MSVW honors downtown businesses

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

The Main Street Van Wert downtown development program celebrated 10 years as an Ohio Main Street Community and also handed out a number of awards during its 12th annual dinner held this year at the new Wassenberg Art Center.

Main Street Van Wert Program Manager Adam Ries took some time to provide a recap of the program’s results in 2013, noting that the downtown area saw nine new businesses move in, creating 13 net new full- and part-time jobs, while more than $1.3 million was reinvested in downtown buildings and properties during the past year.

“All of these improvements mean buildings that better serve the businesses they contain, and a better looking downtown for everyone who comes here,” Ries said.

Ries added that, since 2004, when Main Street Van Wert adopted the model of the National Main Street Center and received the title of “Ohio Main Street Community,” the Van Wert downtown area has seen more than $6.1 million put back into more than 40 individual buildings and properties, as well as public infrastructure projects and street and sidewalk improvements.

“A vibrant downtown, or the lack of one, affects our community’s ability to attract and retain the residents, businesses and institutions, jobs and investments that enable a place to thrive,” Ries noted. “We believe that, through hard work and a collaborative approach, we can re-establish downtown Van Wert as the heart of the community and the center of local pride.”

Also Monday, several new downtown businesses were recognized, including R&R Employment, The Embroidery Coop, Once I Was, and 540 Martial Arts, while Wassenberg Art Center was given the “Best Rehabilitation” Award for the year.

Dennis Cummings was also honored as Main Street Van Wert “Volunteer of the Year.”

Prior to the awards, Steve Whitcraft gave a history of the Van Wert Armory building from its construction in 1938 until it was closed in 1993, while Wassenberg Executive Director Hope Wallace provided a presentation on arts and economic development and provided information on the renovation of the Armory into the new art center.