Artwater

Atwater Village is a community where creativity and neighborhood pride have converged at the same time as infrastructure improvements are reinforcing its sense of place. The residents of Atwater showcased their artistic talents and neighborhood beautification efforts at the first-ever Artwater Festival, a community-wide celebration that included belly-dancing, women on stilts, and chalk covered-sidewalks. Artwater was not only a celebration of the community's artistic endeavors, it was also a celebration of Atwater's residents own decision that they could transform their community into a local jewel. Part of Atwater investing in itself is its investment in the lives of its children. The Neighborhood Watch and Neighborhood Councils of Atwater Village and Glassell Park recently came together to fund an after school arts program at Washington Irving Middle School. Arts, drama, and music programs are increasingly rare in our schools, though we know that they often keep kids off the streets, away from harm and out of gangs.