Help needed from business owners

The News Virginian / News Virginian
Published: December 22, 2007

It is encouraging that business leaders worked together to keep alive Waynesboro's annual Christmas in the River City event, which went off without a hitch Friday only weeks after the town's local Main Street group considered shelving it. Waynesboro Downtown Development Inc. officials had worried that they had too little time to make Christmas in the City happen. But downtown merchants found a way.

Among the residual benefits was a boost in cooperative spirit among business owners, according to city economic development director Meghan Williamson. Such could be the tonic for at least some of what ails downtown.

Now, we encourage downtown business owners to put their heads together on something bigger and more important: rejuvenating that core district. Frequently, the understandable tendency of entrepreneurs is to focus almost exclusively on building their own business. But rebuilding our downtown would serve everyone who lives and works there.

Toward that end, we call on downtown business owners to send to us a list of the top five steps they believe need to be taken to transform the district into the bustling hub of city life. Downtown could serve as the ideal complement to the thriving west end, but it will not happen without a vision. The News Virginian is eager to serve as a key player in advancing the cause.

So once we have heard from business owners we will gather them and city leaders to discuss the ideas — not only those submitted by merchants but those we already have received from readers. We then will present our findings to readers in print and online in an upcoming story.

Remember, our emphasis is on the big picture, rather than on the minutia that all too often garner the attention of business owners and public officials alike. We want concrete suggestions on how to turn the ideas into reality. People who operate their own businesses are frequently well acquainted with the necessity of getting things done. That quality is badly needed in the effort to revitalize our city's core.

Forward your thoughts to Managing Editor R. Lee Wolverton at or P.O. Box 1027, Waynesboro, VA 22980. Be sure to include contact information.