FRIENDS OF MAIN STREET - News

Fall River Cleanup – Restoring Healthy Rivers!

9/30/2022

What a perfect Fall day for the first Fall River Cleanup - 75° and sunny on Saturday, September 24th! The Winsted Conservation Commission partnered with Friends of Main Street to organize the cleanup and was excited to have 30+ volunteers ready to go at 9:30 am at East End Park!

The Fall River Cleanup is inspired by the Connecticut River Conservancy, which sponsors an annual cleanup along the Connecticut River and its tributaries to beautify our environment and improve water quality on the same weekend. The group also partnered with the Farmington River Watershed Association, which has its cleanup event the same day.

There were volunteers from NCCC (Northwest Connecticut Community College), Northwest Regional 7, the Gilbert School, Scouts from Troop 1027, members of the Economic Development Commission, and other residents who joined Friends of Main Street and the Winchester Conservation Commission to help. We cleaned up East End Park, Main Street, Center Street, High Street, a bit of Willow Street, and the Skate Park while others were on the banks of the Still River. The Scouts brought their canoe and cleaned the Mad River and its banks! The grain bags donated by Little Red Barn Brewers was a great idea, and thank you, Barbara Douglas, for the great pictures.

At noon everyone enjoyed their pizza from our excellent local restaurants: Noli’s, Monaco’s, Kent Pizza, Mario’s, and ABC Pizza! Thanks to Bombardier, Birchwater Property Management, and Willard Platt for your kind donations.

See you next September!

#rivercleanup #winsted #fallvibes

Historic Parades Down Main Street!

5/30/2022

What a Memorial Day to remember!

Not only did we honor our fallen soldiers on Memorial Day with the traditional Winsted VFW Post 296 Memorial Day Parade of floats, marching bands, decorated military trucks, and fire trucks, but two historic parades were invited to join – Winsted Rotary's 84th Pet Parade and 88th Laurel Festival Parade – creating our largest parade on Main Street!

The 84th Pet Parade poster contestants and marchers include children from Torrington, Winsted, Norfolk, New Hartford, Barkhamsted, and Colebrook who bring their pets, dress in costume and ride their bikes; for all the fun!

The 88th Laurel Parade includes last year's King and Queen. It welcomes the 2022 candidates for the Laurel Festival riding in decorated cars – all a preview to the upcoming Laurel Ball the following week.

Pictures courtesy of Holly Marchand Cassady, Candy Perez, Tabitha Fay and Jim Shannon Republican-American

The Memorial Day Ceremony, held at East End Park, begins with the Pledge of Allegiance led by Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts and the playing of our National Anthem by The Gilbert School Yellowjacket Marching Band. Then the reading of the names of 115 fallen soldiers from the Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War by members of the Soldiers' Monument Commission. During the reading of names, scouts from local troops place a flag for each name read in front of the grandstand. The ceremony closes with the VFW firing squad salute with Bugler and Echo bugler -- Jennifer Collins, Grade 12, The Gilbert School, and Alec Marvin, Grade 8, The Gilbert School. The Soldiers' Monument on Crown Street is open on the first floor from 2 to 4 pm on Memorial Day.

Pride in Place

4/26/2022

It's Spring – Plant your seeds and grow them in Winsted!

Dear Friends,

We are encouraged by the many positive developments happening both on and around Main Street. It's exciting to see all of the new businesses opening, the Town's support with Facade Improvement and New Business Start-Up initiatives, Infrastructure Investment Plans and the growing sense of energy and community pride.

In 2021 Friends of Main Street made more memories with our Earth Day Clean up, Summer Concerts in the Park, Halloween Window Painting, a 12 Days Before Christmas giveaway events, maintaining our Food, Brew, Fun & Necessities - shops, take out, inside/out dining, salons, recreation & entertainment listings, while promoting daily and weekly community news.

This year, we are looking forward to extending the flower baskets from Case Avenue to the YMCA (four more baskets), so we need your help. Please consider donating to help us have fresh flowers in our downtown and volunteering for future events. Your support makes a difference in our organization's plans. ❤️

Thank you very much for your support.

Francis Delaney
President, Friends of Main Street – Winsted

Earth Day: Community Cleanup

4/23/2022

Community Cleanup!
For years Friends of Main Street has organized its community cleanups along the historic Mad River on Earth Day! Today we can now enjoy the beauty of this river, the walking path, bridges, and historic mill buildings.

Take pride in your community and help clean up litter on streets and sidewalks in your neighborhoods or any other locations around town. Don’t worry if you’re not able to fill a whole bag of trash, any little bit makes a difference.

