Spring Valley EDA News

By Spring Valley EDA – July 19, 2022

There is a colorful new addition welcoming people to downtown Spring Valley! The City of Spring Valley unveiled its new Spring Valley Creek Mural on Monday, July 18th, at the S&S Bait Shop, located at 104 East Main Street in Spring Valley, MN 55975.

The Spring Valley Creek Mural is made possible through a Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) Paint the Town Grant, along with local community support and collaboration. Tim Penny, President of SMIF, addressed the audience at the official unveiling. “The only thing we require for the free paint that we provide is that it has to be collaborative, with lots of community members involved, and you certainly have that!” Penny added, “these murals are a point of community pride, and SMIF is happy to be a small part of that.”   

Osterud-Winter Foundation Trustee, Sue Kolling, shared that “one year ago, Steve Tammel and Springy (Steve Volkart, Owner of S&S Bait Shop) were standing right here during the Ag Days fishing contest. Steve looks at the wall and says, Springy, you need a mural! A year later, we have our mural!” Kolling added that she “can’t say enough about the community collaboration on this project. It has been amazing,” and offered a challenge to the community to develop the next project to let people know that Spring Valley is a great place to live.

Spring Valley Area Community Foundation Board Member Dave Foster also addressed the audience. He thanked the project partners and said the Foundation was “very pleased to be a part of this project.”

The Spring Valley Creek Mural is an 8′ x 16′ painting designed by local artist Andrea Hindt and painted with the help of community volunteers. Over the last few weeks, the mural has slowly taken shape indoors at the Spring Valley Community Center, where people could catch a glimpse of the work in progress at different community center events. The completed mural is displayed on the side of the S&S Bait Shop. It is visible to people crossing Spring Creek into Spring Valley’s Historic Downtown from the east on Fillmore County Road 1.

“There are still a few things I need to touch up,” says artist Andrea Hindt, “including adding the spots on the trout. I hope to get that done by this Wednesday for our Wednesdays on Broadway event.”

People are encouraged to scan a QR code added to the mural’s bottom right corner. The QR code directs people to the mural’s story, the various pieces of Spring Valley’s story that it incorporates, and a list of community partners who helped make it possible.

SMIF’s Paint the Town Grant is awarded to communities of less than 10,000 residents for projects that, among other things, will have a positive visual impact on the community. Projects require volunteer participation for at least 50% of the work. Chris Hahn, Economic Development Authority Director for Spring Valley, notes, “We were incredibly fortunate to have support from the Spring Valley Area Community Foundation, the Osterud-Winter Foundation, Spring Valley Public Library, Kiwanis Club, our local Ace Hardware, S&S Bait Shop, and all of the community members who donated their time, energy, and talents on this project.”

Questions regarding the Spring Valley Creek Mural should be directed to Spring Valley EDA Director Chris Hahn via email at director@springvalleyeda.org or call 612-327-9729.

Original article published in the Mower County Independent, Thursday, July 7, 2022.   Reprinted with permission and gratitude.

By Gretchen Mensink Lovejoy 

“Monday, Monday, can’t trust that day…every other day, every other day of the week is fine, yeah…” Tuesday’s always a little wobbly after Monday, Thursday’s almost the weekend, Friday is devoted to packing for Saturday trips and Sunday hotel stays, or for mowing lawn. That leaves trusty, reliable Wednesday to “go downtown, downtown…forget all your troubles, forget all your cares, and go downtown…everything’s waiting for you!”

And Spring Valley resident Justin Mlinar agrees. “Bringing people downtown is so important. The evening of the June 15 event, I heard from many attendees that they were happy to see the downtown hopping again. Some even mentioned that it had been years since it was so busy. It brought a lot of joy and excitement to the people attending. Wednesdays on Broadway is a farmers’ market with a block party feel.”

He elaborated on the initiative to enliven Spring Valley’s commercial thoroughfare, citing, “We hope to bring our community together once a month for a night out to showcase all we have to offer – live music, food vendors, shopping, fun for the whole family. Earlier in the day, all cars are cleared from the street. Vendor and exhibitor booths begin to line the street in the parking spaces at around 4 p.m. The whole downtown area takes on a whole new look and vibe.”

