Tag Archive for: #downtownhenderson

Downtown’s ‘Shamrocks On Breckenridge’ Offers Free Family Fun!

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This is a sponsored post.

Let’s turn downtown Henderson all shades of green for St. Patrick’s Day during the Shamrocks on Breckenridge next Friday evening from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

There will be plenty of music, entertainment, vendors and activities for the whole family, according to Amanda Walker Ellis, vice-chair of the Henderson Vance Downtown Development Commission.

Participants can use food vouchers to exchange for tasty treats during the event, Ellis said, thanks to the generosity of sponsors.

WIZS is pleased to join other event sponsors to make the event a success – Vance County Arts Council, North Carolina Arts Council, City of Henderson, Gateway Community Development Center and the Henderson Vance DDC.

A number of community agencies also will have information tables to share resources with participants, including AIM High: Purpose Driven Company, ACTS, Turning Point Community Development Mobile Lab., Gateway Comm Dev Center, Vance County Tourism and FGV Smart Start.

The Local Skinny! Acquest Group Partners With City On Garnett St. Property

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In the spirit of true public-private collaboration, a portion of South Garnett Street is getting a new lease on life. Alex Green, vice president and director of operations with Acquest Group is set to close on the purchase of property at 411 S. Garnett St. The city has purchased a lot next door, and, together, the area is gearing up for big things.

“We’re very excited to be partnering with the city,” Green told WIZS during a recent interview. The partnership will result in a mixed-use of retail space and restaurants at street level, with condominiums or apartments above.

“It’s absolutely going to change Henderson for the better and we’re so excited about it,” Green said. The interview aired on Tuesday’s The Local Skinny!

Green said the main restaurant space is spoken for, but there should be enough room for a smaller café style shop and one more retail outlet.

While there will definitely be new construction going up, Green said the hope is to keep as much of the existing building as possible. “It’s a beautiful piece of history for Henderson’s downtown and also has some interesting architectural pieces on the inside,” she said.

The area will be transformed into a space for fun activities, live music outdoors on summer evenings, Green said.

Seeing the potential in a location is half the battle, Green said. “That’s part of the challenge when you come into these awesome small towns in rural communities,” she said. It’s like putting together a puzzle – taking empty lots and abandoned buildings – and transforming them to becoming places of community.

Building community also supports generational wealth and keeps money in the local economy.

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Henderson Tobacco Warehouse

TownTalk: Juneteenth Is This Sunday

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The second annual Juneteenth celebration at the Henderson Tobacco Warehouse will take place Sunday, June 19 and organizers are planning for a triple play that day to honor churches, fathers and the day when the last enslaved people got news of their freedom in 1865.

Alex Green, vice president and director of operations at Acquest Group, said several area churches and other nonprofit agencies have teamed up for a joint outdoor worship service they’re calling “Worship in the Streets.”

There will be live gospel music, praise dancers and choral performances as well as children’s activities such as a bounce house and face painting for the community to enjoy between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., Green told John C. Rose on Wednesday’s TownTalk.

Acquest Group is developing the tobacco warehouse project, located at 203 Zene St. and Green said she’s excited to bring back the Juneteenth celebration to the area.

“We’ve got a lot of local partners that we’re working with…celebrating Black fatherhood and families,” she said of the Sunday event. ReBuild Communities Inc. will be hosting their annual fashion show as part of the celebration, and the non-profit Manhood is helping with the giveaways and prizes. “Manhood is focused on trying to provide services to young men in the community, especially in the areas of counseling and mental health.

“We’re really excited to showcase them and partner with them,” Green said.

In addition to celebrating families and Black fatherhood, Green said Sunday’s celebration also will include a focus on the church. Among the churches partnering for the event are A Place of Deliverance, Holy Temple Church, Greater Zion United Church and Kesler Temple AME Zion Church.

Green also said the work of the Flint Hill Kittrell Vance Community Development Corp. has been instrumental in the work at the Zene Street project, which is designed for mixed-use retail and office space.

“We still have a lot of work to do,” Green said, “but we’re really close to starting construction soon.”

Acquest Group, a commercial and residential development company, set its sights on Henderson in 2014 with plans to transform the former tobacco warehouse at 203 Zene St. into a hub of community activity.

“We see so much potential… and so many good people trying to work for the community and dedicating their lives to the betterment of this community,”

Green added.

“It’s always community first. It’s always people first,” she said.

 

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The Local Skinny! What’s Happening In Downtown Henderson

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If the city of Henderson were to write a letter to Santa this year, you can bet that increased downtown economic development would be somewhere on the Christmas wish list.

City officials heard an update from Downtown Development Director Tracy Madigan recently about what’s going on downtown, and it sounds like some of those wishes could be coming true.

