“So the fact that we’re still working on behalf of our kids, our youth, here in the City of Jamestown to make sure we have a space where they can be the best they can be is so incredibly important.”
The $500-thousand dollar project is being funded through a $250-thousand dollar grant from The Skatepark Project, formerly known as the Tony Hawk Foundation, and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation.

The Skatepark Project‘s Trevor Staples said the process for Jamestown to get this park started 3-years ago with the Built To Play program when he reached out to Jamestown Skate Products owner Pete Scheira,

“And I was going to give him all the information about the new grant program and he said ‘I’m already working on the application,’ so he’s really got his act together and Pete Scheira is really the driving force behind all this. This couldn’t be possible without the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation who’s funded up to 20 skateparks throughout the region, so at least 10 in Western New York”

Scheira, as part of the Skate J-T-N-Y group led the community fundraising for the park,

“We started raising money for this, I’d say, with the Active Artists Alliance about 10 years ago. We started having skateboard art deck shows and just keeping the money put away in a bank account waiting for this day to happen. But really we never knew where it was going to be. We just knew some day that the time would be right and the skatepark would happen and kept having the shows.”

The matching funds of $250-thousand dollars were raised by the City of Jamestown, SK8 JTNY, and the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation. The City also was awarded at $50-thousand dollar grant for green infrastructure as part of the project due to its proximity to the Chadakoin River.

Officials anticipate the skate park will be fully constructed and opened by the end of this summer.

Cold Lazarus

JAMESTOWN – The Third Thursday Concert Series returns to downtown Jamestown at the Winter Garden Plaza on Thursday night, May 16.

Now in its eighth year, Third Thursday is series of free downtown concerts, held on the third Thursday of each month from May through September. It is organized by the Active Artists Alliance with support from the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation.

Tonight’s musicians will feature the bands Cold Lazarus and Trip the Deuce.

Third Thursday is a free, all ages event and all members of our community are encouraged to attend.

The Active Artists Alliance (AAAlliance) will once again present Third Thursday at the Wintergarden Plaza (located on N. Main St. between Third and Fourth Streets) starting Thursday, May 19. The free outdoor concert series, which begins its fifth year, will feature live music from local favorites The Bogarts along with opening act Pine Fever (Buffalo, NY). The concerts typically run between 6 and 9 p.m.

AAAlliance founder and spokesman Bill Thomas says Third Thursday was designed to be a free, all ages community arts event and concert series for the community. He says that a few local AAAlliance members will be bringing their easels and paints out to the plaza and working on their paintings and other creations.

“Any interested local artists or crafty folks should feel free to bring their materials down to the plaza, to work and network with the other artists, or just to show off what you have been doing lately,” Thomas says, adding that for the sake of public relations and the health of all who attend, participating artists are reminded not to use spray paint while showcasing their talents.

Thomas says that as usual, thirsty patrons can also enjoy a beer during the event on the Wine Cellar’s new patio, which will have a perfect view of the bands and artists. He adds that an after party show will take place at Mojo’s with an additional performance by Pine Fever.

Sponsors for the 2016 Third Thursday concert series include Jamestown Renaissance Corporation, Jamestown Community Chamber of Commerce, the BioDome Project, and Jamestown Skate Products.

Listeners can hear more about the Third Thursday Concert Series along with other events planned by the Active Artists Alliance during WRFA’s Wednesday edition of the Local Rush Hour at 4 p.m.

• APP USERS: LISTEN HERE

Bill Thomas from Active Artists Alliance talks with WRFA’s Jason Sample about the 2015 All Decks on Hand art show and auction on Friday Oct. 23, along with the King of the Bowl VII, taking place Saturday, Oct. 24.

The All Decks on Hand Skateboard Deck Art Auction starts at 6 p.m. inside 3rd on 3rd Gallery at Reg Lenna Center for The Arts.

The show will feature work from more than 20 different visual artists, and will include original hand-painted, drawn and customized skateboard decks, as well as sculptural artworks made from used skateboard decks.

All works will be sold in a live auction at the gallery. All proceeds will go into the Jamestown Skatepark Fund, which was established to benefit free public skateparks in Chautauqua County, and to give the grassroots Skateboarding community more input into the design and location of future public skatepark projects.

