By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO – Montevallo Main Street has shared a 2019 Impact Report recapping the city’s business and community accomplishments from the last year.

The report details new business openings, volunteer hours, building improvements, membership, events and Main Street Alabama awards Montevallo logged in 2019.

“2019 was an amazing year for Montevallo’s Main Street District,” Executive Director Courtney Bennett said. “We saw a lot of new faces downtown, with 10 new businesses and a church opening.”

The new businesses included C’s Cake & Coffee House, Team Lehman – Keller Williams Real Estate, JP Building Company, La Conchita Bakery, The Dive Bar, The Art Studio, Montevallo Makers, Goliath Lending, The Nutrition Spot and Scott Vaughn Owen Studio. Provenance Church also opened.

By comparison, four businesses opened in the district in 2018.

Bennett said she is especially proud of the veteran banner program that allowed residents to honor veterans in their families by ordering personalized banners bearing their photos, along with names, ranks, military branches and years of service.

The program also allotted for a new set of generic patriotic banners to be displayed along Main Street.

Volunteers logged about 2,500 hours of service last year, compared to about 2,088 in 2018.

Regarding investment, five Façade Grant projects were completed with $29,000 in overall improvements made.

About $300,000 was dedicated to façade and interior renovations.

“I constantly hear people say how good downtown looks these days,” Bennett said.

Montevallo earned the following Main Street Alabama Awards of Excellence: Main Street Hero – Julie Smitherman, Montevallo Main Street Board President and dedicated volunteer; Excellence in Design – Façade Program, a matching funds grant to improve commercial storefronts, chaired by Board and Design Committee member Pam Phagan; Excellence in Placemaking – Friday Nights at the Cove, a pocket park live music series organized by Bennett; Excellence in Economic Impact – Village on Valley, a comprehensive commercial area revitalization project by Dr. Bobby Shunnarah; and Excellence in Promotion – Tinglewood Festival, an annual event organized by Montevallo Chamber of Commerce, Montevallo Main Street and Montevallo Arts Council.

Bennett also noted the city’s special events, including Tinglewood Festival, Friday Nights at the Cove and Just Show Up Show.

“I feel very positive about Montevallo’s future,” Bennett said. “We have seen so much growth downtown over the past few years, but we also have a lot of room for improvement, especially in terms of dining, retail and nightlife.”