Alfred Twenty First Century Group Inc.

Alfred Twenty First Century Group Inc. The Alfred Twenty-First Century Group (A21CG) is an all-volunteer 501(C)3 nonprofit organization.

We have some exciting news to share! A21CG has been awarded a $2,000 grant from the Allegany County Area Foundation to d...
09/05/2026

We have some exciting news to share! A21CG has been awarded a $2,000 grant from the Allegany County Area Foundation to develop Discover Alfred – a new community resource.

For a small place, Alfred has a lot to offer – from businesses and services, through exhibitions and public lectures, to community events and markets. Things to do, places to go, and initiatives worth joining. The problem? Keeping track of them all requires a fair amount of detective work. Information is scattered across websites, social media pages, campus channels, the local newspaper, and word of mouth. The solution? Discover Alfred. One reliable place for everything Alfred – a comprehensive community calendar and business directory, available both online and in print.

The goal is simple: make Alfred’s offerings easy to find, explore, and support. Connect across generations. Accommodate different information habits.

For local businesses, that means greater visibility and a dedicated place to reach residents, students, and visitors. For the rest of us, it provides an easier way to learn what is happening around town – including things we may never have known were here.

We will launch the project in partnership with the Alfred Box of Books Library and its director, Melanie Miller, who has already laid the groundwork for an interactive event calendar. Once established, library staff will take the reins, keeping the calendar active and up to date.

Our business directory is well underway, with 32 business profiles submitted – and counting. Part of the funding will go toward commissioning a local artist to develop the project’s visual identity, with original illustrations that will give it a strong sense of place.

Eventually, Discover Alfred will have a visible home in the heart of our town. Plans include transforming the village gazebo into a centralized information hub, with improved seating, lighting, and protected bulletin boards.

The grant is an important first step. Now the real work begins.

Over the coming months, we will pursue further funding, build the directory, set up the calendar, and share more about how businesses, colleges, and event organizers can participate. We don’t want anyone left behind!

We are tremendously grateful to the Allegany County Area Foundation for kickstarting the project – and to our partners: the Alfred Box of Books Library, Alfred-area businesses, and the Village of Alfred, who jumped aboard.

A community can only support what it knows exists and participate in what it can find. Together, we will close the information gap, turning awareness into greater engagement, stronger ties, and better use of local resources.

Discover Alfred is on its way. Stay tuned.

For a while, parking spaces sat empty along Main Street. After five, deer outnumbered moving cars. The village slipped i...
08/31/2026

For a while, parking spaces sat empty along Main Street. After five, deer outnumbered moving cars. The village slipped into a familiar summer lull. But silence has an expiration date in Alfred. You don’t need a calendar to know August is drawing to a close. Almost overnight, the students are back. The “collegiest town in America” is awake again.

At A21CG, we believe Alfred is strongest when the village and the campuses don’t exist as separate worlds. Students are our neighbors, employees, customers, and friends. Their presence gives this place its outsized character. So, to everyone returning: welcome back. And to everyone arriving for the first time: welcome to Alfred. Take the long way to class sometime. Step into a shop. Show up for an event. Get to know the people who live here year-round. There’s more to this place than you might think. Let it surprise you.

Alfred Businesses: Join us on Tuesday, September 1!This is a friendly reminder about an upcoming meeting.📅Launched in sp...
08/27/2026

Alfred Businesses: Join us on Tuesday, September 1!
This is a friendly reminder about an upcoming meeting.📅

Launched in spring by A21CG to strengthen collaboration, visibility, and the local economy, the informal Alfred Business Association returns this fall after a brief summer hiatus. Its third general meeting is set for Tuesday, September 1, at 7 p.m. at the Alfred Village Hall, with all local business owners invited to attend.

The agenda will focus on a slate of village-wide events proposed by the Association’s Planning and Events Committees at their joint August 19 session. Attendees will explore opportunities to participate and ways to coordinate activities with the broader goal of building a stronger year-round presence in the village. The tentative calendar includes Sweet & Savory Stroll on September 27 and Autumn in Alfred on October 11, both planned in conjunction with the Alfred Farmers Market and open to businesses across town. November will bring Turkey Takeover, followed by Taste of Alfred. The season will conclude in December with the Holiday Market sponsored by A21CG and organized in partnership with the Farmers Market.

On September 1, business owners will be encouraged to sign up for upcoming events and help shape the calendar ahead. Those who did not join the forum in spring are welcome to participate as well. There’s room at the table for the entire Alfred-area business community. Come with ideas and a calendar. Further details on individual events will follow as plans take shape.

Before summer slips away and the academic year takes over, a brief dispatch from those of us downtown: A21CG has been bu...
08/24/2026

Before summer slips away and the academic year takes over, a brief dispatch from those of us downtown: A21CG has been busy while the students were away.

Foster Lake hosted another fleet of UFOs. Art moved onto Main Street, with bluebirds, wildflowers, and bold color greeting passersby from a once-unremarkable wall. For several weeks, storefront windows became galleries, putting local talent on display. Behind them are businesses worth knowing – the places to find coffee and pastries, vintage treasures and art, a haircut or dinner, and the people who help keep Alfred’s economy moving.

We’ve also worked to strengthen local ties and build lasting partnerships across the community. Away from public view, a new project is taking shape to make Alfred more connected, attractive, and easier to explore. More on that very soon!🤞🤞

Some of the people who make Alfred look its best rarely get their names mentioned.Meet Jimmy Ainsworth. All summer long,...
08/17/2026

Some of the people who make Alfred look its best rarely get their names mentioned.

