On the
occasion of its fifth anniversary, the board of Sustainable Glasgow, Inc.
announced plans to seek funding to purchase and renovate a large unoccupied building
on the Glasgow Square. The bold plan they revealed is to acquire the building at 124 South Public Square, which was formerly
the home of the Western Auto Store and most recently PJ’s College of
Cosmetology. The building would be converted into a permanent home for Bounty
of the Barrens Farmers’ Market and an indoor food-court for the marketing of
fresh local farm products and farm to table prepared foods.
Sustainable
Glasgow President, Dr. Jerry Ralston, revealed the conceptual plan for the
building and stated, “The board and
volunteers who make up Sustainable
Glasgow are very excited to present this plan to establish a garden of
opportunity right in the middle of Glasgow, and we hope that it will flourish
and that more hope and excitement will grow on the Square at the very center of
life in Glasgow.”
Immediate
past President of Sustainable Glasgow, Dr. William Travis, expanded on the
concept and the economic incubator nature of the plan. “I believe that our
downtown can become a livelier, more attractive, and more pedestrian friendly
place. We have hope for more restaurants and local businesses to find the
public square an attractive place to locate. We want this facility to become a
catalyst for the realization of those goals by building upon our local food
movement activities and the highly successful history of the Bounty of the
Barrens Farmers’ Market.”
The SG board
has applied for a matching grant from the Kentucky Agricultural Development
Fund which they hope will provide 50% of the funds necessary to acquire and
renovate the building. .The other half of funding would need to come from local
sources that have an interest in establishing this anchor point for the future
of Glasgow’s downtown economy. The plans include space for a variety of vendors,
a full commercial kitchen and cold storage for produce to be retailed by
vendors in the facility, as well as wholesaled to local restaurants, hospitals,
schools, and other institutions. Producers
can cost-effectively use the Kitchen to add value to their products by canning
and converting fresh produce into products which have a longer shelf life.
President
Ralston added “Sustainable Glasgow has a dedicated group of volunteers who are
passionate about this community and are striving to improve it for everyone. We
composed a very high quality application for the Kentucky Farmers’ Market
Competitive Grant Program and we are optimistic about our chances to receive
funding. But for the initiative to be successful we must find local supporters
who share this passion for making our local economy more durable, improving the
livability of our community, and are motivated to donate money to match any
grant funds we receive,” . The total estimated cost of getting this dream to
become a reality is about $300,000. Therefore, Sustainable Glasgow is seeking
to raise half of that from citizens in the community who believe this project
is worthwhile.
Sustainable
Glasgow, Inc. is a 501-C3 non-profit organization which may provide tax
advantages to those who choose to support this project.
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