Jefferson Matters: Main Street, represented by board president Jamie Daubendiek and board vice president Amy Milligan, presented its quarterly report and annual recap to the Jefferson city council Nov. 28.
Many of the group’s activities have been widely reported earlier. Jefferson Matters volunteers have logged about 3,800 hours of service in 2017, and a total of 22,360 since its inception. Private investment the Main Street district has totaled more than $663,000, and total investment has been more than $4.4 million.
Priorities for 2018 are to continue positive momentum through collaboration; to continue to build a culture of volunteerism; to continue business transition, expansion and entrepreneurial development; to expand funding opportunities; and to attract people to the Main Street district.
Highly visible projects in 2018 will be the Smithsonian Institute’s Hometown Teams traveling exhibit Aug. 11 to Sept. 23 at the historical museum, and the renovation of the alley that extends north from State St on the courthouse square as Arch Alley.
Deb McGinn, chair of Jefferson Matters’ Tower View Team, briefed the council on plans for Arch Alley. Artist David Williamson has already met with the TVT about the plans. He will construct three pedestrian arches in the alley, each one reflecting an arch found somewhere else in the Main Street district. “We’ll be inviting people in, but we’ll also be saying, ‘Go back out and find these arches that are in the alley elsewhere.’ We’re putting the emphasis back on the facades again,” McGinn said.
Willliamson will hold a workshop for community involvement in the design during the winter.
He plans to bring his portable foundry to Jefferson during the Bell Tower Festival. He’ll pour metal for the castings of the arches during the festival.
Daubendiek said the preliminary designs are for “something very, very special.”
Also in the coming year Jefferson Matters will expand its mini grant program to assist business owners with new signage following façade restoration.
Click here to see the 2018 action plan.
