Boston has a new initiative to transform the city's nightlife by funding innovative and inclusive events.
The "Wake Up the Night" grant program aims to reimagine nightlife across Boston, making it more accessible and diverse. It does not revolve around bars and clubs.
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"In the last month and a half, we notified over 40 grantees that there will be reimagining nightlife throughout the city with over 50 different events that I'm really proud of," said Corean Reynolds, Boston's director of nightlife economy.
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The grant supports events that focus on accessibility, cultural expression, all-ages participation, weekday activities, and alcohol-free environments.
"We kind of have a little bit of flavor of everything, and about 17 different neighborhoods, which we're also proud of, to get that kind of span throughout the city," Reynolds added.
One of the standout events is the Piers Park Sailing Center's "Kayak the Night." It's become so popular that it ran out of paddles for the first time.
"The grant allowed us to pay for staffing costs, and then get a bunch of cool things to make our kayaks more night-friendly," said Mela Gomez of the center. "We got glow-in-the-dark lights, some LED strips for vision, and we pay for food, so we can feed folks that come and they get a nice dinner."
Another event is a non-alcoholic beer garden planned by Dray Drinks for early October.
"It's where we intend to present what we think is essentially the first non-alcoholic beer garden concept in the country," said Pat Dooling, founder and owner of Dray Drinks. "Lots of people aren't making the choice to drink or do certain activities purely based on alcohol being present."
The Rose Kennedy Greenway's "Wake Up the Night" event will focus on art, unveiling the 10th mural in its public art program at Dewey Square.
"This will be our first mural commissioned by an indigenous or native artist in the murals designed by Jeffrey Gibson, so we're really excited to have his work on the wall," said Audrey Lopez, director and curator of public art at the Greenway. "One of the important things when we put public art into the world, into public spaces across Boston, is to not just to put the art there, but then also to activate it."
Many activities are still in the planning stages, and the event calendar will be released monthly, through December. You can find information on the events here.
