Main Street is Full, Houses are Sold, 75+ Events; Is This Gillett?

Stop saying “Gillett is dead” or “Gillett is a retirement community” because you’re very, very wrong

If you would’ve told me 5 years ago that Main Street would be full, most of the houses would be sold, and we would be hosting International Music Artists at Zippel Park, I would’ve called you crazy!

Gillett has been through a lot in the past decade. City debt, an aging population, and stagnate economic development has been a hard fought battle for our community. Nevertheless, that’s not the Gillett we live in now!

Business is Booming!

Did you know there are over 140 businesses & organizations in the Gillett Area?

Did you know that instead of losing businesses the past few years Gillett has been gaining them?

Here are some of the businesses that have recently opened (in no particular order):

• Carfair
• L&N Metalworks
• Gillett Handiworks
• For You with Love Boutique
• The Nines Resale
• The Carriage House
• Apocalypse House Musemum
• The Mexican Grocery Store
• Johnny B’s Vienna Sausage Stand
• Unique Perfections
• KOR Business Solutions
• Everlasting Impressions Photography
• By Grace
• Noteworthy
• The Fifth Wheel
• The Cracked Cup (reopening soon)

I apologize if Ive missed any, let me know in the comments.

Not convinced yet? Let me rapid fire some facts at you

• GILLETT IS NOT A RETIREMENT COMMUNITY - The median age of City residents is 44-48
• 2/3 of the houses listed for sale in Gillett have sold in the past 3 years. Furthermore, the majority of these houses have been bought by people between the ages of 27-45. 
• Gillett hosted over 75 Events in the past year and a half including 2 International Music Artists in the summer of 2018 - Saliva & Saving Abel.

Attitude is half the Problem

As Chairman of Gillett’s Tourism & Marketing Commission one of the most difficult challenges I’ve been working to overcome is the attitude.

I still here the classics “Gillett is dying“, “there’s nothing to do in Gillett“, “Gillett is a retirement community“. I don’t know if people are unaware of the progress we have made in the past few years or if they are just being stubborn.

Nevertheless, I could write about this topic for hours. In a future Editorial I will dive deeper into these facts, for now, let me know what you think in the comments below.

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