It’s normal for towns to put money toward beautification, planting trees and shrubs, cleaning up public right-of-ways, but in Morrison, it’s a sign of evolution.
to focus on following in the steps of other towns like Golden and sprucing things up.
“As the town grows, it needs to be changed up here and there,” he said.
Morrison’s planning commission has been studying ways to revitalize the small town and make it more than just a place concert-goers drive through on their way to Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre.
“It’s a town with a struggling economic base and not a lot of sales tax revenue,” said Gretchen Roberts, who chairs the town’s planning commission and its events committee, which in June put on Alley Fest, an event that won a Governor’s Award for Downtown Excellence from Downtown, Inc.
She said Alley Fest — a festival of music and vendors held on Middle Street, the alleyway behind the businesses on the north side of Bear Creek Avenue — was successful in its goal to bring outsiders in to see a different side of the town. But it was also about inspiring a fresh perspective within the community.
“There are really nice community events that happen because there’s a group of very dedicated residents,” she said. “But they never really promoted it outside the town. They never really had the end goal in mind to help business.”
Those other events include that invites attendees to bring their own apples to juice in the town’s cider press. It is changing, too, with a new event license that allows beer drinkers to walk throughout the grounds rather than stay confined to a beer garden.
“We’re trying to get people to stay in town a little bit longer,” said Ryan Kloberdanz, the co-chair of the Ciderfest planning committee.
The true test, however, will come when the town hosts a blues festival this winter, which is when Roberts said businesses typically see low numbers. The event is still in planning, but the goal is to bring traffic in during the holiday season.
The elephant in the room throughout these efforts is the possible growth the small town faces from the impending Roberts said it is important to start revitalizing Morrison’s image and its residents’ mindset in preparation for the big changes ahead.
She said: “I think if we get organized about community building and build early on, then we can be more open as a town.”
Josie Klemaier: 303-954-2465, jklemaier@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JosieKlemaier
Morrison Ciderfest
When: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Sept. 27
Where: 450 Summer St., Morrison
Cost: Admission is free
Info:
