On the Creative Edge is the name of a remarkable collaboration of government, civic, business and cultural organizations and institutions within the greater Eastport area and beyond that have coalesced around the broad premise that creative communities mean economic development. Funded initially by a $50,000 grant (one of only two inaugural such grants given in the state) from the Maine Arts Commission under its new community funding program (Creative Communities = Economic Development or CCED), and that will be matched with an equal amount in private funds, the Creative Edge initiative seeks to advance the creative synergy that is leading Eastport's resurgence following a lengthy period of steep decline.

For more specific information about components of the On the Creative Edge initiative, click on the menu bar above. More details will be forthcoming in the next few weeks and months. So check back. We want to hear your questions and suggestions. You can contact us here: Contact Us.

For a listing of a wide ranging array of businesses and institutions that are creating this On the Creative Edge synergy in greater Eastport, click here: Creative Edge Businesses/Institutions. More information about Eastport businesses and visiting Eastport can be found at the Eastport Chamber of Commerce's website. For individual artists/artisans and creative workers, search the CulturePass directory to the greater Passamaquoddy Region under Eastport, Perry, and Sipayik: CulturePass Network Search. For information about cultural events going on in Eastport see the CulturePass website or The Quoddy Tides newspaper.

Collaborating organizations and institutions with On the Creative Edge include the City of Eastport, the City's Downtown Committee and Historic Review Committee, Eastport Port Authority, Eastport Chamber of Commerce, Sunrise County Economic Council, Shead High School, Tides Institute & Museum of Art, Peavey Memorial Library, Eastport Arts Center, Waponahki Museum, and Border Historical Society.

The five cultural organizations with representatives from the City's Downtown Committee and the Eastport Chamber of Commerce will be forming a Cultural Council. The Cultural Council will work to ensure that "culture" and the "creative economy" are more fully integrated into the City's economic development strategies. The Cultural Council will also work to foster greater collaboration, the sharing of resources, and the minimizing of scheduling conflicts between the cultural organiztions, the City, and the Chamber of Commerce.