The Frolic on Franklin: A Celebration of the Arts, a portion of the festival, is free and open to the public. The artists will display and sell their work, including art, jewelry, wood crafts, pottery and more. In addition, a minimum of five demonstrations including pottery, wood working/turning, a letterpress and painting, will be showcased, offering parents and children alike the opportunity to watch and learn. Interactive opportunities for the children will be made through activities such as sidewalk chalk and face painting.

This event was conceived by the Downtown Clarksville Association (DCA) members to bring arts to the streets on the same day The Roxy Regional Theatre hosts its annual Gala.

This event was initiated in order to draw attention to the numerous talented artists in the community.  Through the generous donations of DCA sponsors, the organization is able to provide tents, support and advertising for the event. Volunteers have been busy planning this event for the past year and will be present the day of the event to make sure all runs smoothly—from setting up tents, to providing the artists with breaks and assisting with preparations for the final “leg of our event” the Annual Gala for The Roxy Regional Theatre. The Gala brings hundreds of people from all over the region to the Roxy to enjoy an evening of fine food, art and, of course, theatre. The Roxy has been producing theatre in Downtown Clarksville for 25 years.

The Gala, the Roxy’s largest annual fund raiser, begins at 6 PM with outdoor dining (catered by The Bound’ry in Nashville), followed by an auction of art donated by regional artists.  The entertainment for the evening will be The Robber Bridegroom, a musical which combines a bluegrass score with a planter’s daughter, a rascally robber of the woods, an evil stepmother and a hostile talking head-in-a-trunk for an evening of pure delight and uproarious laughter.

Performances during the daytime will be by Northeast High School Choir, West Creek Middle School Choir, bluegrass by Stuart Bonnington, Acro Dance and Robert Jordan, vocalist, as well as one-act plays by the Roxy School of the Arts.  There will also be activities for the children—face painting and sidewalk art

Frolic on Franklin: A Celebration of the Arts is supported by the generous donations of our sponsors. Through their contributions, DCA is able to offer this event with no charge to the displaying artists or the public. The phrase “struggling artist” is well-known and oft used, which led DCA to make it as easy as possible for participating artists to have every opportunity to make a profit instead of gambling on booth expense and the hopes of an interested audience.

As Historic Downtown Clarksville continues to regain strength as a viable business, shopping and dining district, we hope to increase the number of festivals and activities for the families of Clarksville and the surrounding area. The DCA is firmly committed to the concept of combining the arts with the revitalization of the downtown area and is “proud to be part of the revitalization of this important part of Clarksville history”. The public is invited to come and experience all we have to offer.

Nada Fuqua and Betty Liles will be opening a new art exhibit at the DAC gallery on July 16. Both are very accomplished artists primarily using oil paint on canvas The opening reception will be from 5-8 p.m. on Thursday, July 17th and they will conduct their “art talk” for the August 7th 1st Thursday

The Downtown Artists Co-Op, located at 96 Franklin St. in downtown Clarksville is also seeking artists to submit entries for a Regional Juried Art Exposition for residents of Tennessee and Kentucky. Entry forms must be postmarked no later than August 6th. Entry forms can be picked up at the DAC gallery, the Cumberland Bank in Clarksville or at several other businesses in Clarksville and Hopkinsville.

Additional information and entry forms may be downloaded by going to www.clarksvilleartists.org and clicking on Regional Juried Art Exposition Link to More Info. DAC gallery hours of operation are Wed-Sat from noon-6 p.m. Telephone number (931)552-4747. You may also call Becky Keene at (931)552-3311 () or call Cliff Whittaker at (931)980-2041 ()

Awards will be paid in cash for Best of Show and then 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the following categories: painting and works on paper; 3D/fiber arts; photography; and mixed media. Artists may submit a total of two works to be juried for acceptance with a fee of $15 per item. Victoria Boone who is currently director of the Leu Art Gallery at Belmont University will be the juror. .

According to a new U.S. Census report, the Clarksville TN-KY Metropolitan Statistical Area is now the 10th-fastest growing MSA in the nation. Even though the national news may be depressing, our local economy is in good shape. Jimmy Settle, business editor for The Leaf Chronicle, says of the recent slow down in the residential market, “It’s a temporary condition, and should be perceived as more of a correction in the market, than a troubling decline. The truth is, the economy in northern Middle Tennessee is currently one of the nation’s best.”

