Washington cuts ribbon on new downtown outdoor venue
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An aerial shot of The Commons in downtown Washington. (photo provided)
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Washington Mayor David Rhoads (center) cuts the ribbon on The Commons in downtown Washington. (photo provided)
Officials in Daviess County cut the ribbon Friday on a $3.1 million outdoor venue in downtown Washington that the mayor says is already creating a big impact.
The Commons is a project that has been 2-1/2 years in the making and features a stage for concerts and special events with lawn seating space, as well as two pavilions that can be utilized for various purposes.
The venue covers nearly a full block south of Main Street, and Mayor David Rhoads says the city expects to see thousands of residents and visitors take part in a broad array of events in the downtown area.
In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Rhoads said the city wanted to provide a green space for downtown events and took inspiration from another nearby community.
“We reached out to Huntingburg and Mayor [Denny] Spinner at the time, and went down looked at their facility,” Rhoads said. “We asked about the developers they had, and we end up setting a meeting up with their developers and talking. It’s just trying to revitalize downtown Washington. That’s what my goal was when I came in the office is to try to do something with downtown to make it more appealing to businesses and possible green space.”
The Daviess County Economic Development Foundation acquired the properties and buildings that previously stood at the site with the help of a $200,000 grant from Bloomington-based Regional Opportunity Initiatives.
The title for the land was then transferred to the city, which is committing $2 million through 2027 for the project, in addition to $750,000 from the Daviess County Commissioners and Daviess County Council.
The project was in the final stages of construction earlier this summer, when the city used one of the pavilions as the site for a new farmer’s market, which Rhoads said was a complete success.
Now, officials are preparing to utilize the space for a variety of different community events, the first of which is slated to take place during the holiday season in December.
“The community now has a multi-use venue that can function as a convenient location for convening local gatherings and hosting events that could attract visitors from throughout the Midwest,” Bob Grewe, executive director of the Daviess County Economic Development Corp., said in written remarks. “This signals that Washington and Daviess County are serious about developing quality of life amenities that are essential to retaining and attracting families to our community.”
Jasper-based German American Bank and Washington-based TrueScripts have each committed $250,000 to become corporate sponsors of The Commons, and the pavilions bear the name of each company as a result.
Rhoads said the early feedback from the community has been very positive, and the project is helping to build momentum for the revitalization of downtown Washington. He noted the work by internet service provider RTC Communications, which has renovated a downtown office into a coworking-type space.
“It’s kind of like The Pantheon over in Vincennes; it’s got cubicles in there where people can go in and use it, and they also have a conference room they offer to citizens,” he said. “They put a incredible amount of money into that building. So it’s already drawn people downtown, and it’s already made a big improvement for downtown Washington.”
Tabor Owens Construction Group LLC in Washington oversaw construction of the project.