14 communities achieve ‘cultural district’ status

Fourteen communities are home to “cultural districts,” a state designation that puts cities and towns in a better position to obtain grants and boost arts- and tourism-related programs.

The latest group of cultural districts, announced by the Massachusetts Cultural Commission in mid-October, are the Central Square area in Cambridge; the section of Essex that includes the Essex Shipbuilding Museum; downtown Marlborough; and the Glasstown section of Sandwich.

Cultural districts announced in September are Concord Center; Natick Center; Lowell’s Canalway section; and Shelburne Falls, a district that includes the “Bridge of Flowers” connecting Shelburne with Buckland.

Additional cultural districts are the HyArts area in the Hyannis section of Barnstable; Boston’s Fenway neighborhood; Gloucester’s Rocky Neck artists district; Rockport’s Bearskin Neck, which includes the Motif No. 1 fishing shack; the Central Exchange district in Lynn; and the Upstreet district in Pittsfield.

Legislation enacted in July 2010 defines a cultural district as “a geographical area of a city or town with a concentration of cultural facilities located within it. Cultural districts shall attract artists and cultural enterprises to a community, encourage business and job development, establish tourist destinations, preserve and reuse historic buildings, enhance property values, and foster local cultural development.”

For more information, visit www.massculturalcouncil.org.