Mlinar explained, “Wednesdays on Broadway takes place the third Wednesday each month from 5 to 8 p.m. The June 15 event was a lot of fun, and we are hoping for even more fun throughout the summer. There are three events still to attend–July 20, August 17, and September 21 – and we have live music each month …” which he named as Schmidty (July 20), Luke Hendrickson (Aug. 17), and country jam with the Stiers, Cindy Seabright, and more (Sept. 21).

He continued, “Wednesdays on Broadway hosts 50-plus vendors and exhibitors at each event. The variety of what is available…may surprise people. Every booth is different, and you’re sure to find something you love. The vendors are selling some really amazing items, all the way from art, reclaimed items, handmade jewelry, lotions and soaps to fresh vegetables and even meat. Exhibitors vary, from local businesses, organizations and clubs, most of which have prizes to give away or games for children to play, and each event also has live music playing throughout from 5 to 8 p.m.”

Food is also a big part of this event, he added, “We have the occasional food trucks, however, all of our downtown restaurants are also open and ready to serve some really delicious food. Stellar 181 Taphouse, Big Bob’s Eatery, The Pizza Place and Valley Diner are all open during the event. It is a great opportunity to have businesses come, be a part of this event and engage with the Spring Valley community and others from visiting communities. Our wish is to see Spring Valley not as a competition but instead as a co-op where businesses are supporting each other.”

Mlinar, who is part of a marketing team for several local events, cited that Wednesdays on Broadway “was an idea that started between Tiffany Mundfrom and Jenn and Alex Slifka.” He added, “The planning group for Wednesdays on Broadway is excited to keep the event going, and we are already discussing ways to make it bigger and better for next year. Since the planning group was formed, Wednesdays on Broadway has grown to a size that we could have never imagined. We have discussed increasing Wednesdays on Broadway to bi-weekly or even weekly; however, it will take additional conversations to figure out if this is feasible or not. We want to keep this going as long as there is an interest and people want to get out and enjoy Spring Valley and have some fun. The excitement of something new draws a lot of people to Wednesdays on Broadway. Not just from Spring Valley, but also from surrounding communities… we had people attend as far away as from Rochester, St. Charles, Preston and even northern Iowa, to name a few.”

Mlinar is pleased to state that there have been very few challenges getting this event off the ground. “We have been really fortunate to have a lot of great people on the planning group…a bit of a dream team, you could say. They are working hard to make Wednesdays on Broadway a success. At this point, the weather has been our only challenge, and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that we have good weather moving forward. Weather can be tricky in Minnesota. The skies barely cleared in time for the June 15 event. With vendors booked at other gatherings and festivals, we decided not to have rain dates. However, we do have a backup plan to move into the Spring Valley Community Center, if needed.”

He remarked that the rewards of organizing and promoting the downtown gathering lie in witnessing the work’s results. “Having people out enjoying themselves and seeing them smile while they are at Wednesdays on Broadway is the best reward. However, I suppose it’s the economic benefits to Spring Valley, too, because it’s businesses, and the visiting vendors and exhibitors are an added bonus as well. We have a lot of vendors and exhibitors coming from other communities…too many to share. It’s best to keep an eye on the Wednesdays Facebook posts for up-to-date information on who will be there, and there is a full list of participants on the Economic Development Authority’s (EDA) website, but this list can change if someone were to back out or be added. A full list of vendors and exhibitors is posted the day before the event once they are assigned a space.”

He’s enamored of the neighborliness that has come of people getting together downtown on a mid-week evening. “I believe that community is very important. After the past two years, our community needs events like this. Regardless of the number of attendees, bringing people together at Wednesdays on Broadway brings a great feeling of success. And it’s nice to see old friends connect and new friendships begin. It’s a fun time for the entire family…attendees young and old will not be disappointed. I hope that everyone enjoys the entire evening, from shopping and music to the food. Although we are new to hosting this event, we are constantly discussing ways to improve so everyone will have the most enjoyable experience.”

Mlinar concluded by giving kudos to Tiffany Mundfrom, Jenn and Alex Slifka and the city of Spring Valley for making the event successful. “Without their support, Wednesdays on Broadway wouldn’t happen. I know I said it before, but the ‘community’ feel is amazing. Even among visitors from other communities, you still feel like you’re welcome and that you belong.”

For more information, log onto the Wednesdays on Broadway Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/WednesdaysonBroadwaySpringValleyMN/, or check out the Spring Valley Economic Development Authority website at https://springvalleyeda.org.

Courtesy of the Mower County Independent, 135 E Main St. LeRoy, MN 55951, (507)-324-5325