Meet Jimmy Ainsworth.

All summer long, Jimmy has kept the Main Street flowers watered and fertilized. Before Chloe Smith put the first brushstroke on our community’s new mural, Jimmy was there with a power washer, preparing the wall for its transformation.

Jimmy doesn’t work alone. When he’s away at school, Ethan Cook steps in - and lends a hand throughout the year whenever one is needed. It’s the kind of quiet, dependable, behind-the-scenes work that keeps community projects going long after the ribbon is cut and the spotlight fades.

A warm thank you goes to Tom Costello - the Superintendent of the Department of Public Works (DPW) and Chief Operator of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) for the Village of Alfred - for making this possible, and to Mayor Jim Ninos for never hesitating to support efforts that benefit Alfred. Thriving communities exist because of people like you, who care about them.

We would be remiss not to express our gratitude to Bennett's Greenhouses, who supply our pretty flower arrangements year after year.

🌸 Did you know that the beautiful flowers brightening our Main Street each summer are brought to you by Alfred 21st Cent...
08/10/2026

🌸 Did you know that the beautiful flowers brightening our Main Street each summer are brought to you by Alfred 21st Century Group? 🌿🌸 🌺

Decades after A21CG launched the project, we’re proud to continue the tradition. 🌷

The hanging baskets and street-level planters are one of the ways we care for our community’s shared spaces. We hope they help make Alfred a more welcoming and attractive place for you to live, work, study, and visit. 🌼

As we wrap up the 2026 UFO Regatta, we'd like to leave you with one final thought. The UFO Regatta has never been just a...
08/02/2026

As we wrap up the 2026 UFO Regatta, we'd like to leave you with one final thought.

The UFO Regatta has never been just about testing buoyancy. It’s about celebrating creativity, sharing laughter, and enjoying an afternoon that’s unlike any other.

We hope you left with great memories, a story worth telling, and maybe even a spark of inspiration for a floating masterpiece.

We'll see you on the last Saturday of July 2027 for the third annual UFO Regatta. We hope the event has already earned a permanent place on your summer calendar. Until then... keep dreaming, keep building, and keep proving that imagination floats. 🌊🛶🏁👏

08/01/2026

A week ago, homemade UFOs took over Foster Lake for an afternoon of friendly competition and community fun. Thanks to our friend Ian Bentham, a local resident and videographer, the event was beautifully captured on video.

We're delighted to share it with you. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

If you’re interested in learning more about Ian’s work, please reach out either directly to him at [email protected] or to us, and we will gladly pass the information along.

Thank you, Ian, for supporting UFO Regatta!🛶🌊👽

With sincere appreciation, we’d like to recognize our wonderful sponsors of the 2026 UFO Regatta. Your generosity truly ...
07/31/2026

With sincere appreciation, we’d like to recognize our wonderful sponsors of the 2026 UFO Regatta. Your generosity truly warmed our hearts. Thank you for believing in our vision. Thank you for having a sense of humor. And, most of all, thank you for investing in our community! 💙 💙 💙 💙 💙

The following local businesses supported the 2026 UFO Regatta and helped celebrate and reward the contestants’ hard work and creativity:

1. Wegmans – sponsoring 2 awards with a $50 gift card each.
2. Little Sicily's (Ben and Pat Palmer of Southern Tier Concrete Products) – sponsoring 3 awards with a $25 gift card each.
3. The Old Mill sponsoring a $50 gift card.
4. Alfred Twenty First Century Group Inc. – sponsoring a $50 gift card to the Spotlight Theater.
5. The Big Dipper – sponsoring a gift card for 2 BBQ dinners and 2 ice creams.
6. Alfred Collegiate – sponsoring a $25 gift card.
7. Racalto's – sponsoring a $20 gift card.

A thank you goes to Alfred University for allowing A21CG to use Foster Lake and to Amanda McMahan who coordinated the use of the space and supervised the lifeguards.

Many thanks to Ian Bentham of Prunty-Russo MediaLab for capturing the UFO Regatta on video. We’re excited to be able to share his fantastic work with you on Saturday. Stay tuned!

A special thank you to Ben Evans – unsurpassed kayaker and our floating one-man cheerleading squad – for bringing positivity, patience, and boundless encouragement to every homemade UFO.

A big thank-you to Rutty’s for serving up delicious food to the participants. We appreciate you helping keep our crews and audience members fueled!

Last but certainly not least, thank you very much to all the contestants for building your UFOs, joining the Regatta, and letting us witness your imagination afloat! We are honored to count each and every one of you among our intrepid UFO captains. You showed us community spirit at its best. We can’t wait to welcome you back next July at the UFO Regatta 2027! 👏 🌊 🚣

The wait is over! Here are some of our favorite highlights from the 2026 UFO Regatta. Enjoy!A huge thank-you to all of o...
07/30/2026

The wait is over! Here are some of our favorite highlights from the 2026 UFO Regatta. Enjoy!

A huge thank-you to all of our fearless UFO Captains for letting your imagination take the reins. You made us proud! We appreciate every one of you and the time, creativity, and effort you poured into building your UFOs. You filled Foster Lake with a lot of joy and brought smiles to everyone on shore.

We couldn't have asked for a better fleet. Thank you for bringing a dream to life! 🚀🛶

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Alfred, NY

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