The Thursday edition of The Local Skinny! ran down a list of openings and re-openings that are happening now in downtown Henderson.

  • For starters, holiday decorations are going up Friday evening, just in time for the Christmas parade that will take place on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 4 p.m.
  • Did you know that a grocery store is planned for Horner Street? Madigan said she doesn’t have many details yet, but even a small retail grocery that neighbors can walk to would be welcome.
  • The Gear and Beer shop has opened
  • The former Screenmaster location is being converted to an all-inclusive office space.
  • Madigan told the council that the city will have to invest in new banners, because the brackets in place now on newly installed Duke utility poles won’t accommodate the existing banners.
  • The much-talked -about brewery in the former Falkner Coal and Oil building is making progress. Madigan said the owner is a “pay-as-you-go businessman,” so it could take a while to come to fruition.
  • Bombshell Nail and Spa has opened; the business has applied for a façade grant.
  • Citizens Pub, at the corner of Breckenridge and Garnett streets is set to reopen as an event center

In addition to the retail news, Madigan shared with council members several beautification projects in various stages of completion:

  • There are plantings outside McGregor Hall, courtesy of Franklin Bros. Nursery
  • Four more benches have been ordered for the downtown area and should arrive in the next month
  • Plans to have crosswalk art have been submitted to NC Department of Transportation for approval

Visit https://hendersonncdowntown.org/ to learn more.

 

Town Talk: Gang Free Events Coming To Downtown Henderson

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Vance County middle schoolers have a unique opportunity this Thursday that involves food, gift cards, COVID-19 vaccinations and pumpkins. Lots of pumpkins.

Henderson-based Gang Free Inc. has partnered with Food Lion, the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, among others, to sponsor “Pumpkin, Paint and Pizza at Vance County Middle School on Thursday, Oct. 14 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Gang Free founder Melissa Elliott shared details about the upcoming event on Monday’s Town Talk with John C. Rose.

The term “food insecurity” has become a more commonly used familiar phrase recently, but Elliott said it’s less-often associated with children. With great support from Food Lion, she said the first 100 children to arrive will get $50 Food Lion gift cards.

The evening is “designed to bring middle school students and their parents out to a night of creative fun, while also promoting vaccination equity and education,” Elliott said.

Any person getting a first vaccine also will receive a $100 gift card, she noted. A $10 incentive is available for anyone who gets tested for COVID-19.

This three-pronged approach to a community event – fighting food insecurities, vaccine education and (of course) fun – is one way that Gang Free, Inc. strives to be “an answer to challenges… (W)e continue to use innovative ways to educate and empower to keep our community safe,” Elliott said in a written statement to WIZS.

The Hub Zone Tech Initiative also will be on-site to accept donated laptops that will be refurbished and re-distributed into the community.

Vance County Middle School Principal Stephanie Ayscue reached out to Elliott in search of pumpkins, but, through partnerships, the event has become so much more.

Students will have a chance to eat pizza, decorate a pumpkin and take home a gift card for future use.

Elliott said she and Principal Ayscue hope the event will increase community and parent support. “We’re here to support them,” Elliott said, adding that she wants everyone to know that no one in this community has to be hungry and no one has to go unvaccinated.

The idea of vaccination inequity often revolves around misinformation, she said. A key to combat that misinformation lies “in getting the right message into the community.”

Barriers to vaccination, in addition to misinformation, include access to transportation to get to a shot location or access to the internet to make an appointment.

A community outreach team spends a lot of time fanning out to areas known for low vaccination rates to help get the right message into the community regarding vaccinations, Elliott said.

The teams have been to the Williamsboro community, as well as Sandy Creek, and will be hitting South Henderson as well. “If we’re not out knocking on doors, we’re making phone calls,” she said.

 Whether it’s by canvassing pockets of unvaccinated areas in the county, doling out gift cards or providing pumpkins for children to paint and decorate, Gang Free, Inc. has a laser-sharp focus on making people’s lives better.

“We want to continue to be a blessing in the community,” she added.

Gang Free Inc. is sponsoring another event on Friday, Oct. 15 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in downtown Henderson, Elliott said.

The Hispanic Heritage celebration will fill up the entire block surrounding 200 Breckenridge St. with the sights, sounds and aromas from a wide range of Spanish-speaking cultures.

Dr. Alice Sallins joined Elliott on Town Talk to speak about the upcoming event.

“We have a strong Hispanic population in Vance County,” Sallins said. “We need to be supportive and to learn about their culture,” she added. With learning comes understanding, including what needs are unmet, she said.

Sallins, chairperson of the Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission’s Promotions Committee, said having this event in downtown Henderson shows the community’s involvement in downtown.

It’s not just for the Latinex community, Elliott said. “We don’t want just the Hispanic people to come,” she noted. “We want everybody to come out and participate,” she said.

