Mayor Rod Davies presented the State of the City address this week. In spite of the challenges provided by Springfield, Fiscal Year 2018 was another good year for Monmouth. Mayor Davies reports more:
“The City of Monmouth continues to receive interest in new commercial development both in the downtown and on the north side near the intersection of State Highways 34 and 67. There already exists a strong commercial base of retail, restaurants, gas stations, and lodging accommodations around the by-pass and that area added a new Casey’s General Store. There has also been a new restaurant added in the strip mall near Shopko and another just east of Smithfield Foods. That part of town is looking to have a promising future as we have had other inquiries from developers for commercial development projects in that area.
Downtown has seen the renovations and repurposing on several ground floor storefronts with the opening of a new ice cream parlor, barber shop and restaurant. The City undertook a beautification project in cooperation with the West Central Leadership Class of 2018 to landscape a city-owned vacant lot on South 1st Street to accent nearby downtown businesses. We are encouraging the adjacent businesses to utilize that space for cooperative outdoor events. We have also seen a number of businesses change ownership as the original entrepreneurs retire and a new generation grabs the reins and continues to invest in our community.
Another family owned business, Fareway Grocery, decided to move into our community. With the cooperation and assistance from Monmouth College, they purchased the College’s maintenance facility at Highway 34 and 6th Street,” states Davies.
Fareway will be building a new 21,000 square foot grocery store with a $5 million investment and creating approximately 75 new jobs in the Monmouth community.
To hear the entire speech, listen to the link below:
