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Colville Together Launches 4th Fridays – A Fun-filled Family Event for Summer 2023

Colville Together is proud to announce a brand-new activity for families to enjoy this summer called 4th Fridays. This family-friendly event will be held every fourth Friday of the month from June through September in historic downtown Colville.

The event will feature a variety of activities that the whole family can enjoy. To kick things off, Stevens County Libraries will be hosting kids crafts at the Colville Library from 3-5 pm. From 4-8 pm, there will be a variety of vendors along Main and Astor, offering food, sweet treats, and other local products.

One of the exciting new features of 4th Fridays is the ArtWalk. Each month, seven local artists will display their work at downtown business locations. Stop by the Colville Together booth in Heritage Court for a list of the month’s artists and a map of their location downtown. The ArtWalk will take place from 4-5 pm.

After the ArtWalk, the fun will continue with free music in Heritage Court. In June, FarmJam will be hosting their 3^rd Annual Summer Kickoff Concert. Starting in July, Colville Together has organized an amazing lineup of summer concerts for everyone to enjoy beginning with Top Dollar. In September Borderland Blues will rock the stage, the August band is to be determined. The concerts will be held from 5-8 pm.

According to Colville Together, 4th Friday events are an excellent way to kick off your weekends this summer. “Join us downtown for the family fun.”

Mark your calendars and come down to downtown Colville for 4th Friday! You won’t want to miss the exciting activities, vendors, ArtWalk, and concerts. For more information, visit the Colville Together website or follow them on social media.

Colville Together is excited to be able to offer the Façade & Building Improvement Grant to our downtown building owners for the third year. 

Last year, we had an amazing response to our call for applications.  We were able to award various amounts to five applicants to support their project requests. These are reimbursable grants. 

The awardees were as follows:

            Alpine Theater – Façade repair and painting – $5,000

            Pour House – Repair of the façade and overall building maintenance – $4,000

            Main Street Floral – New awning and exterior lighting – $2,500

            Allusions Salon – New brick planters – $1,000

            Saundra’s Furniture – Assistance with new mural – $500. 

Constructive Fun – New Awing – $3,000 (2021)

The Façade & Building Improvement grant is offered by Colville Together with a desire to help improve and enhance the beauty of downtown Colville, preserve the historic nature of the streetscape, while making revitalization efforts affordable, creative, and community based. Each successful grant can be awarded up to $5,000. This year in addition to beautification projects we will also be considering improvements to buildings that help the owner maintain or repair their downtown building. Colville Together Design Committee administers the Façade & Building Improvement Grant Program and evaluates the applicant’s eligibility and need based on all the applicants.

Any building owner whose property falls within the Colville Together focus area (3rd Ave to Birch Ave and Wynne St to Oak St) can apply for the Façade & Building Improvement Grant. Applications and the program guidelines are available at https://www.colvilletogether.org/facade-building-improvement-grant/. Completed applications are due on February 28^th and the grant will be closed.

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What are we up to?

DESIGN

Façade & Building Improvement Grant – Grants have been awarded to the applicants. This year we were able to provide the following grants:

Alpine Theater – Façade repair and painting – $5,000
Collins Building (Pour House) – Repair – $4,000
Main Street Floral – New awning – $2,500
Allusions Salon – New brick planters – $1,000
Saundra’s Furniture – Mural – $500.

The focus was on highly visible projects which would make the most impact on downtown this year. Funds for this project come directly from our local businesses who donate to Colville Together through Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program.

Good for your business. Great for the community! Self-direct your taxes to stay in Colville and receive a 75% tax credit on your B&O taxes the next year. Donate to Colville Together through the Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program and keep your taxes local! Colville Together is focused on the heart of Colville, Downtown.  We are excited to see it grow and flourish because of your generous contribution. Your donation will support the projects that Colville Together does and will make a direct impact in your community. Have Questions?
Contact Rosemary Shaw  – 684-4571 ex 112 OR info@colvilletogether.org

ECONOMIC VITALITY

PROMOTION

Get Involved! Do you care about what is happening in Downtown Colville and want to be involved in the decisions that Colville Together is making? We have a variety of opportunities to volunteer with a modest time commitment. Join a Committee! (we meet once a month for an hour) Design & Economic Vitality Organization & Outreach

Colville Together is thrilled to announce the recipients for this year’s Façade & Building Improvement Grant.

The Façade & Building Improvement grant is offered by Colville Together with a desire to help improve and enhance the beauty of downtown Colville, preserve the historic nature of the streetscape, while making revitalization efforts affordable, creative, and community based.

Colville Together ‘s Design Committee, who oversees the grant, decided to focus on highly visible projects which would make the most impact on downtown this year.  We received six applications five of which had a visual and/or historic impact.  We were able to award various amounts to those five applicants to support their project requests.

The awardees are as follows:

            Alpine Theater – Façade repair and painting – $5,000

            Pour House – Repair of the façade and building maintenance – $4,000

            Main Street Floral – New awning and exterior lighting – $2,500

            Allusions Salon – New brick planters – $1,000

            Saundra’s Furniture – Assistance with new mural – $500. 