WHERE:  Meet Us on Main Street!
Friends of Main Street will be setting up an information tent on the sidewalk at 372-378 Main Street (in between Nutmeg Potters and Monaco's Ristorante at 9:30 am.  Bring and wear gloves. Friends of Main Street will provide Eco-Friendly trash bag and latex gloves, if needed. Return at 11:30 am, bring your filled trash bag to the Public Works truck for water and pizza from local restaurants at 12:00 pm.

TARGET AREAS:  Pick up a bag and pick up on your street or locations downtown i.e. East End Park, Rowley Street around recreational fields and parking lots, Willow Street, including the Skate Park and parking lots, to Bridge Street, all along Main Street (river and retail sides), the old Rail Trail behind Mad River Lofts to Prospect Street, Tatro Pond.

Take a Walk, Ride or Hike!
Enjoy the Sue Grossman Still River Greenway (parking 18 Lanson Dr., Winsted) – 40,000 trips on that greenway annually!  Reach out to Winsted Trails or the Winchester Land Trust to see if they are scheduling any guided hikes? Don't forget to bring a bag to pick up any trash you may find along the way.

Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world!

Plant your seeds and grow them in Winsted!

1/17/2022

Take advantage of our two new initiatives to promote economic development and investment, and how to take control of your energy usage and costs!

🌱  Business Start-Up Program
$100,000 Business Start-Up Forgivable Loan Program to help incentivize new businesses to choose Winsted/Winchester as the home for their new or expanding business.

🌱  Facade Improvement Program
$150,000 Facade Improvement Forgivable Loan Program to help invest in our existing businesses and ready our vacant storefronts and facilities for new businesses to move in.

🌱 Take Control of Energy Usage and Costs with C-PACE Financing!
The Town of Winchester is partnering with the Connecticut Green Bank to bring C-PACE financing to commercial property owners. With C-PACE financing, owners of commercial, industrial, and multifamily property owners (5 or more units), as well as non-profits, can enjoy the advantages of energy upgrades immediately and pay for them over time through a voluntary benefit assessment.  Click here to schedule a meeting with a member of the Green Bank’s Financing Programs team to more learn about how C-PACE can benefit you.

Create it, Grow it or Move it to Winchester!

Welcome 2022! Highlight: 2021 New/Expanding Businesses

1/8/2022

With Gratitude

For all you do • For all you are • All our thanks

For supporting and growing our community and vibrant downtown, helping local non-profits, feeding the needy, supporting other startups, renovating and façade/signage improvements while struggling to stay afloat during these challenging times. Friends of Main Street would like to thank ALL our downtown businesses for their perseverance and resilience.

Let's also take a moment to celebrate these diverse businesses and entrepreneurs who opened or expanded their operations in 2021. We wish you all much success in 2022. Let's continue to support and take care of each other. Let's make it a great year!

Note: Studio (Whiting Mills), Loft (Mad River Lofts)

We thank our donors, Northwest Community Bank, for sponsoring community events, Winchester Economic Development Commission and their ribbon-cutting ceremonies, town departments, volunteer boards and commissions, and emergency responders for their help and aid. And Eversource for the gift of newly refurbished decorative poles on Main Street and East End Park with LED lightheads and a fresh coat of paint. Yes, it takes a village, of which we are proud to be a part of since 1999.

Main Street is Your Christmas Store!

12/22/2021

Two purchases, one lucky winner!

In November, we launched our first ever group promotion with downtown businesses. We ask them to join a campaign to be a "Christmas Store" and make Main Street Winsted's Christmas Store for "12 Days" BEFORE Christmas. It was a great success with 20 participating businesses!

Let us promote your business this Christmas!

FREE advertising directs customers to spend money at your store or restaurant for the chance to win our end-of-season giveaway.

For Twelve Days BEFORE Christmas:
December 4-15

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS:

Customers enter your store or restaurant.
When they make a purchase, you give them a contest entry card.
The next time they make a purchase from any participating merchant (including you), they submit their entry card for the contest drawing.
Friends of Main Street collects the entry cards daily from each merchant for the drawing, which will be held on Saturday, December 18.
The business that submits the most entries has the option to host the drawing!

WHAT YOU GET:

Free advertising on radio station WZBG (a $900 value for 12 days) and on the Friends of Main Street digital network, including our website, Facebook page, and weekly email newsletter.
Incentives for every customer to make an actual purchase from your establishment.
Entry forms for your customers to enter an end-of-season contest drawing.
Your business name is printed on promotional posters and on every contest entry.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE:

Click on SIGN ME UP TODAY! below to fill out the form on our website.
Pay a minimal $25 fee.
Donate one item to be added to the drawing.