Visit gangfreeinc.org to learn more.

Downtown Henderson

The Local Skinny! Events In Downtown Henderson

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Various organizers have a lot planned for everyone in the area.

Friday, October 15 – From 5 p.m. until 8 p.m., it’s the Hispanic Heritage Festival at 200 Breckenridge Street. Dr. Alice Sallins, chairperson of the Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission’s Promotions Committee, said, “It will be such a great honor to have the culmination activity downtown. We are trying to bring more business but at the same time community involvement downtown.” She said she thought this was one of the key pieces that had been missing. Henderson City Councilwoman Melissa Elliott, and Founder of Gang Free where the first part of the Hispanic Heritage Festival was held, said, “We don’t want just Hispanic people to come, even though it’s their heritage, we want to celebrate them, but like Dr. Sallins said, we want other people to learn about their culture and their heritage and the love.” She said the love of the Latinx community was overwhelming and others have a lot to learn. Some 500 members of the Latinx community appeared at the earlier event at Gang Free.

Friday, October 15 – It’s the Show Shine Shag and Dine evening cruise-in. Head to downtown Henderson from 6 to 9 p.m. hosted by Southern Classic Cars on Horner Street. Be sure to check out the classic cars on display in the showroom. Enjoy the DJ on site and seeing the cars and memorabilia. Open to the public. Free. No charge.

Saturday, October 16 – The Show, Shine, Shag & Dine car show featuring hundreds of 1988 and older antique and classic cars, muscle cars, trucks and more on display along Garnett Street in historic downtown Henderson. Other displays include the East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame Reunion and the Corbitt Truck Show. You can also visit the Corbitt Truck Museum on Church Street. Enjoy food, vendors, and live entertainment throughout the day, including performances by Brake Tyme Band. FREE admission, open to the public.

Saturday, October 23 – The Vance County Relay for Life is sponsoring a Luminaria ceremony that is shaping up to illuminate a portion of Garnett Street with little bags of light to remember or honor lives affected by cancer. Organizers Christy Bennett, Carolyn Williams and Jeanette Brummitt are keeping it real simple. People can drive down Garnett Street to enjoy the luminaries or they can walk along the sidewalks, if they have their masks on. Bags are $10 each and can be purchased on the day of the event, but they also are available ahead of time so they can be decorated with names of loved ones before being returned and placed along with all the others. Over 700 sold so far. Luminaries sometimes need a little weight to stay in place, but Bennett and her crew have thought of that, too. They will use canned foods to anchor the paper bags, which will be donated to ACTS afterward.

Friday, October 29 – The long-observed downtown trick or treat event is planned, and Henderson Vance Downtown Development Director Tracy Madigan said, “Right now we are still on go for Friday, October 29th on Garnett Street from 4:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. The plan at the present time is for children to go door to door dressed in their costumes.

Saturday, December 4 – The downtown Henderson Christmas parade is tentatively set, according to Sallins, for December 4. She said, “The paperwork is in, but we have to wait for final approval before I put any (registration) forms out.”

Town Talk: Local Furniture Store Celebrates 20 Years In Business

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Downtown Henderson has been home to a number of furniture companies over the years, and Britt Sams, owner of Sams Furniture & Mattress Center, has been counted among that number now for the past two decades.

The furniture and mattress store at 515 S. Garnett St. is celebrating 20 years of business this year, and Sams spoke with John C. Rose on Town Talk Wednesday about loyal customers, downtown revitalization and how he made a career in the furniture business.

And he used his “indoor” voice, not his trademark “on-air” voice that listeners are used to hearing describe the sales and special discounts on radio commercials.

In 1986, Sams began at Star Furniture and worked his way up from sales and the warehouse to doing most of the advertising for 29 stores. “I believe that you have to continuously get the word out,” Sams said, because “not everybody listens at the same time and not everybody buys at the same time.”

When Star closed in 2000, Sams decided to stretch his entrepreneurial wings and start his own business. The former Penny Furniture Co. building was available, and Sams said “when I saw the store at 515 was available…we all just made it click and made a go at it.”

Now, 20 years later, Sams reflects on his years of doing business on Garnett Street. He said local merchants and retailers are working hard to bring shoppers to visit – and spend – downtown. Sadie’s Coffee Corner has drawn a lot of traffic and interest to the area, he said, and the local Chamber of Commerce and downtown development group are big supporters of downtown revitalization efforts.

The downtown area has been good, he said, “but now more than ever it has the potential to grow” as others look at downtown Henderson to open businesses. One such property is located just behind Sams’ store in the former Falkner Coal Yard. There’s a lot of work going on back there, he said, and plans are to make the space a restaurant and brewery.

