By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Downtowns are a barometer of the economic mental health of a community. Barton County Commissioner Shawn Hutchinson emphasized the importance of a vibrant downtown during Tuesday morning's meeting as a call to city governments in the county to participate in the next round of Façade Improvement Grants.
"We all want to have bigger companies come to our communities, but when a bigger company comes to a community to check it out, one of the first things they do is drive down Main Street and see how well Main Streets are taken care of," Hutchinson said. "I think this is step one of much larger plan that would help grow our communities."
Barton County began the grant program in 2021. With a pledge of $120,000 for 2025, the county has now contributed $1 million to improve the appearance of downtown businesses. Thirty-seven of the projects have been approved in Great Bend, 10 in Hoisington, nine in Claflin, and seven in Ellinwood.
"We figured out that it's something we can dedicate some money to that would actually improve the overall appearance of our downtowns in all four cities," said Hutchinson said. "Not only that, but it helps improve our community spirit, it improves shopping downtown, it improves sales tax collections, it improves property taxes. It improves so many things."
With Tuesday's approval, the county will reach out to all four cities to enter into a partnership for round three of the program. The county is asking for $20,000 each from Ellinwood, Claflin, and Hoisington, and $60,000 from the city of Great Bend. The grants would allow participating cities to fund up to $10,000 per project, which the county would match. The grants also require contributions from the business owners.
Commissioner Tricia Schlessiger said she has seen a definite impact with seven projects in Ellinwood's downtown, and Commissioner Duane Reif has seen positive changes in Claflin and Hoisington.
"When you fix up one," he said, "it seems like the ones beside it want to do something , too."
The commission will ask that cities respond to the partnership opportunity by the end of the year.