Carol Johnson, Southern Indiana Business Report
SHOALS – Flower pots downtown, plant boxes on the bridge, park improvements and a new farmer’s market.
Shoals is making quality of place a priority in ways big and small. Led by volunteers and town leaders, the county seat of Martin County wants to take the town to the next level by making the most of its natural assets.
A beautification board has planted flowers, attached bridge boxes to the bridge spanning the White River and applied for grants to continue those efforts. The town received a grant for $189,000 from the Community Foundation Partnership to improve the Shoals Community Ballpark with new fencing, walkway lighting, safety netting and new playground – a ribbon-cutting is planned for May 25.
Volunteers Tania Brown and Miles Cundiff helped plant flowers in downtown Shoals.
A previous grant from the Martin County Community Foundation paid for a renovation of one of the fields.
The Shoals Farm and Arts Market will kick off June 3 and will operate the first and third Saturdays of the month through October at the Shoals Community Ballpark.
Now the town is looking to revitalize the downtown by becoming affiliated with Main Street Indiana, a downtown revitalization program managed by the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs.
Shoals Clerk-treasurer Sierra Rutledge said the town had its first meeting to gauge interest in becoming a part of OCRA’s Downtown Affiliate Network (ODAN) May 8. Jill Hahn, an OCRA staff member, was present to answer questions.
“It went really well and everyone who attended was engaged and interested,” Rutledge said. “This is something we want to see happen. With all the initiatives we’re currently undertaking, this would take the town to the next level.”
According to information on OCRA’s website, cities and towns that become ODANS may work toward becoming a Main Street organization or they may prefer to focus on event-related activities only.
“Being an ODAN would be huge for the community. When you’re a small rural community, you look for grants to help with funding. It would allow the community the opportunity to network with other communities and learn how they are getting projects accomplished. It would also make the community eligible for pots of funding that Indiana Main Streets are eligible for,” said Jessica Potts, executive director of the Martin County Alliance for Economic Growth.
Shoals’ downtown is a natural gathering spot.
“Visit the community on any given day, and you will find people gathering downtown,” said Potts. “The community as a whole works well together, but when you get all the doers at the same table, things get done! I feel like they are doing all the things a Main Street group would be doing, they are just doing it within different groups.
Farm and Arts Market opens June 3
The initiatives are creating enthusiasm and momentum for Shoals.
For instance, the Shoals Farm and Arts Market, organized by the Shoals Business Association, already has 12 vendors signed up – the goal was five. “We have a lot of local talent here. We have candle makers, people who do tie dye, make custom hats and rugs. We wanted to capture them and show off their talents along with local growers and producers,” Rutledge said.
The market is scheduled on alternate Saturdays so it doesn’t compete with the Loogootee farm market, which runs on the second and fourth Saturdays.
Another development in the works is a piece of land the town purchased near the Shoals Community Ballpark. The town is working on plans to develop the space.
New wayfinding signs point visitors to places of interest like the Jug Rox, boat ramp and Nubbin Ridge Trail.
“We have an amazing park board that is overseeing and implementing the projects at the park. The beautification board is also volunteer based,” she said. “Our town would not be able to do all of this without volunteers.”
Another recent initiative is Jug Rox Make a Difference Day. Rutledge said the annual day of community service was proposed by Shoals Community Schools. Each year in April since 2019, between 50 and 70 students work to spruce up the town.
“They mow, paint curbs and fire hydrants, pick up trash and this year they started work on a mural,” Rutledge said.
Continuing to work on quality of place projects is part of the town’s larger mission to lay groundwork for economic development and tourism.
“We’re constantly thinking of ways to improve the quality of place because we know if you don’t work on quality of place, you won’t have a place,” Rutledge said.
Sierra Rutledge, Shoals clerk-treasurer
“Shoals, being a river community, has so much potential for economic development,” added Potts.
The strong turnout for the first meeting was good to see, Potts said.
“As soon as the meeting ended, the group that attended broke out into conversation on their thoughts and ideas. Before the meeting ended, a member of the group asked when they were going to get together again to begin working toward the goal. It was a meeting full of enthusiasm, excitement, and a ’let’s get things done’ attitude. I’m excited to see what the community does moving forward!”
Next meeting in June
Another Main Street meeting is set for 4 p.m. June 5 at Shoals Town Hall to determine next steps.