Chamber hosts tour of potential business spaces in Downtown

By Ashley Luthans

The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce hosted an Open Spaces Tour on Tuesday to help business owners, and potential business owners, check out locations available for rent or sale in St. Joseph.

The free event invited attendees to stop at locations on Felix Street and Edmond Street, along with the future location of the Downtown Public Market. Attendees also got the chance to learn about permitting and how to start a small business.

Alan Harker, a new resident in St. Joseph, attended the tour. Harker said he went on the tour in order to learn more about what St. Joseph has to offer.

“I figured I’d check it out,” Harker said. “I have a big interest in Downtown and I’d just love to see the community grow and thrive.”

Christy George, the Downtown liaison, explained the purpose of the tour.

“I think it’s important to meet with potential entrepreneurs and even if you have a business or you’re thinking about moving your business or maybe down the road you might have an idea,” George said. “Just to see what Downtown has to offer and maybe start getting some people interested in opening up some new businesses Downtown.”

Harker shared the importance of the tour for businesses in St. Joseph.

“We need to know what’s Downtown,” Harker said. “Like, what is in the Downtown region so that we can advertise that and bring more people to the Downtown space, create more foot traffic, create more interest. And I feel like that would really contribute a lot to the culture of the city.”