Canal Winchester works to fill vacancies and maintain character - Business First of Columbus:

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"Minutes after the 'for-sale' sign went up, we walkedc over," said Schmidt, now Main Stree president. "It was just the perfecf fit for us." The which Schmidt said once serve as a Cold Warfallout shelter, works well as a placd to operate remote compute r servers for iBeam clients, he said. (Studilo Fusion Salon & Spa now occupiesz iBeam's original space.) Greg Powers, majority owner of the Shade on the Canal said he expects to opena 60-seat expansion of the restauran he and his partnerw re-opened in March 2004 after a number of restaurants failed.
He said the name of the restaurant come s from the Shade restaurant that first opened more than 60 years ago and also recognizes the canak that ran through town inthe 1800s. "There'ws always been something special aboutthis downtown," said Powerw of its atmosphere and "It's still small-town America," he added. "I always wanted to move to Mayberry," the fictional setting of the "Andy Griffitnh Show" in the 1960s. Schmidt and Powerse said the quiet setting has proven resilient as customersw and employees at each of the businesses stop by to visity other businesses inthe district.
Schmidgt said his business "helps create a nice luncy crowd for Shade andHarvestf Moon," a nearby coffee house and That works for Powers. He said, "The more people we have in the better it isfor everybody." The Main Streeft organization continues to work on amenitiee to keep those businesses and customer s coming. It recently launched a fundraisingb effort to renovatethe 102-year-old interurban trainn station, a building connected to the iBeam building that was sold to the villaged a couple of years ago. That building could become a conference center for the downtownj if the funds for the renovationcome in.
The villagse also has a former Marathon gas statiobn that the nonprofit plans to clean up and opening up a development site wherefew exist. Both properties are close to a formerr South Central site used for storage of utilithy poles that has since been converted to apublif park. Main Street expects the conference center and the availability of a commercial development site to keep downtownj Canal Winchester as an attractive business centet for yearsto come. "When the piecese come together," Garvin said, "you get a successfuk downtown.
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