Chamber seeks to revive downtown New London
By Scott Bellile
A committee is working to bring life to vacant buildings in downtown New London.
Local shoppers gravitate toward the big-box retail stores like Walmart and Walgreens, which are great for drawing traffic to North Shawano Street but at the expense of the small businesses downtown, New London Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director April Kopitzke said.
“I just never remember this many vacancies on North Water Street,” Kopitzke said. “It just seems like this town is asleep downtown … and I want to revive it.”
In January, Kopitzke convened a subcommittee of the chamber of commerce’s board of directors to explore why there are so many downtown vacancies.
The committee combed through public records to track down the owners of the commercial buildings on West North Water Street and South Pearl Street.
Committee members then talked with them to learn why their buildings are unoccupied, find out their plans for their properties and help them with real estate listings if necessary.
Karen Duch, vice president of lending at Wolf River Community Bank, said she and her fellow committee members learned not all vacancies are due to misfortune.
Some building owners choose to use their properties for storage. Others want downtown workspace without a storefront.
“If they don’t have intentions to sell, there’s really not a lot you can do,” Duch said. “It’s a lot easier if they say, ‘Yeah I’m looking to sell or looking to rent this out.’”
Committee members can point those people to resources or post on the chamber’s website that their building is for sale or rent.
On newlondonchamber.com, anyone can look up which commercial buildings are available in the city, the cost to rent or buy, the building’s features and the contact information for the owner.
“I want to have (the information) at my fingertips so it’s easier to recruit new businesses,” Kopitzke said.
Having vacant building information on hand helps Kopitzke to answer questions for prospective occupants who call. She said callers commonly ask where space is available to run a business but do not always divulge their plans.
“They’re just kind of poking around,” Kopitzke said. “They don’t tell me what they want to do.”
Scott Bellile photo
Properties for sale in downtown
• West North Water Street: The former Press Star, C&R Waterfront Bar and Grill, Copper Shot, the lot at the intersection of West North Water Street and Lincoln Court, the former Half Blonde.
• East South Water Street: The former New London Tax Service.
• Shawano Street: The buildings for Little Caesars, Modern Hearing and the former Corner Cafe; The Bottle Shop; the former The Big Laundry.
Spaces listed for rent on West North Water Street include the former Huntington Bank building, the old City Hall and the former Tyson employees’ union building.
Other buildings are vacant but not listed on the market, such as a pair of buildings owned by Jolly Roger’s Pizzeria. Owners Robert and Michelle Leahy have said in the past they hope to expand their business someday.
Duch said a major accomplishment for the building vacancies committee so far is not related to vacancies, but rather getting a downtown mural project rolling.
Under the direction of Season and Kelly Polsin, the Wolf River Art League is in talks with property owners to paint murals on the sides of their buildings throughout the downtown.
Duch said the murals would give people a new reason to visit downtown New London.
Duch’s goal for the committee, she said, is to get people to turn to their local businesses for their shopping again rather than driving to Appleton.