|
Upcoming
Wed. Jan. 25th
OTBA Annual Breakfast
8:30am
City Tavern 2nd. Floor.
Wed. Feb. 8th
Membership Meeting
8:30am
City Tavern 2nd. Floor.
Breakfast Included
What else is going on?
Visit the calendar on HMI website to learn about the many activities taking place in Old Town and the surrounding area.
www.visitmanassas.org
|
January Meeting
There will be no OTBA general meeting on January 11th. Instead, on January 25th the OTBA Annual Winter Breakfast at City Tavern at 8:30 a.m.
Keep Town Sparkling!
Well, Christmas is over, and the decorations are coming down. It was a good Christmas season for many of the merchants, but now it is time to settle in to the winter months. To keep the beauty of Old Town Manassas alive, many of the merchants will be keeping their Christmas lights lit until the end of January. Please consider doing the same in your place. Let's keep Old Town sparkling with white lights until the end of January.
No Dec. Meeting
There will be no OTBA General Meeting in December. Watch for the invites for the January annual breakfast.
Larry Hughes honored
At our most recent OTBA meeting, we honored City Manager Larry Hughes who is retiring. OTBA presented Larry with a gift and different members of OTBA and City Personal spoke to the membership about Larry.
The Gallery Walk a Success
Town was bustling with people going in and out of the shops. There were musicians in some of the locations and artists receptions at all the participating locations. It was a good evening for all.
Veteran's Day Parade
This year's Veteran's Day Parade will be honoring the Vietnam War Vets. The parade will start at 11 a.m. and follow the same route down Center Street as the Christmas Parade. Immediately following the parade will be a "Welcome Home" at the Harris Pavilion.
NEW BOARD MEMBERS VOTED IN
The following board members were voted into office and will start in January:
President - Joanne Wunderly, The Things I Love
Vice President - Marci Settle, Center for the Arts
Treasurer - Nury Mena, Fulton Bank
Secretary - Jan Alten, Opera House Gifts
Newsletter Edition - Christine Finnie, Whimsical Galerie
Voting for New Board Members
It's time to vote for new board members, which we will do at our General Meeting on Oct 12. Lou Balboni, in charge of nominations, has come up with a slate of officers to be voted upon. We are also open to nominations from the floor. If anyone can not make the meeting they can vote by proxy.
The slate of officers to vote upon are as follows:
President - Joanne Wunderly, The Things I Love
Vice President - Marci Settle, Center for the Arts
Treasurer - Nury Mena, Fulton Bank
Secretary - Jan Alten, Opera House Gifts & Gourmet; Debbie Haight, HMI
Newsletter Edition - Christine Finnie, Whimsical Galerie
FaceBook
OTBA will be going on FaceBook soon. Watch for more details.
Fall Jubilee
The summer is over and the Fall Jubilee is upon us. Time for the merchants to great the public and let them know what a great town we are! If you've signed up to be on the street in front of your business for the Fall Jubilee, make sure you make a good presentation.
September was a success!
Many merchants were happy with how the sidewalk sale went as well as the other events in town. Lots of people were on the street, and the police helped people cross Center Street which added to the safety factor. Even the weather held out!
Scavenger Hunt
Need a fun family activity close to home? The Old Town Business Association is sponsoring a scavenger hunt in Old Town Manassas!
A poster of photos taken of architecture, windows and other structures in Old Town from the Cramer Center to the Harris Pavilion has been put together to spell out Old Town Manassas. Can you find the places where these photos were taken? We have some lovely old buildings and churches to explore and you will discover a little more about their architecture and beauty. You may even learn a bit of local history in the process. Some are easy enough for the youngest member of your family and others are somewhat challenging.
The "hunt" began on July 1st and will end on September 1st. The entry forms can be picked up at participating businesses displaying a flyer in their windows. When completed, they can be returned to any participating business.
The winner will be selected from a drawing of all entries submitted and will win a professionally framed and matted poster.
If you would like to have a matted 11"x17" poster, they can be purchased for $19.99 at participating businesses. They would make a wonderful gift or keepsake for all of those who love Manassas!
150th
The events of the 150th are upon us. Time for all the merchants to step it up. Have your places looking good and great all of our out of town guests with a smile!
OTBA Breakfast
We are very pleased to have been able to get General Ewell (aka Chris Godart) to attend our May meeting and share his experiences as a re-enactor. He will talk about what a reenactment brings to a community and what we can expect from the weekend. He will also explain how the re-enactment community is organized and he will have a power point presentation to show the present day map with an overlay of the battle. He will attend as General Ewell and will be dressed accordingly. I think this will be very exciting and informative. He is willing to stay and answer your questions after his presentation.
SPRING HAS SPRUNG!
It is springtime and warm weather means more visitors to Old Town. Plant your flowers, clean your windows and help greet the visitors.
SESQUICENTENNIAL VIDEO PROMOTION
A video will be made to help promote the Old Town businesses. An actress will visit the businesses for filming, with an audio script using the words of your choice. Each business should send a brief generic paragraph to Debbie Haight by April 22 so it can be used with the filming.
The video will play on a JUMBO-TRON at the Harris Pavilion during July events. HMI also plans to eventually have the video play at the visitors center.
GUIDES TO SHOPS AND SERVICES
A PDF of the new guides are available for anyone that wants one for their website. Just email Mary Reilly and she will send it to you via email. Her email is mary@creativebrush.com.
SESQUICENTENNIAL
Learn what you can about the upcoming sesquicentennial by coming to the OTBA meetings. Each month we are sharing a different aspect of the 150th. This will provide all the merchants with answers to questions that our visitors may have.
TOURISM
The Certified Tourism Ambassador (CTA) Program is a ground breaking, nationwide certification program that serves to increase tourism by training and inspiring front-line hospitality employees and volunteers to work together to turn every visitor encounter into a positive experience. Click here to learn more about it.
CENTER STREET
Center Street will soon have all filled store fronts. This is good news since commuters travel it daily and for some, Center Street is their only impression of Old Town. We now have Historically Yours where Delisle Antiques use to be. Carmello's renovation is almost complete and they will be reopening. The Things I Love will be moving to the Opera House next door to Creative Brush Studio, and across the street from there, Persnickety Cakes is hoping to open soon. Allyssa Bryn Day Spa & Salon is now open.
ANNUAL DUES
At the October General meeting it was agreed upon that our dues would be raised to $125. This is still a good deal considering what we get as members. There is a monthly breakfast meeting and more importantly members are in the Guides to Shops and Services if we are a member. Thousands are handed out each year.
Our dues also help pay for the different OTBA promotions that occur during the year.
GUIDES TO SHOPS AND SERVICES
Membership renewals were due this month in order to get in the guides to shops and services. The changes for the Guides to Shops and Services are being worked on at this time. If you have a change, send it to mary@creativebrush.com. If it is not too late, your change will be included.
OPERA HOUSE GOURMET
Every Friday night there is a wine tasting. Check it out!
|
