on many many familiar faces to Fall River as we stand today on the battleship Massachusetts Battleship Cove is much more than a cultural facilities it is a key piece of the community puzzle and it is so symbolic of Fall River that during the recent contest we did to redo a logo in the city of Fall River the battleship was probably the second most

common item used across all the logos right behind the Braga Bridge which it stands next to cultural attractions like Battleship Cove the museum served many many purposes they provide important recreational opportunities to all our residents like the battleship many events to honor our veterans and welcome young families they boost our economy and are crucial to many of our tourism efforts

these iconic cultural landmarks are a source of Pride for everyone in the city of Fall River and as our Waterfront grows we are fortunate to have several cultural landmarks anchoring this area the battleship the historic Carousel Heritage State Park The huttner Visitor Center and the narrow Center for the Arts all are within easy walking distance of where we are right now and as we continue to recover from the covid

19 epidemic on onward and upward the Arts and Council the old Arts and Cultural communities should go I am so grateful that mass development and the mass cultural Council are investing in facilities like the USS Massachusetts again I want to thank everybody and I want to thank the team from the mass cultural Council and mass development for their hard work to strengthen cultural facilities in

Massachusetts and a far far across our Commonwealth and I want to thank everyone for coming out today thank you all very much and Meryl Streep filmed here recently that was awesome to see I love that I love to bring up Megan Rathbun Executive Director of Battleship Cove to tell you about some exciting projects well thank you I'm here today Mass development Mass cultural all of our representatives from

both Fall River and the state at large we are incredibly grateful here at Battleship Cove as you've just heard kind words from everyone seated up here we have been an institution in Fall River since 1965. we represent all of those who served not just from the state of Massachusetts but across all branches of the military and all conflicts we're surrounded today by the 13 000 names of

those killed just from the state of Massachusetts in World War II but we are incredibly grateful to receive this funding because it allows us to continue both preserving this ship and restoring compartments that were not previously accessible to the public the stewards birthing mess attendance birthing down on third deck but it also allows us to tell the story of every member of the

crew of this ship it allows us to tell the story of segregation in World War II to talk about the fight for integration in the 1940s and it also allows us to work with our other historic ships which we have been on a National Endowment of humanities Grant with the USS rapid down in New York specifically to digitize our historic Collections and to create over 40 education programs aimed at telling

the underrepresented stories in the Navy so we are incredibly grateful today I'm so happy that you are all here aboard the USS Massachusetts if you've come before welcome back if it's your first time welcome aboard a battleship and afterwards I am more than happy to take anyone around on a tour if you would like again thank you so much for this opportunity we are incredibly grateful

thanks Megan uh we have with us our County council member not County I don't know where that came from ah council member I'm from Montgomery County but I'm uh our council member Kathleen Castro who represents Bristol County that's where County came up from Kathleen please come up and say a few words

we are in the county Michael said it's Bristol County not another County but I want to thank Michael and and all the group from uh the mass cultural Council for being here it is my privilege to serve on that Council and to uh ensure us I think Michael and the others know that we get our fair share here in Bristol County of the monies and there will never be more money than there is

right now so keep that in mind as we move forward with the ongoing grants and opportunities for the mass cultural Council uh I thank all of you for coming today uh it's great to see you here and I spent quite a bit of time through the years on this ship coming to meetings and being part of it all so it's uh it's fun to be back here today thank you foreign

a hug Kathy before we leave today uh oh we can do it now we don't see you um okay so we're gonna gather for a group photo but I did want to say two things one is that uh on November 1st ends our pandemic relief funding program for individual artists this is again thanks to our legislature we received quite a bit of money to give out to those that have suffered from the

pandemic which I'm assuming is everyone in this room but we want to make sure this goes out to especially artists that haven't been included in Grant programs before so please help us by spreading the word and I don't see any individual artist you know but people that work in the cultural sector that maybe don't identify as artists so they work backstage they hang lights they work front of house but also artists that

don't get included like drag performers and DJs and um uh contract curators please spread the word those Grant programs close in um in two weeks we have gotten the Grant application down to about 10 minutes we don't want to make it hard for these artist to apply and we're giving out about three thousand of them so please spread the word about that and I wanted Jay to mention a little bit because we're

turning our attention to helping you all greenify your organizations so Jay has a workshop that he has coming up did you want to say something about it

opportunity to apply for Grants and if you just got a grant maybe the administration of that so that we could we're just here to answer any questions you may have and we're going to be available I think in the Next Room the boardroom and there's a workshop as an online Workshop about the green um correct yeah it's the decarbonization of cultural facilities on and on November 2nd we'll do a webinar that

will be recorded and uh we'll be sending out the invite to everyone but I think it's a great opportunity for us to think collectively about reducing the carbon footprint of our thanks okay that ends our program so Jay and Miranda will be next door thank you Jay and Miranda will be next door um and we want everyone to gather down here so we can take photos uh to memorialize this monumentous moment come on down