Walking tour offers access to city’s best destinations

Walking tour offers access to city’s best destinations

By Dennis P. Hohenberger
Turley Publications Correspondent

HOLYOKE – Residents laced up their sneakers last Thursday and joined Mayor Elaine A. Pluta on a walking tour of the Canal Walk, which included a visit to the Paper City Brewery. The weekly tradition, when the weather cooperates, began under former Mayor Michael J. Sullivan.
The walking tours showcase the city’s arts, parks, businesses and technology, while encouraging residents to socialize and feel safe. The tours leave City Hall around 4:30 p.m., every Thursday. A walk was scheduled this week for HG&E’s fishway.
The mayor led residents to the Canal Walk on Dwight Street and later along Race Street, the planned Canal Walk’s second phase. The Canal Walk offers views of Heritage State Park, the Merry-Go-Round and City Hall. The Volleyball Hall of Fame and Holyoke Children’s Museum border the brick-stamped walkway.
Pluta said the walks highlight the amenities available to residents downtown, as well as the economic and cultural progress being made. She said the small businesses downtown and in Canal District need support from residents.
Expanding the Canal Walk on Race Street, said Pluta, should bolster the burgeoning artist community. “We are definitely promoting that whole effort and looking forward to having the Canal Walk get closer to where the artist are located. Some of them are living there and have their businesses there,” she said.
Beside visiting the fish way this week, the Sept. 15 walk includes stops at the Canal Gallery and Open Square, where several businesses will host events and offer special discounts, including the Serene Spa, California Slice Café and Vega Yoga.
Eileen Houseman, a member of the Mayor’s Peace Initiative, said she “gains knowledge” on the walking tours of what is happening downtown. “The Children’s Museum is a wonderful place to take your grandchildren,” as she passed the complex.
A lifelong resident, Houseman has seen changes over the last few years, like the Holyoke Transportation Center on Maple Street and projects that are underway. She said new restaurants and entertainment would attract more visitors downtown. “There are things happening. Come on down and see it,” said Houseman.
Andrew Melendez, of the Massachusetts Latino Chamber of Commerce, started the runners group, “I’m Running for Holyoke.” The group jogs different routes that showcase the city’s unique qualities, which residents often pass. “This city is too beautiful to just run around Ashley Reservoir,” he said.
The group runs courses in the Flats, South Holyoke, Highlands and other neighborhoods. “We just past a mark. We ran 25 miles around the city, already,” said Melendez. The group has 25 members and continues to grow.
“People get in comfort zones. We want to bridge that gap. I walked today to show that leaders in this community are here to be part of it all,” said Melendez. “The opportunities here are endless. This walk alone shows that the potential here is amazing.”
The walk ended at the Paper City Brewery on Cabot Street. The brewery hosts a Thursday night tasting, where customers sample a variety of beers. Owner Jay Hebert, who opened the brewery in1996, took visitors on a tour and showed the brewing process.
He said the brewery’s “excess capacity” allows Paper City’s continued growth in its contract brewing side. Small, craft brewers either don’t have the capacity to expand their businesses or are unable to afford the large, stainless steel vats. Paper City has the space and brewing capacity to meet the needs of small brewers. “Eventually they’ll go on their own, but it at least it gets them out on the market without a large capital output,” said Hebert.
In Paper City’s early days, Hebert produced 100 barrels. The brewery now produces thousands of barrels annually, with a distribution network that reaches Pennsylvania. Hebert said the business requires a “hands on” approach, from the brewing process to marketing to distribution. “Those are the things that have kept us in the light, in people’s eyes,” he said.
The weekly open house, said Hebert, offers customers a way to connect with the product and where the product is made. “It helps, once they leave, to keep our place in their mind,” he said. Hebert expected about 80 beer aficionados on Thursday.
For more information on the weekly walking tours, please contact the mayor’s office at 322-5510.

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