Full Bloom: A Capital Campaign

Creating Community at Piti’s Bloom Center for Arts & Ecology in Charlemont

Update! We have now secured $450,000 worth of financing from generous supporters! 

Dear Safe Tech Community,

As you may know Piti Theatre Company, a non-profit touring troupe, is in the process of creating an Art & Ecology Center in Western MA  (Charlemont) where we have begun offering low-emf experiences (for example, performances, educational programs, etc.).
There is also the potential of creating low-emf housing (short/medium/long term) on the property.
We have been in the process of raising $90,000, which will allow us to complete the purchase of an adjacent 7-acre parcel with a building site and to begin moving into construction mode. However, we have now learned that the parcel next to this seven-acre building lot will go on sale in June. This new property has:
  • 24 acres
  • 2 cabins
  • 1 walk-in basement studio apartment
  • a two-family house
Purchasing this property would allow us to expand upon low-emf sanctuary vision. Piti has the opportunity to purchase the property before it goes on the market in June but at this point, it seems unlikely we will be able to raise the 1.2 million dollar asking price by ourselves.
We wanted to alert you to this opportunity in case you or people you know might be interested in helping create the first East Coast EMR-S refuge.
The page below is an adaptation of our public facing page with more "safe tech" details. At this point, we can only respond to inquiries from people who interested in being part of a team that purchases the property (most likely by forming an LLC) or in making a donation or low/no interest loan. We are not yet ready to think about short-term stays.
Thank you for sharing this with people in your networks who might be interested. Our hope is that this site can serve both as a place of healing and sanctuary as well as helping the larger community appreciate the benefits of lowering their exposure. We can be reached at pititheatre"at"protonmail.com.
With our best wishes,
Jon

Campaign Update

Following our purchase of a barn and 42 acres and successful fundraising to transform the barn into a multi-use performance venue, we now have the opportunity to purchase an adjacent 24 acres with turn-key accommodations for guest artists, people in transition, students and interns.

Phase 1:
Transform the Barn
Funding complete!

Adding septic, lighting, bathrooms, farm store, insulation, parking, wheelchair ramp and more!

Phase 2:
Purchase Adjacent Parcel

Includes two houses, three apartments, gardens, and orchards.

Phase 3:
Build Cabins Above the Barn

By the end of phase three, the center will be able to accommodate 20+ people!

Square footages of buildings:

  • Three family house: 3450 sf (includes basement level with washer/dryer, hot water tank and in-law apartment)
  • Two family house: 1250 sf
  • Cabin 1: 320 sf plus loft
  • Cabin 2: 175 sf
  • Garage: 576 sf
  • Shop: 450 sf

Safe Tech Info

  • Solar is mounted on the three bedroom house (we have a local building biologist who could help address the dirty electricity)
  • Three phase power is being installed on the road (normally this should actually reduce the dirty electricity directly underneath the current power lines because the Three phase lines will be further from the ground and use a "Hendrix spacer")
  • The nearest cell tower is three miles away and the Bloom site is in a small valley. This means that there are some places on the property where you can make a call with one bar and other places where there is no service
    We worked with the town of Charlemont for several years to make a major update to the town's cell tower by-laws which passed two years ago. The current bylaws are available here: https://www.hilltownhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Charlemont-Telecom-ByLawRevision.Final_.docx
    The by-laws include a provision which requires hard data - (drive tests) to prove a gap in coverage rather than just propagation maps. This provision may dissuade new cell tower applications since the carriers don't want to set a precedent of providing drive test data. The cell tower on the top of the local ski mountain provides service for most of the town.
  • There is no current set back for 5G small cells but also it is unlikely they will be proposed given the rural location. We are bringing a citizen petition to create a set back at this year's town meeting in May, available here: https://www.hilltownhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Charlemont-Telecom-By-Law-Update.v5.docx

Survey of Site With All Parcels

survey of whole property

Images of the Three Bedroom House Next Door

From a previous listing on Zillow:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/225-Avery-Brook-Rd-Shelburne-Falls-MA-01370/56976496_zpid/

Images of the two bedroom house

Images of the adjacent barn and property owned by Piti Theatre

Consider the benefits of a robust Center to...

  • Local Economy: more tourism, more jobs
  • Youth: engagement with arts and nature, Bee & Blossom program has already been running for two years
  • Pollinators: pollinator sanctuary and educational apiary
  • Community: more arts, more coming together = more resilience
  • Local Farmers & Artisans: an "art-farm" stand, already in place
  • Arts Groups & Educators: an accessible Charlemont venue

Envisioning the Center

Piti Theatre envisions an arts-infused entry point into the forests, geology and ecosystems of this unique region of "the Hilltowns" in Western Franklin County. The Center will be founded on the belief that creativity can be leveraged on behalf of a sustainable future and a deep sense of place.

The Center will be an environmental education hub where people of all ages can connect and re-connect with the natural world. In this place of meeting points and crossroads, of synergy between art and action, scientists and children, policy-makers and parents will come to nourish their vision for a livable, thriving planet and get professional support for communicating that vision with the world. Piti Theatre has been bringing their unique blend of art and environmental education to schools, theatres and festivals around the U.S. and internationally since 2008.

There will be space for making performances, plenty of outdoor space, wild space, there are bees and mushrooms, chickens and swings. Children are coming here during the day and in the afternoons. Adults, artists and "non-artists" are coming here for the day, the week, the month and the year. Performances are being created for touring and for the community. The center is connected to an international network of change-makers and creators. There are international exchanges in motion.

And slowly, over the years, new ways of thinking (and old ways of thinking that have been forgotten) will be carved out and then leap, like peepers from their home pond, out into the world in the service of a living planet where social and environmental justice is the norm, not short-term profit for a few. We see this center as offering a unique contribution to the performing arts and to the diverse movements for a sustainable human presence on earth.

Could Theater Help Save Planet Earth? (Community Foundation Blog Post)
Preliminary drawing by local sustainable designer and builder Noah Grunberg, Noble Home.
Preliminary drawing by local sustainable designer and builder Noah Grunberg, Noble Home.

Help us Bloom!

If you would like to be part of this vision, we welcome you whether it's as a volunteer, an Advisory Board member, Sponsoring Business or an Angel please get in touch.

Get in Touch
Center Narrative
West County Shopper Article
Feature in the Recorder
Capital Campaign Flyer