The event is presented by Active Artists Alliance, The BioDome Project and Jamestown Skate Products.

3rd On 3rd Gallery is located at 116 East Third Street in the Reg Lenna Center for The Arts in Jamestown, NY.

Relay for Life

Frewsburg Central School will host the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life event from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, May 30. The event will consist of several activities, including the annual Survivors’ Lap, the Luminaria Ceremony, and the Fight Back Ceremony.

For more information on the event, visit the Facebook page under Relay For Life of Southern Chautauqua County, or visit their website at RelayForLife.org/SoChautauquaNY.

ArtBurn 2015

Art, Music, Food, Beverages, Kids, Dogs, and Bicycles will all be on hand for the annual ARTBURN auction at 100 Acre Lot – hosted by the Active Artists Alliance. The event allows art supporters to bid on a variety of local art that will be up for auction. If no one buys the art, it will be destroyed in a bon fire!

In addition to the art auction, there will also be live music by Blood Feud, Will & Sara, the Tongue Cluckers, and Pine Fever.

The event runs from 3 to 9 p.m. Saturday, May 30 at 100 Acre Lot on Curtis Street in Jamestown.

Movies @ The Reg: While We’re Young

Saturday, May 30 at 8 p.m. – Director Noah Baumbach (Kicking and Screaming, Frances Ha) presents While We’re Young at the Reg Lenna, an exploration of aging, ambition and success, stars Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts as a middle-aged couple whose career and marriage are overturned when a disarming young couple enters their lives. As Josh and Cornelia begin to spend time with Jamie and Darby, they find the younger spirits inside of themselves, and soon begin to look at life, marriage and the world through younger eyes.

Rated R. 97 Minutes. All seats are $5. Concession items are available individually at full price or five for $5.

Comedy Series Continues at The Tropicana Room

The Lucy-Desi Center for Comedy will host an evening of comedy featuring NYC-based comedians Pete Lee and Tony Deyo at the Tropicana Room Saturday night, May 30. The event is slated for two performance times – one at 6:30 and the other at 9:30. For more information about the show or ticket information, visit www.lucycomedyfest.com or call 484-0800.

Street Jam 2015

The annual Street Jam 3-on-3 basketball tournament is taking place both Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31, in downtown Jamestown. This year marks the 19th street basketball tournament in the greater Jamestown area. Teams will register Friday for the tournament, with play beginning at 8 a.m., both Saturday and Sunday, rain or shine. The event is sponsored by the Resource Center and Filling the Gap – in concert with numerous local businesses and community non-profit organizations. All funding raised by Street Jam will help provide services for persons with disabilities.

Jammers Baseball

The All New Jamestown Jammers will be in action both Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31, at Diethrick Park. For start time and ticket information, visit JamestownBaseball.com.

Third Thursday is a free, all ages community arts event and concert series, presented by the Active Artists Alliance and Jamestown Renaissance Corporation, taking place on the third Thursday of each month from May through September in Winter Garden Plaza (located on North Main St., right next to the Wine Cellar).

To help support the 2015 Third Thursday Concert Series, the Active Artists Alliance’s Bill Thomas says they are also conducting an online fundraising campaign at Kickstarter to help pay for the cost of the event to help it grow and get even better.

“Basically we’re just asking people who’ve enjoyed our events in the past to – if it’s within their means – chip in $5 or $10 or whatever they can afford,” Thomas told WRFA during a recent interview. “There’s reward levels where, rather than it being a ‘donation’ – you get something or what you give. So we’ve got some artist-designed T-shirts, postcards, prints, and things like that.”

Tonight’s Third Thursday event will run from about 6-9 p.m., with live original music by The Audience and Trip The Deuce.

A few local AAAlliance members will also be bringing their easels and paints out to the plaza and working on their paintings and other creations. Organizers say that any interested local artists and/or crafty folks should feel free to bring their materials down to the plaza, to work and network with others.

Originally airing Friday, May 15. WRFA public affairs director Jason Sample talks with Bill Thomas from the Active Artists Alliance in Jamestown, NY. Thomas discusses the AAAlliances Kickstarter campaign, designed to raise money for several 2015 programs, including Third Thursday concert series and the annual Art Burn.

• FIND AAA on Kickstarter