Let your voice be heard on future of downtown

Should all of downtown Sandpoint be a service center for professional offices or should it be a combination of professional, retail, food, and residential opportunities?

If you believe it should be a combination (which I think it should) than we need to act now to save and expand our retail businesses. If you were to compare the amount of retails stores alive today to 10 years ago you would see a major reduction in retail stores.

Traditionally, retail stores are the backbone of a vibrant growing town as witnessed throughout history. When a town loses its retail presence it no longer has the ability to attract consumers and other types of businesses and services.

While there are lots of different reasons for this decline we cannot look to the past to solve our future. We must look forward and work with local property owners and other local entities to insure there is a future for retail in downtown Sandpoint. Retail stores help maintain a towns character by providing unique and different product. When asked to name our favorite restaurant, cafe or shop, we almost always cite a unique local business. We embrace them and call them our own.

If you believe downtown Sandpoint should have more retail stores please let your voice be heard. As the owner of the Timber Stand Gallery, I welcome more galleries in Sandpoint and will work with anyone or any group to further enhance the diversity of our retail base in downtown Sandpoint.

JIM QUINN

Sandpoint