The other truth is the residents in Clarksville are doing more than their share when it comes to helping the economic growth for surrounding cities and counties. The numbers are quite staggering! (More on those numbers later . . .)

The entire nation is feeling the pain at the gas pump. Gas prices are at an all time high and climbing higher. We’re all thinking about how to save gas, which will then make more money available for the necessary expenses and the extras; extras like dining out, shopping for clothes and home goods, entertainment, and more. Where will we be dropping those shopping and dining dollars?

Statistically, a great many of you will head to Nashville. You “think Nashville” for those extras. You head to the malls, the specialty shops, theatres, restaurants and even grocery stores! The fact is that every time you spend $100 in Nashville, you give that city $2.25 to use for their infrastructure, schools system, and other municipal expenses. (That’s the portion of their sales tax directly designated for Nashville.) $2.25 doesn’t sound like much, but we all know how little numbers quickly add up to big ones. Do you think Clarksville could use that $2.25? Do you think we could use better roads, sidewalks, schools, sewer lines?

Tennessee’s economic stability is reliant on sales tax. Without a state income tax, Tennessee depends on sales and property taxes for revenue needed to run the government engines. Other states, such a Florida, don’t have a state income tax either, but they’ve got a huge tourism industry. That’s why your local government is so concerned about “putting Clarksville on the map.” Tourist dollars are wonderful—they spend money, they return to their homes and their sales tax stays here.

Now back to the numbers. Are you aware we’re losing $40,297,000 in furniture, home furnishings, electronic and appliance sales? We’re losing $15,052,000 in restaurant sales. And, this one blows my mind, $72,285,000 in grocery sales! How do you get the ice cream home?

Now, as a local business owner, this all probably appears to be self-serving and to that I respond, “You’re darn straight!” I want you to shop at Hodgepodge, but I also want you to find unique clothing at Rogate’s Boutique and Posh; decorate your home with La Dolce Vita; eat a home cooked meal at Lovin’ Spoonful Café and get your caffeine fix at Blondie’s; feed your artistic interests at The Roxy Regional Theatre and The Customs House Museum; Seasons (the museum gift shop) has the most unique inventory of gift items in Clarksville. Okay enough of the gratuitous downtown plug, but you were expecting it. There are numerous independent retailers, restaurants and services, as well as the chains, right here in Clarksville.

There are more benefits to shopping local than the sales taxes. When you shop local businesses, especially independent retailers, they will do the same—their business does well, they hire local residents; many buy supplies and inventory locally; they pay their property taxes; they sponsor little league teams; they shop locally (they don’t have time to go anywhere else!). Without getting too far off topic, there are other benefits to shopping independent retailers, such as: personal service, unique inventory, and the sense of community. You’re greeted, more often than not, by the owner—they know your name, your likes, what you gave your wife for Christmas and what she’d like for her birthday. If there’s something you can only find in Nashville, why not ask your local business to start carrying it. I can guarantee you, they will at least look into it.

There are other trickle-down benefits to shopping local. One example, again it’ll be downtown (sorry, it’s what I know)—you shop at the local shops and eat at the restaurants, their business continues and grows, more people come and even want to live nearby, more residents means more tax dollars and a dense population demographic which many chains look for when deciding where to build. So if you want Wild Oats (or whichever grocery store your leaving Clarksville for), show them you’ll support it. You can write them, but they ultimately look at the local numbers. Further, we’ve become a big box store community—you know the one—that statistic discourages new retailers and grocers. If you want local options—shop the existing ones more frequently. You’ll be glad you did.

If you have to go to Nashville, at least buy your gas here.

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Editors Note: Author Paige Thomas King is the owner of Hodgepodge, a downtown shop catering to specialty items and antiques (and wonderfully unique greeting cards). She is a 43 year-old Army wife and mother of three who has had the opportunity to live her dream of becoming a boutique owner. We have been residents of the Dog Hill Historic District of Clarksville for six years. King opened her business in November, 2004 and it has grown from 1,000- to 3,000 sq. ft. during that time—including the purchase of the building she currently occupies and the recent acquisition of the former Neblett’s Framing Outlet. She has been active with the business and property owner’s committee of the DDP—aka the Downtown Clarksville Association—since its inception three years ago. She is “passionate about the revitalization of the downtown area and look forward to a time when all of the store fronts are filled with retailers and restaurants; including those currently occupied by lawyers—they can move the second floor!”