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Van Wert is in the NW corner of the state, just 15 minutes away from the Ohio-Indiana state line with ~11k residents #GOPCThread https://goo.gl/maps/qYNNDSJsvoCApEyE9
Van Wert was established as the county seat in 1835 and incorporated as a town in 1848. It built its economy around timber in the mid-1800s and by the late 19thC, farming had become an important industry #GOPCThread
Today, Van Wert and the surrounding county continue to be a mix of manufacturing and farming #GOPCThread https://vanwerted.com/doing-business-here/workforce/
Like many downtowns in Ohio, Van Wert’s had begun to show wear & tear. Many of the buildings were built in the 1880s and investments in upkeep and repair had slowed in the last 3 decades #GOPCThread
Like many downtowns in Ohio, Van Wert’s had begun to show wear & tear. Many of the buildings were built in the 1880s and investments in upkeep and repair had slowed in the last 3 decades #GOPCThread
. @MainStVanWert had done a great job programming downtown events and coordinating businesses, but they lacked the capital needed to stabilize and breath new life into buildings. #GOPCThread
City/regional leaders realized that making downtown Van Wert a destination for returning residents and new ones would help spur investment throughout the city & region #GOPCThread https://goo.gl/maps/SXkRNFKTmeeFjoJR9
In 2018, the Van Wert Business Development Corporation decided to buy a critical building in downtown, at sheriff’s sale. This purchase got town leaders comfortable w/ the idea of buying downtown real estate for the good of the community. #GOPCThread
At the same time, staff and board members of @VWCF1925 were seriously talking about the importance of downtown Van Wert to the future prosperity of the city & county. How could they move from being transactional to transformational? #GOPCThread
In consultation with local leaders, @VWCF1925 realized it could endow downtown and its prosperity to the citizens of Van Wert forever by coordinating, executing, and managing a master real estate effort for downtown #GOPCThread
Of their $80M-$85M in assets, @VWCF1925 said “let’s take some of our money off of Wall Street and invest it in our own Main Street”. #GOPCThread
By 2019, @VWCF1925 had begun to acquire properties in downtown. As of today they hold or have majority stake in 40+ key buildings that will go into a Downtown Trust. #GOPCThread https://timesbulletin.com/Content/News/News/Article/Van-Wert-County-Foundation-leading-the-way-for-downtown-development-project/2/4/223202
. @VWCF1925 captured the interest of @The_Model_Group & #PagoUSA, who agreed to help Van Wert thru the real estate redevelopment process... #GOPCThread #OHCommunitySpotlight
Model Group & Pago are also doing property management for the Downtown Trust. Eventually local property managers + other staff will be hired #GOPCThread https://thevwindependent.com/news/2020/05/29/van-wert-forward-development-project-makes-progress/
The effort is now branded Van Wert Forward ( @vwfwd) and it is an ambitious plan to revitalize and restore downtown Van Wert #GOPCThread https://www.vanwertforward.org/
Right now, @VWCF1925 projects this will be an $80M project, split into 4-5 phases. Van Wert plans to go after #HistoricPreservationTaxCredits, #VibrantCommunities grants from @JobsOhio & grants from @OhioDevelopment + other state/fed agencies #GOPCThread https://www.jobsohio.com/vibrant-community-program/
Leadership at @VWCF1925 is convinced other communities can replicate this model. But as @GreaterOhio often talks about, it requires shared agreement around priorities and process. #GOPCThread https://www.lincolninst.edu/publications/policy-focus-reports/revitalizing-americas-smaller-legacy-cities
Many thanks for @VWCF1925 for sharing their story with @GreaterOhio last summer and to @MontroseGrpLLC for their recent podcast on these amazing efforts underway in Van Wert! #GOPCThread https://montrosegroupllc.com/podcast/
Keep up the great work and stay tuned for another in our series of #OHCommunitySpotlight's next month #GOPCThread
