Now in its third year of development,
The Jefferson Project, a growing STEAM co-operative (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math), has become more collaborative and regional in nature when it comes to input, visibility and momentum.
After kickoff in 2021, a few key approvals and milestones have been reached in the last few months allowing different aspects of the project to move forward, including projections on the side of the Bay County Courthouse building and the unveiling in the Sculpture Park in June 2023.
Read more about the beginnings of the project in a June 16, 2022 Route Bay City article.
“Some of this was just an idea up until we got final go-ahead. A lot of this project is based on ideas around collaboration, placemaking and community-building, but they were all just ideas until we got the proper approval,” says Avram Golden, owner of Golden Gallery and the executive director of the project.
“There can be anxiousness with that, because you don't know if something is actually going to happen, even with all the community support we’ve had. So, that was huge.”
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After Golden bought the building, he cleaned debris and trash from the surrounding yard. He hopes to eventually create a space that invites people to enjoy a sculpture garden and other public art.Actual art projection efforts are contingent on funding for additional equipment. Currently, the project has one projector in the Jefferson Building.
“We don't have regular programming fully formed yet, but we’ve put teasers out there. We still have to raise funds for that to get the projectors in place, because it will take approximately eight projectors placed down the whole County building to create a cohesive experience. Once we get beyond getting them in place, we will need content creators for material,” Golden says.
Seeking additional funding will complement other efforts now a part of The Jefferson Project, including the Raise the Flag program that's been taking place downtown since 2010 and the Third Street Star Bridge that was organized in 2016.
“I used to run those through
Golden Gallery and now they are under the umbrella of The Jefferson Project as placemaking initiatives. We did our first fundraising effort for the Raise the Flag program and there's still an opportunity to raise funds for that, because our goal this year is $20,000,” Golden says.
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The Jefferson Project building faces the back of the Bay County Courthouse. Golden envisions interactive art projected onto the back of the building.“The Star Bridge is an ongoing effort, and we just need to get a little bit more visible with our fundraising efforts on Third Street. It's a very popular portion of downtown, if not the most popular portion. So, we're looking forward to continued fundraising efforts to maintain that project, add more art to our community and support the general fund.”
Community Food, Artist and Vintage Market
The other component was the market on Jefferson Street. The city unanimously approved closing Jefferson Street, which allows for an outdoor market until Nov. 4.
The street is closed seven days a week, with the market running on Wednesdays and Fridays from 4 to 9 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. in partnership with the
Bay City Cooperative Market and the
Bay City Makers Market.
Jan Rise, from the Bay City Farmers Market, has also been helping advise The Jefferson Project on the market and helping get it started.
Additionally, Katie Wachowiak also helps out the market events, given her experience with the Midland Area Farmers Market with her family’s flower business,
Reinhardt Blooms.
“We've got a lot of interests and strengths within the three different groups, but she's the person that helps bring that out to the end of the funnel,” Golden says.
Current support for the market includes a $20 per booth fee for vendors, but the project just got notification that they're able to put food trucks on the street and will soon start reaching out to food trucks and coordinating a schedule for later this year.
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The building at the intersection of First Street and North Jefferson Street appears abandoned today. But it’s housed a variety of businesses for over a century.
Planning for the future
Evolution is on Golden’s mind currently, as The Jefferson Project recently began strategic planning through OmniTech International in Midland, thanks to a grant from the Bay Area Community Foundation.
“That process helps to put us in position to where we go to partners, funders and foundations and let them know where we're at and what our specific direction is. It gives the project more clarity and it's an essential step as an organization to get to that next level,” Golden says.
Over the past three years the project has really turned into a regional collaborative effort and is picking up momentum.
The project is supported by a regional board of five members including Tara Welch of The Rock Center for Youth Development and previously of Studio 23/The Arts Center; Sara Clark, instructor and gallery coordinator at Saginaw Valley State University; Anne Kostus, an early middle college consultant; Fahim Islam, Senior Sales Director for Dow; and Dylan Hellus, of SVSU.
“We are seeing support from many other regional organizations because of how this was built in order to fill a gap in the region. We're not trying to duplicate anything, instead we're trying to fill and fit something that is needed,” Golden says.
“I've been listening for 20+ years as I've been in business downtown and been part of a lot of these conversations around makerspaces before some of the things we’ve done with placemaking with the Raise the Flag and the Star Bridge.
“Years ago, I used to organize a gallery walk which was one of my first efforts around placemaking. We organized all the galleries in Downtown Bay City to host artists and we had relationships with Delta College and Saginaw Valley to showcase students’ work in our downtown environment. Those were really popular events and it took everything outside of the school setting and gave a real-world interaction with potential customers,” Golden says.
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The building sits within steps of Bay City’s growing downtown district.
Driven by collaboration
Going forward, university collaboration is one thing Golden wants to bring to the project.
“We’d like to get an anchor tenant with one of the colleges or universities as the innovation lead of the project,” he notes. “And beyond that, we’d like to continue to secure funding for the Sculpture Park so that it remains open to the community and can continue to inspire people to visit, or to see something that interests them and strike up a creative idea or conversation.”
Getting to this point would have been possible without community input and people who have volunteered their time or talents.
“I have some great volunteers. We probably have a 30-person advisory group of very capable people, working professionals, retired professionals that have helped out with different things,” Golden says.
“A lot of this effort so far has been about process, and getting these approvals. Now that we've achieved most of those goals, we're going to re-engage the larger volunteer group, and other organizations like the Garden Club. They're an advocate of this project and they want to participate in helping in some way. We don't know exactly what that's going to be, but there is plenty to do.”
The biggest need at the moment is volunteers for the market and for people willing to open and/or close operations. Activation of event spaces, apartments, and other components of the project will come later in time.
“There is a need for housing in the area, so eventually we think that will go over quite well, along with the event spaces we have planned,” Golden says. “With all the character the space has, it will be a very popular venue in the area, especially being part of downtown, with the close proximity of the river, restaurants and shops.”
In the near-term, Golden is going to put a mural on Jefferson Street on the back portion of Valley Roofing in partnership with the company and Bret Lewless.
“He's allowing us to put a mural on the entire back of his building, so that’s pretty huge. We’re going to have a call for artists and ideas ideally in the next two months, because that would be great visibility,” Golden says. “When you're on Woodside, you can see that blue portion for at least three lights down, so that is something we are looking forward to soon.
“With all that I'm trying to activate the outdoor spaces to get more community engagement and visibility. I think a lot of people hear about The Jefferson Project, but they don't know exactly what it is and we’d like to change that,” Golden says.
“And STEAM is the focus because basically at the forefront of every industry, it takes a creative mind to get there and do something better than what has been done before. It takes ingenuity and creativity, which is often left to the side, but I see it as an integral part of everything.”