November 22, 2021

by the Red Cloud Community Fund

RED CLOUD—The Red Community Fund organized and hosted a “Downtown Revitalization Tour” in the community on Sunday, November 14th. The event showcased progress and plans for several downtown buildings, including the Hotel Garber site. More than 80 people attended the event, which kicked off in the afternoon at On the Brix and wrapped up in the same location.

The tour featured the following the buildings: 1) The Newhouse Building (416 N Webster, formerly Gary’s Barber Shop) owned by Todd & Lisa Mahin; 2) The Peterson Building (402 N Webster, formerly Red Cloud Hardware) owned by Dennis & Sally Hansen; 3) Cook’s City Pharmacy (406 N Webster, formerly Red Cloud Video, presently an empty lot) owned by Dennis & Sally Hansen; 4) The Potter Block (346 N Webster, formerly Brenda’s Shoppe, future site of the Hotel Garber) owned by the Red Cloud Hotel, LLC; 5) Farmers & Merchants Bank (338 N Webster), owned by Willa Cather Foundation; 6) The Albright Building (341 N Webster, presently H&R Block), owned by Brad & Andrea Frey; 7) The Kellogg Building (116 W. 4th Ave), owned by Amy Springer; 8) 345 Building (345 N Webster, presently The Corner Nook), owned by Amy Springer.

Guests were given a sneak peek at work already completed at each of the building sites and were thoroughly informed about future plans. Some of the highlights included the completed apartment above The Corner Nook, detailed plans about Hansens’ planned 2nd floor apartment, the Hansens’ future plans for the presently empty lot at 406 N Webster, plans for new exhibits and ADA access to the Farmers & Merchants Bank, and a creative display of the Newhouse Building’s timeline by the Mahins. Additionally, guests were treated to snacks and refreshments at several of the locations, including Sally Hansen’s famous caramelized bacon. Tentative plans to do another tour in 6 months when more work is completed are already underway.

In addition to street level improvements at all of the locations, several buildings are also seeing their 2nd floors being brought back to life with the creation of new apartment and other spaces. In the case of the The Potter Block/Brenda’s Shoppe site, a 3rd floor will be added back to the structure. The 3rd floor was lost in a 1961 fire. The Red Cloud Hotel, LLC is presently engaged in the process of creating construction documents with architects and is hopeful that principal construction can begin at the site as soon as Spring 2022 and that the project will be completed and open for business in 2023. Preliminary construction, including abatement, demolition, and stabilization has already been completed. Detailed summaries of the work completed at each site and plans for the future can be obtained by contacting Red Cloud Tourism & Commerce Director and Red Cloud Community Fund President Jarrod McCartney at 402-746-4065 or jmccartney@redcloudnebraska.com.   

The Red Cloud Community Fund (RCCF) is committed a future Red Cloud that is not only surviving but thriving and feels that downtown revitalization is integral to such a future.  At 2019 Community Visioning sessions, participants pointed to an improved downtown and improved access to recreational activities as critical to improving the quality of life in Red Cloud.  The downtown work is bringing the vision for an improved community to life.  If you would like to help, please contact McCartney for more information.  

RCCF President McCartney was thrilled to see the turnout for the event and even more excited to see the work going at sites not affiliated with RCCF or the Willa Cather Foundation. McCartney pointed out that, “while we’re obviously dedicated to downtown revitalization it’s so impressive to see families like the Freys, Mahins, and Hansens take on the task of restoring buildings themselves. That means that they are willing to take risks to make Red Cloud a better place to live and visit. It will always take more than the Chamber or the Community Fund or the City to make life in Red Cloud better and these families are providing great examples.” At the end of the night, McCartney wrapped up the evening with a champagne toast at On the Brix and mentioned that the City of Red Cloud applied for a Planning Grant to study downtown and potentially apply for a Downtown Revitalization Community Development Block Grant. Red Cloud will be awarded the Planning Grant and locals are encouraged to get as involved as possible with the downtown planning process.