Painting holiday cheer in Monroe

From refurbished planters to Christmas lights to hand-painted storefront windows, the Downtown Monroe Association continues its efforts to beautify the downtown core, and is busily preparing for its upcoming Christmas caroling celebration.

The DMA's Main and Lewis Christmas Caroling Celebration takes place 3-5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, in downtown Monroe. The family friendly celebration is the group's first official fundraising event since its formation in August, and is expected to draw Monroe residents into the downtown core. Pippin pies will be sold during the event to raise funds to support the DMA's downtown revitalization efforts.

The DMA is anticipating participation from students at Park Place Middle School and other local singing groups. Main Street Caf+¬ owner Sandra Adkins will stay open until 5 p.m. to accommodate hungry Christmas carolers, and hot chocolate will be available inside the Doloff-Key building.

Carolers will enjoy secret discounts at Real Deals and a 10 percent off dinner discount at Adam's Northwest Bistro. My L.A. Fashion will be holding a store-wide 25 percent off sale for all customers.-á -á

The DMA has been sprucing up the downtown area for several weeks. Spearheaded by DMA member Andy Martin, the window painting was the latest aspect of the group's beautification initiative. Martin recruited local artist and longtime Monroe resident Terri Weigelt to paint decorations on all the downtown storefronts.

Several buildings have been decorated, and the DMA is working to obtain permission from additional building owners for additional paintings. So far, Weigelt has dedicated more than 10 hours to her window painting endeavors, and has crafted snowflakes, decorative holly branches and snowmen.-á

Weigelt enlisted the aid of students from Monroe Montessori last week to create a handprint Christmas tree on the window of the historic Doloff-Key building. The project took place at the corner of East Main and South Lewis streets on Tuesday morning. Monroe Montessori students joined Weigelt, who covered their hands with green and brown paint and helped them form the tree.

Weigelt's granddaughter, Aliyah Weigelt-Daggett, who used bright yellow to symbolize a star, added the final handprint at the top of the tree. Building owners Ray and Lucy Ellis gave the project their blessing, stopping by to admire the finished product, along with several DMA members.

DMA president Dianne Forth presented to the Monroe City Council last week, providing an overview of the DMA's accomplishments so far. The DMA's first tangible project involved planting 11 donated birch trees and other plants in the planter pots scattered along east and west Main Street. DMA Design Committee chairwoman Samantha Idle and the Monroe Parks Department collaborated on the placement of the pots, so they were close to electrical outlets in order to accommodate Christmas lights.

"The trees will be in the pots for approximately two to three years,GÇ¥ Forth said. "When they have gotten to the point where we need to move them out of the pots, we would like to donate them to the city in some fashion, whether it be in a park or in one of the housing areas.GÇ¥

Next, the trees and downtown lampposts were adorned with Christmas lights. Monroe Mayor Geoffrey Thomas and Councilmember Jim Kamp volunteered their time to help DMA members and other volunteers with the project.

"We used high-efficiency LED bulbs, which were all donated by the DMA members,GÇ¥ Forth said. "We had a great team wrapping all the lampposts and the trees.GÇ¥

Currently self-funded, the DMA is made up of local residents and members of Monroe's business community. Since August, the group has worked to establish its articles of incorporation and is officially a pending 501(C)3 nonprofit. DMA members have created a mission and vision statement, a strategic plan, opened a bank account and secured donated office space at 108 E. Main Street, Suite 204.

DMA member Erin Angus-Snapka recruited her husband to create the DMA logo, which has been added to letterhead and bookmarkers. The DMA is seeking partnerships with local businesses to support its revitalization activities.-á

The group meets every Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. at the DMA office, and at 6:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of every month at the Monroe Boys & Girls Club. All are welcome to attend DMA meetings.-á

A public Facebook group has been created to promote DMA activities, and the group is actively strategizing ways to invite more retail establishments into the downtown area. Forth said members are hopeful the beautification efforts will spark some interest.

"We want people drawn into the center of town,GÇ¥ Forth said. "We want people that are driving down Highway 2 to maybe notice out of the corner of their eye all the lights, and want to come down and see what's happening.GÇ¥

The DMA looks forward to collaborations with the city of Monroe, the Monroe Arts Council and the Monroe Chamber of Commerce. Forth said she has met with chamber board president Mike Buse on more than one occasion, and he is supportive of the DMA's efforts.

"We want to work together with the chamber. We don't want to work in opposition in any way,GÇ¥ Forth said. "We're still separate entities, but Mike is very much in favor of doing this, so it's a good match.GÇ¥

To view the DMA's information packet, visit http://wa-monroe.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/3214?fileID=3534.