Downtown retailer Oolala is holding the first of what is planned to be a series of monthly art events this Saturday, February 27th, from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday’s event features paintings by Emma Closser and pottery by Eli Szydlo, with music provided by Madelyn Hartke & the Dumbfingers (Greta Kaul, Joe Dobrow, Tim Hollinger) and the Two Beat Band (Andrew Wilson and Jordan Taylor).
Actually, the NDDC was conducting a board visit with Jessica Prill, owner of Oolala. The art event was just icing on the cake.
Jessica gives downtown Northfield an 8.5 on a scale of 1 to 10. She said it might be a full ten on a warmer day.
In a a theme that carried through a number of topics, Jessica said Northfield has a lot to offer, if you’re willing to go find it. She said that we have anything you need to buy in town, an incredible wealth of cultural programming, and a good deal of information and services…if you’re willing to go find it. Jessica notes that she’s energetic and assertive, but that these characteristics are perhaps sometimes too necessary to find what she needs in Northfield.
She loves the lay-out of downtown. She notes that there are shops, restaurants, parks, a river, and even woods within walking distance. She particularly enjoys making time for a picnic by the river on a sunny afternoon.
Jessica would like a little more foot traffic but admits that it seems to be at least somewhat related to the weather. When the temperature drops, so does the foot traffic. She thinks that the current economic challenges are national in scope and feels thankful that the presence of the two colleges somewhat lessens the local impact. Jessica is optimistic that the warm weather will bring an upturn that will last longer than the season.
As for things she’d like to see in Northfield, Jessica quickly suggested a movie theater. She’d also like a free Happy Hour for downtown retailers at least quarterly. I’ll tip my glass to that idea.
That was the cake, now back to the icing. Paintings, pottery and music…or local artists and local musicians, this Saturday, 6 to 9 p.m., Oolala. It’s just the first of a monthly series, any artists or musicians who are interested, please contact Jessica.