Downtown mural campaign begins!

Cornerstone effort to improve underutilized downtown alleyways

24 October 2024

Town upgrade to walkway adjacent to Jalapeno’s

Destination Downtown has launched a community funding campaign to initiate a drive to help vitalize the alleyways that connect Walpole’s municipal parking lots to the storefronts and businesses on Main Street. This follows the recent improvement made by the town to the walkway adjacent to Jalopeno’s Grill. The campaign has the potential to create public awareness of the downtown’s underutilized and uninteresting alleyways. The goal is to engage with the community to envision a beautiful and colorful mural that represents the interests, history and cultural identity of Walpole and to compliment future alleyway beautification projects with lights, flowers and sitting benches. The initial mural campaign targets the alleyway between 948 Main Street (Walpole Dance Center) and 954 Main Street (Donahue Real Estate).

Planned mural location

The campaign goal is to thematically link the mural to Walpole’s iconic sites/buildings within the town boundaries and reflect values of connectedness and harmony with the natural, built, and historical surroundings of the alleyway location. This cohesive artistic endeavor will celebrate Walpole’s past, present, and future, making the site a cornerstone in the town's narrative of community and creativity. Organizers are looking to involve the community as much as possible in the mural development process!

Organizers envision cleanup and landscaping of area adjacent to pedestrian pathway with shrubs and flowers

Destination Downtown, a community-led, volunteer-driven Walpole nonprofit organization, is raising funds and coordinating with other local organizations and town officials.  The project will primarily rely on public donations, so the organizers are hoping that residents and businesses can contribute in any amount, large or small. This community effort will be publicized widely, but the hope is that each supporter can help spread the word, in hopes that others will give to the effort as well.

The fundraising campaign is now active on Patronicity, a platform that uses civic crowdfunding to build vibrant communities connecting changemakers with funding partners to support community led projects. Destination Downtown is asking you to chip in!