Editorial: Village Working Hard to Bring Businesses and Residents to Downtown

by Pat Vailliencourt, Village President

Recently there was a letter to the editor published in The Manchester Mirror that expressed concerns that many of us have about our downtown. To ensure that our community is aware of what has been and will be done to encourage businesses and residents to locate in Manchester, the following is a summary of recent and future projects:

• Completed a Downtown Streetscape including new streetlights, sidewalks, trees, seating areas
• Upgraded infrastructure to both sewer and water with another major water project scheduled
• Made improvements to Village roads
• Constructing a new Main Street bridge this year
• Scheduled construction of a shared-use trail with scenic overlooks this year
• Began planning for a waterfront park to promote canoeing and kayaking
• Scheduled improvements to the Kirk Park ball facilities this year
• Worked closely with existing industrial facilities to support expansions and job creation
• Established the Farmers Market as an entity of the Village to provide opportunities for grant funding and expansion
• Leveraged our dollars to obtain significant grants
• Worked with our volunteer groups to obtain funding for special projects
• Passed a resolution supporting an additional liquor license for downtown

The Village Council also formed a Downtown Development Authority (DDA) that is focused on promoting economic development. Following is a summary of their recent projects:

• Developed a dedicated web site to promote tourism that will support our businesses
• Printed updated and new brochures promoting our community
• Obtained grants for information signage coming this summer in two downtown locations
• Completed an independent Retail Market Study to document business opportunities
• Held a “Venture Manchester” meeting to obtain public input
• Pursued and received several grants
• Recommended approval of an additional liquor license be issued for downtown
• Partnered with the Chamber of Commerce on several projects

In all, over $5,600,000 will be invested in Manchester with about 74% coming from donations and grants. Our Village Council is very committed to creating a business friendly and supportive environment. Every inquiry we receive is taken seriously.

Having said this, the Village government cannot and will not attempt to dictate to private building owners how they use their buildings unless there are legal grounds to do so. Thankfully, none of our buildings can be considered dangerous, abandoned or in a blight condition.

The Village Council, the DDA, and our Planning Commission will continue to work to attract new businesses. However, we are a bedroom community where most will travel to work and have many options of where to stop on their way home. Several businesses have tried and failed in Manchester. Please remember the importance of your support to local businesses and activities. Filling the buildings is the first step, helping them survive is how we will be successful.

I encourage anyone to attend a Village Council meeting, held the 1st and 3rd Mondays at 7pm, to hear first hand what is being done.

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by News News