Redevelopment Changes The Tapestry Of Quilting Capital
PADUCAH, Ky. - Dressed in black, smoking cigarettes and disaffected by youth, 22-year-old Reuben Gearhart is one of the few people who doesn't like what he sees in his rejuvenated hometown.
Too quaint, too many restaurants he can't afford, too many tourists. Especially during quilt week. Paducah is one of the world's quilting capitals, and every April the pre-eminent quilting show more than doubles the town's population.
"The thing about downtown is that it's beautifully tailored to the people they want here: rich, old people," said Gearhart, who plays drums for a band called Vicious Mistress.
Which, funny enough, is exactly right. This town's fortunes have risen during in the last decade by appealing to "rich, old people," - that is, tourists who spend money - and sprinkling in the things most visitors, young and old, would want within about 10 square blocks: quality food, cozy accommodations, art galleries and, of course, a quilting museum. Even the parking is free.
For a town of 26,000, you could call it sophisticated. The key has been two redevelopment efforts - one for the downtown, which sits on the banks of the Ohio River, and the other for the city's oldest residential neighborhood, Lowertown, where dozens of artists have been lured by the promise of cheap or free land.
Where there were blight, drugs dealers and broken sidewalks 10 years ago, there now are art galleries in restored late-19th century brick homes. The city's Artist Relocation Program has been widely hailed and frequently copied.
Read complete article in Philly.com
Too quaint, too many restaurants he can't afford, too many tourists. Especially during quilt week. Paducah is one of the world's quilting capitals, and every April the pre-eminent quilting show more than doubles the town's population.
"The thing about downtown is that it's beautifully tailored to the people they want here: rich, old people," said Gearhart, who plays drums for a band called Vicious Mistress.
Which, funny enough, is exactly right. This town's fortunes have risen during in the last decade by appealing to "rich, old people," - that is, tourists who spend money - and sprinkling in the things most visitors, young and old, would want within about 10 square blocks: quality food, cozy accommodations, art galleries and, of course, a quilting museum. Even the parking is free.
For a town of 26,000, you could call it sophisticated. The key has been two redevelopment efforts - one for the downtown, which sits on the banks of the Ohio River, and the other for the city's oldest residential neighborhood, Lowertown, where dozens of artists have been lured by the promise of cheap or free land.
Where there were blight, drugs dealers and broken sidewalks 10 years ago, there now are art galleries in restored late-19th century brick homes. The city's Artist Relocation Program has been widely hailed and frequently copied.
Read complete article in Philly.com
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