Frank Besse, Executive Director of the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation and small business owner of Labyrinth and Brazil spoke to us about the organization which was established in 2006 as a public private partnership with Gebbie, CHQ Plus, the Chamber, the Public Market, Pearl City, Chautauqua Works, the BPU and Fancher Chair.
Left to right: Mary Maxwell, Neighborhood Coordinator and JRC Executive Director Frank Besse join Rotary President Ruth Lundin after his presentation to the Club.
Most recently, the organization has sponsored Artscape with a $5K grant from the NY State Council on the Arts, $5K from sponsors and $3K from JRC funds to beautiful the downtown with banners of artwork by local artists.
JRC sponsors the Whirlybird music festival annually at the Wintergarden Plaza and is working hard to reinvent the Potter’s Terrace space on Third St.
The organization sponsors the Renaissance Block Challenge which is a neighborhood revitalization program that encourages groups of neighbors to collaborate on exterior curb appeal beautification improvements to their properties to build confidence in Jamestown’s neighborhoods and inspire others to reinvest.
JRC’s vision for downtown is to reestablish the downtown as a vital destination, an economic engine for the region and a place that makes our community proud. The organization supports the improvement of buildings in the downtown core through advocacy, technical assistance to building and business owners and financial incentives.
The Executive Director works with start-up businesses through referrals and communication focusing on physical space to seize opportunities to develop spaces that are likely to boost investment in surrounding buildings and bolster pedestrian traffic.
Be sure to watch the recorded zoom here and go to their website www.jamestownrenaissance.org for more information.
