Covington plans to hire an executive director to oversee the revitalization of its downtown.
City council, on Tuesday night, was given a brief overview of the revitalization plan for downtown, which is also known as “Olde Town Covington.”
City Manager Krystal Onaitis said the person hired to spearhead the revitalization will carry the dual role of small business coordinator.
“It would be the executive director/small business coordinator that would really make this thing thrive,” Onaitis said.
The city plans to fund the position with money it received from the federal American Recovery Plan Act, which was approved by Congress earlier this year.
Tuesday’s council meeting was held on Main Street in the former Gordmans building. Gordmans closed in spring 2020 when its parent company filed for bankruptcy. Peeble’s occupied the building before it was converted to a Gordmans. The building also once housed a Leggett store.
The vacant Gordmans storefront reflects the overall climate of Olde Town Covington, which has seen its retail base shift to the Jamison Commerce Center, which has Walmart as its anchor store.
The Gordmans property is a centerpiece of the overall downtown revitalization plan. The plans for the Gordmans building, known as “Project Sparkle,” call for multiple uses with a cafe or coffee shop on the ground floor main entrance as a drawing piece.
Work to develop the Olde Town revitalization plan began in 2019 but it was delayed in 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic. During the COVID shutdown, organizers conducted an online survey to get the process started.
Earlier this year, Richmond-based Head Down Strategies, which developed the plan, met with stakeholders in the Highlands.
“If the plan doesn’t reflect what the community wants, it’s not worth the paper that it’s printed on,” said Lee Downey, director of business and economic development for Head Down Strategies.
“We know where we are. We know what we want to be, based on what everybody has told us. Now we have to develop a plan that gets us there,” he said. “We want to create something that will actually ve possible and sustainable.”
Based on input from the community, stakeholders want a plan that is nostalgic, reflecting the glories years of Olde Town Covington, but also modern.
“People love the way things used to be. Everybody liked the old memories and the old charm of downtown. But they also want it to be modern. They want us to make it modern to make it survive in the modern-day. In other words, we want to keep our memories but we want to make it modern enough to attract the businesses that we need,” Downey said.
The plan is divided into three components. Head Down Strategies said Olde Town needs attractions such as stores, restaurants and events. Marketing and branding, which would hit full swing when the executive director/small business coordinator is hired, would involve the use of social media and advertising to get the word out. And there are the consumers, residents, customers and tourists who come to Olde Town and spend their money and help spread the word.
— Opportunities for downtown living.
— A marketing campaign to brand Olde Town Covington and promote the community as a modern, high-tech location for today’s economy with foundations in a vibrant past.
— Revitalized commercial spaces.
— Increased recreational opportunities, such as bike lanes and connections to trails.
— Programs and resources to promote the historical aspects of Olde Town.
Downey said funding could possibly come through Community Development Block Grant. And once the executive director/small business coordinator is hired, the Gordmans property could initially be used as a business resource center.
“You need to start getting the word out while you are working on it, because when people hear you are working on improving your downtown, they will want to be a part of it,” he said.
Head Down Strategies’ report was initially released in mid-July. Tuesday’s overview to city council was presented to allow the public to hear the information and ask questions. Onaitis said the city will now move forward with implementation.
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