By : Lee Harkness
Source : http://post-journal.com
Category : Small Business Grant
It seems impossible it is almost Christmas. The time seems to be flying by faster and faster. The Christmas parade has come and gone. We are all now preparing for the actual Christmas Day. This was making me think about all the activities and events that have happened over the past year - it is pretty spectacular here in Jamestown.
Now I am going to avoid mentioning specific people, businesses and organizations because I invariably forget someone who has been an important part of the mix. As many of you are aware we do the John Siggins Show - "The Town Square" from our lobby every Friday. Invariably we have callers who feel Jamestown is "not making it" or simply not doing well at all. It caused me to think - now I know some of you find that hard to believe but it is true. The spirit of the season did make me reflect on what has happened here in Jamestown.
I started this job at DJDC in about 2003. When the job started the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena and the Chadakoin Building had just had ribbon cuttings. Look where we have come since then - less then 10 years. We have more new buildings downtown, the west end has been transformed into a first class community entity, the rest of the city has been cleaned up, facades have been restored, alleys have been rebuilt, art and music have been exhibited, new events have happened, parts of the Riverwalk have been completed with more under construction, the Wintergarden Theater was taken down and the property transformed into a nice park, the Washington Street Bridge has been rebuilt, the Erie-Lackawanna Train Station has been almost completely restored. The dollars and cents of this work are almost staggering. While I have not added it up recently the private investment on the west side of Jamestown alone exceeds 60 million dollars - and that is probably conservative.
I think even more importantly there have been some partnerships developed that include public, private and foundation entities. All of these have worked hand in hand to make Jamestown a better place to live and work. Friendships have developed that have never been in place before. This is all part of the season.
Now representing the mission of DJDC, the other thing we can reflect on is business development in our downtown. When we first started in the early 2000s there were many empty storefronts downtown - just take a walk down Third Street today - or up and down Main Street - you cannot count many empty storefronts at all. Now will we have businesses like we did in the history of Jamestown - no, but we will have, and do have, a new era of specialty shops that are beginning to emerge to fill Jamestown with retail life again.
We are very proud of our small businesses in Jamestown. They have worked to develop and produce successful small businesses they are proud of and yet allow them to make an adequate living. If you do not believe these businesses are proud all you had to do was watch the entries in the holiday parade and the pride these entries had in their work. But even deeper meaning comes from a stroll down Third Street. Look in the windows, look at the storefronts - they are magnificently decorated with the Christmas and Holiday theme. Our business owners are proud of their stores and what they stand for. Our small business owners are trying to provide the best possible services and products for the people of Jamestown. Personal customer service is a primary goal.
I saw a quote in the Buffalo Business First on Dec. 15 by Phil Aguglia that I thought was a great summary of the feelings of our small-business owners, "I'm not making a ton of money per customer, but I'm making a customer for life." As we are preparing for Christmas we at DJDC would just ask you to keep these types of thoughts in your minds. Our small businesses are the backbone of our community.
We wish you all the very best in your holiday season.
Source : http://post-journal.com/page/content.detail/id/595865/Businesses-Are-The-Backbone-Of-The-Community.html?nav=5057
Source : http://post-journal.com
Category : Small Business Grant
It seems impossible it is almost Christmas. The time seems to be flying by faster and faster. The Christmas parade has come and gone. We are all now preparing for the actual Christmas Day. This was making me think about all the activities and events that have happened over the past year - it is pretty spectacular here in Jamestown.
Now I am going to avoid mentioning specific people, businesses and organizations because I invariably forget someone who has been an important part of the mix. As many of you are aware we do the John Siggins Show - "The Town Square" from our lobby every Friday. Invariably we have callers who feel Jamestown is "not making it" or simply not doing well at all. It caused me to think - now I know some of you find that hard to believe but it is true. The spirit of the season did make me reflect on what has happened here in Jamestown.
I started this job at DJDC in about 2003. When the job started the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena and the Chadakoin Building had just had ribbon cuttings. Look where we have come since then - less then 10 years. We have more new buildings downtown, the west end has been transformed into a first class community entity, the rest of the city has been cleaned up, facades have been restored, alleys have been rebuilt, art and music have been exhibited, new events have happened, parts of the Riverwalk have been completed with more under construction, the Wintergarden Theater was taken down and the property transformed into a nice park, the Washington Street Bridge has been rebuilt, the Erie-Lackawanna Train Station has been almost completely restored. The dollars and cents of this work are almost staggering. While I have not added it up recently the private investment on the west side of Jamestown alone exceeds 60 million dollars - and that is probably conservative.
I think even more importantly there have been some partnerships developed that include public, private and foundation entities. All of these have worked hand in hand to make Jamestown a better place to live and work. Friendships have developed that have never been in place before. This is all part of the season.
Now representing the mission of DJDC, the other thing we can reflect on is business development in our downtown. When we first started in the early 2000s there were many empty storefronts downtown - just take a walk down Third Street today - or up and down Main Street - you cannot count many empty storefronts at all. Now will we have businesses like we did in the history of Jamestown - no, but we will have, and do have, a new era of specialty shops that are beginning to emerge to fill Jamestown with retail life again.
We are very proud of our small businesses in Jamestown. They have worked to develop and produce successful small businesses they are proud of and yet allow them to make an adequate living. If you do not believe these businesses are proud all you had to do was watch the entries in the holiday parade and the pride these entries had in their work. But even deeper meaning comes from a stroll down Third Street. Look in the windows, look at the storefronts - they are magnificently decorated with the Christmas and Holiday theme. Our business owners are proud of their stores and what they stand for. Our small business owners are trying to provide the best possible services and products for the people of Jamestown. Personal customer service is a primary goal.
I saw a quote in the Buffalo Business First on Dec. 15 by Phil Aguglia that I thought was a great summary of the feelings of our small-business owners, "I'm not making a ton of money per customer, but I'm making a customer for life." As we are preparing for Christmas we at DJDC would just ask you to keep these types of thoughts in your minds. Our small businesses are the backbone of our community.
We wish you all the very best in your holiday season.
Source : http://post-journal.com/page/content.detail/id/595865/Businesses-Are-The-Backbone-Of-The-Community.html?nav=5057