Hurry! Signups must be completed by Monday, November 29, 5:00 pm!

Congratulations to our Winner!

Gloria M. Short is the lucky winner of our $500+ gift basket. She is a healthcare worker who lives in Winsted – one of many who got in the holiday spirit and made Main Street and downtown Winsted their Christmas Store for "12 Days" before Christmas (December 4-15).

We want to thank everyone who made this possible – our Christmas Stores:

2nd Home Lounge
Aero Hair Studio
Asa's Steak and Seafood
F & G Richards Jewelers
Laurel Lanes
Little Red Barn Brewers
LIVE. BeYou.
Mama Pho Vietnamese Restaurant
Morsel Munk
Noujaim's Bistro
Nutmeg Potters
Park Place Hardware
Paws and Reflect
RR Model & Hobby Supply
Raven's Edge,
Rooted Market,
Sacred Beauty Salon
The New Image
The Tributary Restaurant
Wonderland Nail Studio

We thank our sponsor Northwest Community Bank, and WZBG and Goulet Printing.

Spooky Windows on Main Street this Halloween

11/11/2021

Early Saturday morning on October 23rd, sidewalks filled with teams of K-6 young Winchester students brewing up frightening displays of ghosts and goblins all along Main Street for the 39th Halloween Window Painting Contest!

A total of 41 downtown windows were painted by 38 teams of two and three “solo” painters – 79 young artists in all – making more memories for everyone this Halloween!

Friends of Main Street and the Winsted Fire Department are excited to announce the 2021 Halloween Window Painting winners, by grade!

Kindergarten: Jaxon Picard & Robert Wagner
First: Alexa Hudak & Skylar Blades
Second: Caroline Cardillo & Kendall Wesolowski
Third: Iris O’Connor
Fourth: Makayla DeSanti (Gr. 4) & Alana DeSanti (K)
Fifth: Callan Jeannette & Gracelynn Miner (homeschooled)
Sixth: Giannah Mitchell & Cameron Picard
Honorable Mention: Gabby Pardue (Gr. 3) & Emmalyn Wall (K)

A big howl out to the 16 participating businesses:
Northwest Realty, ABC Pizza, Mama Pho, Laurel Lanes, True Value, Padre’s, Rooted Market, Friends of Main Street, Noujaim’s Bistro, Laurel City Coins, Keefe Land Surveying, JB Appliance, F & G Richards Jewelers, Valley Thrift Shop, Salvation Army, and Little Red Barn Brewers.

Well Attended Summer Concerts on the Green!

8/26/2021

Once again, Friends of Main Street partnered with Northwest Community Bank to bring to town this year’s Summer Concert Series, Thursdays in July and August!

What a great lineup of new bands and music – from Rock, Blues, Country, Swing, Jazz, Folk Rock, Americana, Singer/Songwriter, Latin salsa, to Bluegrass.

Concertgoers brought a bite to eat, their own chairs, and blankets to relax and enjoy the music. For the most part, we were blessed with clear skies and seasonal temperatures except for a few concerts due to thunderstorms and rain.

We had our largest crowds this season and many were dancing and enjoying themselves!

Kicking of the series with the Jr Krauss and the Shakes for a little Blues Jazz, Rockabilly, Swing and Rock and Roll!

Happy 250th Winchester!

5/19/2021

How exciting!! The town of Winchester's 250th birthday is around the corner – May 21, 1771, the date of incorporation. While our official plans for this day were put on hold because of COVID, we invite you to celebrate the day with your kids, family, and friends to talk about the tremendous history of our town.N

While we ramp up and revisit our celebration plans as restrictions lift from the pandemic, there are a few activities that we can share!

The Winchester 250 celebration banners hang proudly on our Main Street and at the entrance to East End Park!
Memorial Day festivities will include Winchester 250 banners!
Watch for banners and buntings to be installed on Town Hall and Historic buildings throughout Winchester Center and Winsted!
Book Launch: "Winchester, Connecticut: A History from Founding to Flood," by local historian and author Virginia Schultz-Charette is scheduled to be available at the end of June with an upcoming book signing and how you can purchase your own copy!
Historic Play: On November 13, there will be a play highlighting the town's 250-year history. Save the date and plan on watching the town's history unfold.

We recommend that everyone give the Winchester 250 and Town of Winchester/Winsted, CT official Facebook pages a "Like" to ensure you do not miss out on any upcoming events.

New Winchester 250 celebration banners line Main Street!

Congratulations to Chloe Anglace and Iliana Martinez, students at the Gilbert School. Their concepts were merged to create the black and white Winchester 250 logo.