|
Yes, Main Street's goal of revitalizing Ottumwa's downtown district will help his business in the long run. And, yes, having the business stay in business helps Main Street achieve that revitalization. But the two came from different parts of his life.
Gettings opened Riverside Cyclery in 2000, "about a week or two before RAGBRAI came through," he recalls. Gettings figured he would get a boost in the initial sales when thousands of bike riders pedaled through Ottumwa.
Didn't happen.
Yes, a few people wandered in. But most stayed with the main group and didn't venture to Gettings' fledgling shop. He understands that now. Some bike shops send riders and crews with the event, so a lot of people depend on those if they need repairs or upgrades.
"That first year the hope was that we'd get a bit of a bang. We didn't, but that was typical from what we found," he said.
The results of that first month didn't push Gettings toward getting out of the business. That's easy to understand if you meet him.
Gettings has a ready grin and enthusiasm for what he does. That balances against a sober disposition that keeps him from getting too far ahead of himself.
The traits served him well when Ottumwa first began thinking about an application for the Iowa Main Street Program. But that's another story.
Gettings first saw downtown revitalization efforts while he lived in Kansas City. The flight of residents away from cities nationwide hit Kansas City hard. There were buildings no one thought would ever be usable again. Contractors tore some down to make room for new, more modern structures. Others sat there, empty shells that did nothing more than hurt visitors' eyes.
A few companies rolled the dice on old buildings. They bought them, redesigned the interiors and wound up with a building that fused past history and present use. Gettings was blown away by some of the results. You can still see it in his face when he talks about them.
He brought that experience back to Ottumwa. When he heard about Main Street, the pieces fit.
"It clicked. It was like magic," he says with a big grin. He knows it sounds goofy. But it's true.
Gettings remembers arguing with a contractor who wanted to scrap an original hardwood handrail in the stairway of a building undergoing renovation. Why would anyone willingly throw away something that gave visitors a sense of the building's past?
He won the argument.
Downtown still faces challenges. And sometimes those challenges come from people who, in Gettings' view, should know better. Another business owner "broke my heart" a couple years ago when he told Gettings he had done all his holiday shopping online.
"That is our main competition," Gettings groaned. "If the public doesn't support local businesses, there won't be any."
So, yes, Main Street and Riverside Cyclery are on the same side.
"It's hard to explain it to people. They are going to merge in the end, but I do view them as separate," Gettings said.
And it's OK if you don't entirely understand it. Gettings doesn't mind.
Just so long as you buy locally. |
