July 17, 2004
BLOSSBURG V.I.B.E. FORMS ACTION TEAMS
Movie Theater, Farmers Market, Communications Are Priority Projects
BLOSSBURG, July 2 – Forty-three residents of Blossburg and surrounding communities gathered June 30 to outline a vision statement and create action teams in the second of two visioning sessions sponsored by Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business & Entertainment).
Participants ranged in age from 18 to 90 and represented a broad cross-section of people who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg.
After brainstorming and discussing concepts for a vision statement to guide V.I.B.E. activities, the group chose to focus on several projects.
One of the most popular proposed projects is reopening the Victoria Theater which has been dormant since 1975. Shane Nickerson, team lead and owner of Nickerson Construction, has toured the facility and spoken with its current owners. “The theater is in beautiful shape and we hope we can open and preserve it, and provide entertainment for all ages.” Nickerson said. The movie theater team will meet Wednesday, July 14, 7 pm at Blossburg Memorial Library community room.
The farmers’ market team seeks to create a weekly or biweekly venue for selling quality fresh local vegetables and fruits on Main Street. Tonya McNamara, team lead and Blossburg Borough Council vice president, said, “This could be a unique opportunity to bring the community together, enjoy good food and display local artisans’ talents.” The team will meet Wednesday, July 21, 9 am at First Citizens National Bank in Blossburg.
During the first session’s analysis of Blossburg’s strengths and weaknesses, participants identified communications as a major barrier to community involvement. Juanita Berguson, team lead and owner of Mansfield-based Kingdom Company, Inc., described the communications effort, “Good advertising and marketing are essential to the success of Blossburg’s organizations and businesses. There’s a lot of work ahead of us, but it will pay off.” The communications team will meet Tuesday, July 6, 7 pm at the Berguson residence in Blossburg.
Four other teams were established at the meeting.
A youth activities team led by Jill Nickerson is evaluating the possibility of a skate park as well as other activities for youth in the community such as CPR classes.
The design team, led by Carol Tama, is examining ways to bring Main Street into top physical shape with lighting, building facades, trees and parking.
A team led by Dave Jones is evaluating the possibility of restoring the former Blossburg borough building, which has been vacant since the fire and ambulance company built its new building on the north end of Main Street.
The administration team, charged with building the organization, submitting grant proposals and other administrative tasks, is led by Heidi Jones, owner of Ridgerunner Consulting, who also facilitated the visioning sessions with the assistance of Jill Nickerson, V.I.B.E. secretary/treasurer and owner of Toddler University Daycare and Preschool, Inc.
One other team has met several times. Its focus is evaluating an off-highway vehicle park for the area. The team is led by Charlie Tameris.
V.I.B.E. will next meet July 21, 6pm, in the community room of Blossburg Memorial Library. The library’s community room is handicap accessible. For more information about V.I.B.E. or the action teams, visit www.blossburg.org/vibe or contact Jill Nickerson at 570-638-2005, 570-638-2586 or nikerson@quik.com.
Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business & Entertainment) is a new group created by Blossburg Borough Council and Blossburg Improvement Association to envision, plan and implement projects that will enhance the quality of life for those who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg.