Behind the scenes for months, the City’s Chelsea Prospers initiative has finally revealed its latest and most ambitious effort to revitalize downtown: the Chelsea Night Market.
Director Mimi Graney partnered with Chelsea native Edwardo Chacon of Jukebox Events to develop a summer gathering in the parking lot behind the Chelsea Walk. The Night Market will occur five times on Saturday evenings throughout the season.
“This is going to be a
reflection of the City in its first year,” said Graney. “As it grows more
popular, you’re going to see the abutting cities like East Boston, Everett and
Revere coming. We want vendors here to be Chelsea residents. We want artists
and performers to be Chelsea residents. We do want to mix it up too. The Night
Market is for the City of Chelsea and for residents.”
During a Chelsea Prospers meeting on Feb. 6, Chacon presented the concept himself. A Chelsea High School graduate, Chacon attended college in Florida before spending many years in Los Angeles managing corporate marketing events with substantial budgets. Each time he visited Chelsea, he envisioned a trendy, vibrant market in his native city.
After relocating to Chelsea a year ago, Chacon committed to making this vision a reality.
“I always came back and
felt like something like I was doing elsewhere could really happen in Chelsea,” he said. “I would look at the city and just feel that Chelsea had the right
atmosphere to do these things too and one year ago I moved back and felt like I
had to try. My goal is to do the same things I was doing elsewhere in Chelsea.
I feel Chelsea is a city that’s perfectly located for this and the people
deserve it. They would love it and be filled with a sense of excitement.”
The City parking lot behind the Chelsea Walk will host the event, featuring a performance stage, vendor booths in the center, food vendors, and an art installation toward the rear. Chelsea Prospers hopes to add a beer garden in the back section next year, though Graney explained that strict public drinking ordinances prevented implementation this year. Audience members expressed considerable enthusiasm about the beer garden concept, and Graney noted that this support could help facilitate ordinance changes for future markets.
Fire jugglers, artistic lighting, and diverse performers will entertain attendees during the 7-10 p.m. events. Graney said the entertainment lineup will rotate throughout the season.
Scheduled dates are June 8, July 13, Aug. 10, Sept. 21, and Oct. 5.
According to Graney, the June 8 opening will carry a graduation theme, coinciding with the following day’s graduation ceremony.
“It’s going to be a
pre-celebration for the high school senior class,” she said. “We have baby
pictures of all of the kids and an artist is creating a collage . There will be
performers from the class and they are really going to be our ambassadors.”
Vendors will offer carefully curated new and used merchandise alongside service providers such as henna tattoo artists and massage therapists. Street food vendors will prepare hot meals using BBQ grills rather than traditional food trucks.
“It would be scaled for an intimate, community oriented atmosphere,” read the literature.