Last year’s winner Constructive Fun will be working to complete their new awning this year.  So, in all six buildings will be improved with the help of funds from Colville Together and our Façade & Building Improvement Grant program.  Colville Together’s funding for these types of projects come directly from our local businesses who donate to Colville Together through Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program. 

Grants will be available in coming years as well, with an additional focus on helping maintain the integrity of the buildings.  Things like roofs, windows, and other high costs items that are often difficult for building owners to address.  We are excited for the future of this program and the impact it can make in our community. 

Any building owner whose property falls within the Colville Together focus area (3rd Ave to Birch Ave and Wynne St to Oak St) can apply for the Façade & Building Improvement Grant.

Colville Together, a Washington State Main Street Program, is offering the Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program to our local businesses; any business in Washington State that pays Business & Occupation taxes through the online portal is eligible

The Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program allows local businesses to self-direct their tax dollars to stay in Colville, instead of going to the state.  When local businesses donate directly to Colville Together in 2022, they receive a 75% tax credit on their Business & Occupation Taxes for 2023.  This is great for the community and good for the business. Colville Together uses the donated funds for our downtown projects, including the Façade & Building Improvement Grant, improvements to Heritage Court, downtown business support, and downtown business networking opportunities.  The money stays here in Colville and directly impacts downtown Colville – the heart of our community.

In 2021, received donations totaling $29,700 from the following businesses: Vaagen Timbers, Fogle Pump and Supply, Colmac Coil Manufacturing, Colmac Industries, Home Suite Home Furnishings, Saundra’s Furniture, RE Lee Shoe Company, Re-Imagined Home, Colville Bookkeeping, and R&R Design.  This resulted in $22,275 in tax incentives for those businesses. 

Colville Together has a cap of over $100,000 that can be accepted in donations, so there is plenty of opportunity for Colville businesses to participate in the program.  The deadline to apply is March 31, 2022, and all contributions need to be made by November 1, 2022.  If you would like to self-direct your taxes to stay in Colville please contact Rosemary Shaw at 509-684-4571 or email her at info@colvilletogether.org. 

Colville Together is excited to be able to offer the Façade & Building Improvement Grant to our downtown building owners for the second year. 

Last year, we had an amazing response to our call for applications.  There were twelve applications for the two grants that were available.  There was a wide variety of applications ranging from updating awnings, new signage, roof repair, a mural, and other various projects. It was a difficult decision for the Colville Together Design Committee to select only two projects, but they were extremely excited to see the positive response from the downtown building owners. 

The Façade & Building Improvement grant is offered by Colville Together with a desire to help improve and enhance the beauty of downtown Colville, preserve the historic nature of the streetscape, while making revitalization efforts affordable, creative, and community based. Each successful grant will be in the amount of $5,000 and awarded to property owners in the Colville Together focus area (3rd Ave to Birch Ave and Wynne St to Oak St). This year we will be focusing on projects that visually improve downtown. 

Colville Together Design Committee administers the Façade & Building Improvement Grant Program and evaluates the applicant’s eligibility and need based on all the applicants. There are two grants available for 2022.  Grants will be available in coming years as well.

Any building owner whose property falls within the Colville Together focus area (3rd Ave to Birch Ave and Wynne St to Oak St) can apply for the Façade & Building Improvement Grant. Applications and the program guidelines are available at https://www.colvilletogether.org/facade-building-improvement-grant/. Completed Applications are due on February 25th and the grant will be closed.

Colville Together is bringing a pilot project to downtown Colville for the summer of 2021: Parklets!

Parklets are public seating areas that convert curbside parking spaces into vibrant community spaces.  The parklets will be in place from June to October.

The intent is to provide additional public spaces during the upcoming construction at Astor and Main Streets (Heritage Court) and to aid in COVID-19 recovery for our downtown businesses as they work with the current restrictions.  Parklets will utilize 2 parking spaces and provide seating for approximately 10-15 customers. 

Colville Together is excited to involve Main Street businesses and have been asking for their feedback.  “I love this idea to support local business and bring more foot traffic downtown.”, expressed one downtown business owner.  Colville Together will be measuring the impacts of the parklets throughout the temporary installation to determine if this type of endeavor is a good match for Colville. The key is understanding how pedestrian traffic, downtown business revenues, as well as resident and visitor users are impacted by this project.

Colville Together is collaborating with the Northeast Washington Association of Realtors, the Colville Chamber of Commerce, Tri County Economic Development District, and partnering with the City of Colville and the Washington Department of Transportation to bring our community and visitors these innovative public spaces for the summer of 2021.  Funding support for this project is being provided by the Innovia Foundation, Main Street America, the Northeast Washington Association of REALTORS (NEWAR), and the National REALTOR Association. 

The parklets will be installed on Friday June 10th AT 9am.  We need volunteers to help with the installation in addition to the NEWAR partners who have committed to helping with construction.  Please see our Facebook page, @colvilletogether and website, colvilletogether.org, for more details. 

The Grand Opening Celebration will take place on Saturday June 12th, at 11:00 am.  There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony as well as buskers at each parklet to celebrate the successful installation of the parklets.