Downtown development and revitalization go a long way to bring customers to local shops and stores to spend money. But Sams said his store enjoys a lot of repeat business because of the “top of the game” service he offers. He said his showroom floors are full and he can deliver in 1-2 days, not months from the time the sale is made.

“Small- town furniture stores still provide the best service,” Sams said. “It’s that friendliness that we give back to our customers (that) makes people come back to us.”

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Downtown Henderson Trunk-or-Treat Event Postponed to Nov. 2

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THIS STORY IS PRESENTED IN PART BY DRAKE DENTISTRY

-Information courtesy Downtown Henderson, NC

Due to weather conditions, the “Downtown Henderson Drive-Thru Trunk-or-Treat” event originally scheduled for today has been postponed to Monday, November 2, 2020, from 4:30 until 6:30 p.m.

This event is sponsored by the Henderson Vance Downtown Development Commission and the Henderson Police Department.

Directions:

From the Henderson Fire Station on Young Street, make a left turn on Court Street, continue across Montgomery Street (treats in the police parking lot), go through the Sally Port (more treats), make a right on Breckenridge Street (even more treats) and, finally, exit on Breckenridge.

Please wear your mask!

 

Downtown Henderson Halloween

Downtown Henderson Announces ’13 Days of Halloween’ Promotion

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100.1 FM ~ 1450 AM ~ WIZS, Your Community Voice ~ Click to LISTEN LOCAL

-Information courtesy Downtown Henderson

Please join Downtown Henderson for the 13 Days of Halloween!

Starting on Monday, October 19, 2020, take a picture of you or your child in costume at a downtown business and post it online to our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/hendersonncdowntown under the PINNED Halloween Post. Be sure to tag the downtown business for a chance to win great prizes! You may take pictures outside or inside the business.

Downtown businesses and restaurants will be open per their usual hours, but there will be no walking trick-or-treating allowed like years past.

Instead of limiting Halloween to one night, and to prevent a large gathering of people, we are stretching out this event to give everyone time to take part while also social distancing. We will miss seeing everyone in costume in person, so we want you to fill the Downtown Henderson page with your pictures!

Please be respectful of downtown merchants and their decorations. If you go inside a business, do not expect candy. This is designed to just allow the kids to be in costume and still get out and show it off!

Please note there is a DRIVE-THRU trick-or-treat event (click here) with candy at the Henderson Police Department on Thursday, October 29. Garnett Street will remain open to street traffic, unlike past years when it has been blocked for pedestrian use.

Residents are encouraged to comply with local and state orders by focusing on low-risk activities such as decorating, limiting activities to the people you live with and holding virtual costume parties or contests.

Downtown Henderson

Town Talk 08/25/20: Henderson-Vance DDC Chair Discusses Downtown Parking

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100.1 FM ~ 1450 AM ~ WIZS, Your Community Voice ~ Click to LISTEN LOCAL

Dr. Stephen Pearson, chair of the Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission (DDC), appeared on WIZS Town Talk Tuesday at 11 a.m.

Pearson discussed the status of parking in downtown Henderson, addressed safety concerns and shared ideas for improving the traffic flow.

When parking along the main strip on Garnett Street is full, Pearson reminded listeners that many side streets in the downtown area offer public parking as well.

In addition, the lot located near the railroad track that runs behind downtown businesses contains 150 available public parking spots.

Pearson said he doesn’t see walking a short distance to downtown attractions as a deterrent. “By having them park in another place, it forces them to go by other stores and see other things they can do in downtown.”

The DDC’s Economic Vitality Committee is currently in talks of adding public parking signs to downtown, as well as reexamining the flow of traffic, according to Pearson. “They are looking at switching street signs around, so instead of coming down Garnett Street and being pushed away from public parking, people would be pushed towards public parking.”

Calling plans informal at this time, Pearson said the DDC is also discussing the possibility of removing parking spaces and adding a median down the middle of Garnett Street. “This could help control traffic and bring the speed back down to 25 miles per hour,” explained Pearson. “It would force people not to park on the roadway but instead use the designated parking lots.”

Pearson, along with wife Amanda, also co-owns Sadie’s Coffee Corner in downtown Henderson. In addition to making people more aware of public parking options, Pearson said tackling the “myth” of downtown crime is also a major consideration in the revitalization of the area.

“I believe the myth of downtown being murder mayhemville is a crock,” said Pearson. “We’ve [Sadie’s] have been down there a year now. We know everyone on that street. All the vendors get along well, and we all talk to each other. I think Chief Marcus Barrows and the Henderson Police Department have done an absolutely fantastic job, and it’s very safe. Until people get over the blown-out hype and stop spreading the myth, it’s not going to change. That’s one of the things we are fighting with the DDC: getting rid of that perception and building consumer confidence back in our downtown.”

To hear the interview in its entirety, go to WIZS.com and click on Town Talk.