Summary:

The Wellington Main Streets Program provides quarterly updates to the Town Trustees regarding on-going projects, organizational updates, events, and future plans. This update is for the months of November – January

Item 1: Current projects

  • Publications
  • Murals:
    • Due to weather delays, we requested and were granted an extension on our 2019 DOLA mini-grant for the “Greetings from Wellington” community mural that will be painted on the South Wall of the Filling Station at 3906 Cleveland Ave. The mural will be completed by June 2020.
    • We will be utilizing donated materials and services through Cottonwood Landscaping to address landscaping options along the west-facing wall of the “Historic Train Depot” mural. The goal is the deter parking in front of the mural and improve the overall aesthetic.
  • 2020 DOLA Mini-Grant
    • The application for the 2020 DOLA mini-grant for $5,000 was submitted and approved by DOLA and Don Sandoval in December. The proposed project (scope of work) is to partner with the Town of Wellington and the Poudre School District fund solar or electric powered flashing crosswalk signs along Cleveland Ave.  Kallie will continue to work with Vincent Gentry to see this project to completion by December 2020.

Item 2: Events

  • Shop Small Saturday/Elf Hunt: Unfortunately, due to inclement weather, our Shop Small Saturday event was not as successful as we hoped. Our plan for next year to extend the Elf Hunt through the month of December to encourage shopping local for the entire holiday season.
  • Front Porch Friday Happy Hour: We hosted our first outreach event in November, bringing in 15 new volunteers and allowing us to reach residents and visitors we don’t normally to share more about our program. We plan to continue hosting these events during our slower months to help increase our visibility and keep interest up.  The next Front Porch Friday outreach event is on Friday, January 17th at Avuncular Bob’s TBar Inn.
  • The Wellington 0.5K Fun Run: Event planning is underway, and the event organizers have selected the Main Streets Program as its fundraiser recipient. The event is scheduled for April 4th from 8:00 am – 3:00 pm around Centennial Park.
  • Wellington Brewfest: Event planning is underway and Main Streets will be a 50% fundraiser recipient alongside the Boys and Girls Club. The event is scheduled for June 6th from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm in Centennial Park.
  • Well-O-Rama: Event planning has started, and we are looking at making some changes from last year’s event. The event is tentatively scheduled for August 8th from 3:00 – 7:00 pm in Centennial Park.  We are planning to host three bands as well as food trucks, vendors, beer garden, and activities for kids/families.  We have met with two marketing firms to discuss contracting services to help us grow this event and make it more successful.
  • 2020 Photo Contest: The Town, Chamber, and Main Streets will be combining for a “Wellington Photo Contest” that will run from now until June 2020. Entries will be on display at the ED/Main Street office and will be voted on at the end of June. Winners will be put in a Wellington calendar for 2021 that can be sold for profit.

Item 3: Other:

  • Organizational updates:
    • Kallie attended the Main Street Managers Summit in Granby, CO on November 7th-8th. A large part of this event was presentations from programs across the state to showcase their projects and achievements and give ideas to other programs.
    • Kallie attended “Preservation on Tap” hosted by Historic Larimer County to learn about the history of historic preservation in our area and how we can take advantage of some of the opportunities available to us through their organization.
    • We utilized DOLA contracting services to host a Board Retreat with Sheryl Trent on January 8th. Members of the Town staff were invited to attend a portion of the event and contribute to our long term visioning.
    • One of the suggestions made by Mayor Hamman was that we complete our annual Work Plan and budget to align with the Town’s budget cycle.
    • Program Area: The Main Streets Board of Directors voted on December 11th to update our programarea with the goal of positioning us for the future growth of Wellington.  The new program area includes residential and commercial properties West of 6th Street to the train tracks just west of 1st street, south of Washington Ave, and north of Kennedy Ave.
    • Office Space: The Main Streets program has officially moved its office to the Town of Wellington Economic Development office building. We are hopeful this will continue to improve communications between our organizations.
    • Membership Change: This year, it will no longer cost anything to be involved with the Main Streets Program! We are actively reaching out to residents and businesses to sign up to be on our mailing list to receive our program updates, volunteer with Main Streets, and be notified of event reminders and sponsorship opportunities. We have also signed an agreement with the Chamber of Commerce to partner with them for business communication. If you are a Chamber member in 2020, you will also be added to the Main Streets Program emails.
    • Changes in board members and officer positions: Board elections took place at our annual dinner on November 6th. Anita Hardy, John Jerome (retained), and Tracey Jensen (retained) were elected to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors voted to elect Anita Hardy as Board President for the next term, replacing Brian Graves.