Madison business owners, government explore options to fund rebuild
MARSHALL – A number of Madison County business owners appeared before the commissioners to ask for financial assistance for helping to bring back their businesses.
During the public comment portion of the Madison County Board of Commissioners Dec. 10 meeting, a number of businesses owners implored the commissioners to explore funding opportunities for business owners who were impacted by Tropical Storm Helene.
Josh Copus is owner of Zadie’s Market and Old Marshall Jail in downtown Marshall.
“I’m here to represent any business owner, resident or person who cares about Marshall who couldn’t come here to speak tonight,” Copus said. “I’m going to speak for my own experiences tonight. I know that a lot of people are hurting — in Hot Springs, and people lost their homes throughout. But I’m going to speak specifically about my experiences in downtown Marshall.”
Copus urged the commissioners to think about the next steps for the town’s recovery.
“The initial cleanup and remediation I feel like was very obvious,” Copus said. “We had a lot of volunteers. Honestly, it was pretty cheap to do. Right now, what I think we’re faced with is that everyone in downtown Marshall is trying to figure out how to put their businesses back together.”
But Copus said putting these businesses back together is going to take “a ton of money.”
“So, I just am asking our county commissioenrs and anyone who’s listening tonight that anything that you all can do to help us, we’re doing a great job with the resources that we have, but we need funding,” Copus said. “We need tons and tons of money to put this town back together.
“I appreciate all that you all have done, and I look forward to working with you guys in the future. Just any help that our county can give us, I believe in government’s ability to help the citizens of this county, and I really would love to see that happen.”
Alex Webber, owner of On Your Bike, a bakery, coffee shop and bike repair business in downtown Marshall, went before the board to advocate for funding opportunities for the businesses along downtown Marshall’s South Main Street.
“We are a community facing a critical moment, one where decisions made today will determine whether we rebuild as a vibrant town or risk becoming a ghost town,” Webber said.
Webber lived in Louisiana during the rebuilding process in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
“I’ve seen firsthand how small businesses can make or break a community’s recovery,” Webber said. “In New Orleans, the rebuilding efforts weren’t just about restoring buildings. They were about restoring the heart of the city — its culture, its identity and the businesses that gave the city its soul.”
In Webber’s words, Marshall is at the same crossroads now.
“We have our own unique character and charm, but without a concerted effort to support small businesses, we risk losing the very things that make this town special. If we don’t act now, we will see more empty storefronts along Main Street and complete voids in the south end of town, which as you know was hit really hard.”
Businesses along the south end of town include Ponder’s Auto, The Depot, the tag office and The Noodle Hole. According to Webber, losing these businesses would not only impact local commerce but would also be a big blow to the town’s culture, as locales such as Ponder’s Auto and The Depot have been landmarks in Marshall for many decades.
“We need help attracting new businesses to this part of Marshall so it doesn’t stay empty and forgotten,” Webber said.
Rhesa Edwards co-owns with her husband MadCo Brew House and Marshall Pizza Kitchen, which opened in 2016.
“We have enjoyed living and in the county and we hope to continue to do so, but we need more grant funding,” Edwards said. “We know that our businesses bring people into our county to spend money which leads to tax revenue. Without us, that tax revenue will decline.”
Edwards said she hoped to see the commissioners explore securing grant funding for downtown Marshall businesses.
“We can’t do this without your help,” Edwards said. “I need downtown Marshall. Businesses need downtown Marshall. Residents need downtown Marshall. My 19 employees need downtown Marshall. My boys need downtown Marshall, and the county needs downtown Marshall.”
Rick Molland, who served on the Madison County Board of Adjustment for years, advocated for Marshall small businesses on behalf of his wife, Connie Molland, co-owner and founder of Flow Gallery, which opened in 2010.
According to Molland, Flow Gallery is particularly reliant on holiday shopping, as the October through December months account for 40% of its annual revenue.
Molland said while Connie Molland intends to reopen Flow Gallery in the spring, 25% of artwork in the gallery was lost in Helene’s floods.
Molland pointed to the lack of grant funding for small businesses in North Carolina, a point alluded to by Gov. Roy Cooper during his visit to downtown Marshall in October.
But Molland said the county needs to keep enticing visitors to come and shop, as there is a symbiotic relationship between business owners and visitors.
