Downtown Hazard, KY Walking Tour

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1 1. The River Arts Greenway is a planned two-mile walk/bike trail along the river in downtown Hazard that will feature temporary and permanent art installations. Phase 1, the first 0.3 mile section, was completed in July The Greenway begins at the International Peace Garden featuring a stackedstone bridge built by regional artist Jeff Chapman-Crane. The Greenway was the focus of a 2014 ArtPlace America grant. 2. Intersecting the River Arts Greenway will be a leisure area, or Parklet. Next to our municipal basketball courts, the Parklet will have tables, chairs, and a small stage. Picnic tables have been provided by Lowe s. The City of Hazard has also recently installed a boat ramp nearby. 3. InVision Hazard is a downtown revitalization coalition made up of downtown stakeholders and citizens. These Walk Your City signs are an example of a communityled project meant to build civic pride in our historic downtown through small-scale investments.

2 Downtown Hazard, KY Walking Tour 4. In October, 2015, the River Arts Greenway teamed up with Hazard Community and Technical College to host a Welding Rodeo. Three regional teams had 8 hours to create sculpture from scrap metal around the theme of River Creatures. Several hundred people watched the competition produce three wonderful sculptures that will be placed along the Greenway as public art. The 2016 event is scheduled Friday, October The City of Hazard this year will build a permanent stage in the Amphitheater. This stage will be used for outdoor musical and theatrical performances throughout the year.

3 6. Municipal Parking Structure - This structure, built in the 1970s, has been underutilized and neglected by the community for many years. This year, InVision Hazard joined with the Appalachian Arts Alliance to throw a Founders Day Celebration commemorating Hazard s 132 nd anniversary. The event prompted discussions with the City on upkeep and improvements to this downtown facility. 7. The ArtStation is an adaptive re-use of Hazard s historic bus station. When complete in 2017, it will house a black box theater, gallery space, studio space, office space, and event space. The Appalachian Arts Alliance and the City of Hazard just received a $250k CDBG grant to begin phase 1. The renovated space will host entrepreneur training and arts programming in partnership with partners such as the AppalShop in Whitesburg and the Appalachian Artisan Center in Hindman. In August-September 2017, the ArtStation will host the Smithsonian s Hometown Teams Traveling Exhibit. This exhibit will highlight sports on a National, State, and Local level and will allow the Appalachian Arts Alliance to showcase local cultural history.

4 8. People s Park was a community response to a building fire on Main Street. Instead of a burned out lot, Hazard has a downtown park, which has been used to host local events such as The Main Course. This event featured a multiple-course local food meal served to a sold-out crowd. Northfork Local Food was the beneficiary of that event, as the operator of the Perry County Farmers Market. 9. In 2015, MACED (Mountain Association for Community Economic Development) moved their Hazard office to downtown Hazard to allow for a greater focus on downtown revitalization and community development. As a result of this move, the MACED Office has allowed other organizations to office share in this space, including Community Farm Alliance (CFA), InVision Hazard, Appalachian Arts Alliance, Northfork Local Food, the Perry County Farmers Market, and the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky. This arrangement has allowed for greater collaboration and has been the key factor in the success of many projects in downtown Hazard.

5 10. Triangle Park is home to Thursdays on the Triangle, a series of local art & culture minifestivals helping to create space for art and local food in the downtown economy. These festivals create a zero-cost opportunity for artists and local food producers to market their wares; set a benchmark for paying artists and musicians for their time and work; and bring much needed excitement to downtown. 11. InVision Hazard Mural Project- More than 50 children and adults gathered on a Saturday for a paintby-number mural event. The mural designed by local artist Jenn Noble, is the first in a series of public art projects sponsored by InVision Hazard.