Elm Grove Business Owners Hope Banners a Sign of More Improvements Ahead
Emma Delk Trending
A splash of color has been added to Elm Grove with banners advertising local businesses hanging along National Road.
Elm Grove Business Association President Kristy Ferguson said the group combined older and newer ideas from "three years' worth" of discussions to create the banners that went up in May. The EGBA worked with Vance Printing to get the banners made and ready for display.
"Once we had the idea, we began reaching out to EGBA members to ask them first if they wanted to participate and made sure to give them a good price," she said.
With 142 members of the EGBA and the group also reaching out to businesses not in the association as well, the banners advertise a variety of local businesses, from Ferguson's own Elite Massage Therapy to consulting firm Glessner & Associates.
Andrew Hollis, owner of Wheelcraft Bicycles and EGBA member, said he was immediately on board with getting a banner made for his business.
"I wanted to get my name out there, and I think the banners look good," he said. "It's always good to get more advertisement and people down here."
The banners were a joint effort from Elm Grove leadership as Councilman Dave Palmer, with the help of Charlie Savage from Savage Construction, hung the banners up. Palmer described wanting to focus on not hanging the banners directly in front of businesses to properly advertise them, even though "a couple were a little too close."
"We did have some issues because some of the poles didn't want to cooperate, and the lift wouldn't fit in certain areas," Palmer said. "We would sometimes have banners hung up, and then they would start falling down."
The sacrifice of time and effort was worth it for the councilman, who finds it vital to support local businesses. Palmer takes the viewpoint that when one buys local, they are helping a family "pay for dance lessons or baseball shirts" instead of funding a CEO's "third vacation home."
Due to the current banners' success, the EGBA is creating holiday banners to replace them in November.
This will be the group's second try to make holiday-themed banners, as the banners the EGBA made last winter were "too small," according to Ferguson. With this new set, the EGBA wants to replicate the success of the current banners along with getting some new businesses to add to the 18 they have represented now.
The EBGA will continue to add more "charm" to Elm Grove, said Ferguson, who finds the banners not only important in driving customers to local businesses but also in making the city more attractive to business owners.
"It's important to clean up our neighborhood and make it more appealing," Ferguson added. "If it's clean and looks good, businesses will want to come."
Hollis echoed Ferguson in that he believes Elm Grove needs some straightening up, adding that new lighting and sidewalks would greatly improve the area.
"Despite being pretty disheveled, our little stretch here is probably more productive than downtown," Hollis added.
On the subject of improvement in the area, Palmer teased possibly adding more parking spaces to Elm Grove at the corner of Junior Avenue and National Road in place of the former TCI building. He believes the current parking situation in the area is "difficult," so he hopes the city council can get plans moving to build a small lot there.
"Whether someone wants to come in and revamp that building or it meets the wrecking ball, so be it," he said. "If we were able to take that building down, we can possibly create a few parking spots because that's one thing small business owners lack in Elm Grove."
The EGBA will continue to support local businesses and improve Elm Grove with Ferguson at the helm, a role that she took up in October 2021. Palmer commends Ferguson for being a "doer and not a talker" at her position in the EGBA.
"The organization has always been great, but she's made such large strides," he added.
Ferguson is already on the hunt for more businesses to bring to Elm Grove, with Ferguson excited to reveal they have a new coffee shop coming soon.
"I love getting new businesses to come to Wheeling and helping them find a suitable location," she said. "I love that I am able to connect the dots to get great businesses to the area."