“Flow needs the town’s visitors and the town’s visitors need places to shop like Flow,” Molland said. “We need the buying public to return to Marshall. I praise you, the commissioners, for bringing in the state and federal ‘big guns’ to tour the flood brackage downtown business area and pledge their support and commitment, that they have our backs and that Marshall won’t be forgotten.
“We need that, and the financial infusion it suggests. We need to know that was not just political rhetoric.”
Joel Friedman owns Zuma Coffee, and told The Citizen Times earlier this month he plans to reopen the coffee shop in April 2025. Friedman opened Zuma 23 years ago in downtown Marshall.
“In that 23 years, I’ve seen community build, and I’ve seen it happen through downtown Marshall,” Friedman said. “I’ve seen it happen through small businesses. I’ve seen it happen through the residents who live there, and who’ve made Marshall what we like to call ‘Magictown’ now.
“It’s been important in my life, and it’s given me an opportunity to have a business, to help create community and to be there when people need me. What we’re asking from you guys is to be there for us when we need you guys.”
County’s response
Board of Commissioners Chair Matt Wechtel acknowledged the Marshall and Hot Springs business owners’ pleas, adding that his father lost a business to a flood years ago.
“The speed that you guys started and kept going and got your cleanup done was phenomenal,” Wechtel said. “Many of you that we’ve had private conversations throughout this process, the speed of government is painfully slow, and I recognize that.
“I personally understand firsthand what you guys are going through. We’re trying to do what we can to expedite things as quickly as possible. It’s not going to be as fast as you guys want it to be, but we’re trying to do it as fast as we possibly can.”
County Manager Rod Honeycutt visited Washington, D.C., Nov. 20-21 to meet with President Joe Biden, state senators and congress members to request funding for Madison County.
According to Honeycutt, he requested $194 million.
Of that $194 million, Honeycutt said he requested:
- $129 million in public assistance to restore government buildings.
- $26 million in mitigation, flood work and damages along the banks of the river.
- $21 million for future economic development.
- $8 million in long-term housing.
- $11 million in a previous legislative request.
The money requested would be delegated to four Western North Carolina counties.
“The President has requested from Congress $97 billion,” Honeycutt said. “That $97 billion will serve as four disasters — the Baltimore Bridge, the Maui fires, Tropical Storm Helene and Hurricane Milton.
“While I was there, I asked for that money to go not to the state but to go directly to Madison County,” Honeycutt said. “There’s a lot of pushback. But there are restrictions that are in place. But I want you to know that we hear what you’re talking about. It’s from our hearts, and we carried a good message.
“Now we just need our federal and state representatives to take care of us.”
The county manager said Congress’s decision will likely be made on Dec. 20.
Wechtel said if the county does not receive sufficient funding, Honeycutt and the county will plan to return to Washington to “take another bite of the apple.”
More:Gov. Roy Cooper in Marshall: Helene sludge/toxicity misinformation ‘demoralizes’ community
More:In downtown Marshall, every shop is a small business. What does this mean for its rebuild?
More:New café/bike shop owners aim to ’embrace and celebrate where we are’
More:‘The heartbeat of Marshall’: Zuma Coffee owner Joel Friedman announces reopening date
Historic Preservation Grant
Economic Development Director Brad Guth said the Madison County Economic Development Board met recently to discuss potentially forming a Madison County Historic Preservation Grant Program.
“They’re very widely recognized as effective revitalization tools and used across North Carolina,” Guth said. “These programs support economic development by preserving the historic character of downtown areas, tracking investment and enhancing the visual appeal of downtowns.”
According to Guth, the economic development board recommends establishing a matching grant program to assist owners of historic buildings and rebuilding after Helene’s devastation. The program would allow $5,000 in owner- or tenant-matching funds for eligible facades and building rehabilitation projects within downtown Hot Springs and downtown Marshall’s National Register of Historic Places districts.
According to Guth, there are 40 businesses in downtown Marshall that would qualify for the grant funding, and 14 businesses in Hot Springs.
Funding would come from Article 44 sales tax revenues designed for local economic development, and the Madison County Economic Development Board recommended the county spend $100,000 on these grant programs.
Guth recommended the county partner with an organization such as Mountain Bizworks to administer program grant funding.
Johnny Casey has covered Madison County for The Citizen Times and The News-Record & Sentinel for three years. He earned a first-place award in beat news reporting in the 2023 North Carolina Press Association awards. He can be reached at 828-210-6074 or jcasey@citizentimes.com.
2024-12-11 14:44:06
