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ALLENTOWN: Spring season offers renewal for Old Mill

Several stores began opening last fall and winter, and along with the pending opening of the Coltello Ristorante Italiano, those involved with the Mill continue to work to maintaining its status as the

by James McEvoy, Managing Editor
ALLENTOWN — The community gathered outside the Old Mill on March 15 for a celebration as warmer temperatures heralded both the coming renewal of spring, and, storeowners hope, that of the historic crown jewel of downtown Allentown.
   Several stores began opening last fall and winter, and along with the pending opening of the Coltello Ristorante Italiano, those involved with the Mill continue to work to maintaining its status as the centerpiece of the borough’s historic downtown.
   Corky Danch, owner of the Old Mill, says hopes still abound for the historic building despite a host of challenges in recent years including Monmouth County’s seizure of the property through a temporary eminent domain to complete a bridge and dam project and two massive hurricanes.
   In August 2011, Hurricane Sandy, by then downgraded to a tropical storm, caused extensive flooding in the borough. Specifically, torrential downpours caused water from the millpond to wash over the new South Main Street bridge and flood shops behind the mill and several homes across the street.
   ”If it lives up to our vision, if we can succeed in the plans and the hopes that we have, it will be great,” Mr. Danch said. “The Mill will not only be brimming over so will Allentown.”
   Aside from Coltello’s, which Mr. Danch said he hopes will open later this year, there are three shops in the second floor, additional businesses in the annex and a currently vacant third floor ready for occupancy.
   Currently occupying the second floor is Gypsies and the Green Lace Lion, both of which opened in the fall. The Rustique House followed them shortly thereafter in December.
   Mr. Danch praised all the businesses for their contributions to the Old Mill.
   ”These are great little shops and they provide the interest to the people who visit in Allentown,” he said. “They’re giving people a reason to come to our town, and it’s working.
   ”They’re dedicated and they’re trying as hard as they can,” he added.
   Karen Dahms, of the Allentown Trading Company, located behind the Old Mill, said the community gathering was a way to remind residents the Mill is still standing, despite setbacks.
   ”It’s a little bit of rebirth we’re trying to make happen down here, and the community’s been really good about coming out and support us,” Ms. Dahms said.
   The event included live music, food and family fun.
   Elise Hartmann and her mother-in-law Mary Jo Hartmann, opened Gypsies in October just in time for the borough’s fall festival.
   The boutique offers an eclectic array of products, some locally produced, that mostly surrounds the theme offered by Elise’s artwork, which is something that she has enjoyed for many years.
   Gypsies offers a variety of products including toys, jewelry and soaps, all offered in a “bohemian” setting. Many of the products offered are locally made.
   They also offer art workshops and a knitting club twice a month.
   While they have seen some slowdown in the immediate aftermath of the holidays, the warm reception from the borough has contrasted against the unseasonably cold winter.
   ”We had a fantastic holiday season,” Elise said. “Everybody’s very excited that the building’s open again.
   ”We can feel the change coming as people start coming out of their houses,” she added.
   Mary Jo also offers her service as a seamstress.
   Around the time Gypsies arrived in the Mill, so did Green Lace Lion, which features a variety of vintage and handmade items and re-purposed artwork by Ellen Sortore, owner and artist.
   Like the Hartmann’s Ms. Sortore has enjoyed her time in the Mill to date.
   ”(The response) has been really encouraging. Christmas was a big push,” she said. “Every weekend it gets a little more busy with the weather getting nicer.”
   She noted oftentimes people are just interested in seeing the Mill and appreciating its history, only to find out there’s plenty more to pique their interest inside.
   As it relates to her art, Ms. Sortore’s focus is offering a different perspective, seeing things “in a new light.”
   She said there is also a certain camaraderie among the three businesses in the Mill, and that they are all eager to help each other out.
   She first learned about the Mill through a friend who’s involved in a collaboration of art featured in the Mill’s annex.
   After receiving a tour of the facility from Mr. Danch, she began imaging having her own space, something she hoped would come in 2012, but due to setbacks experienced at the Mill, she had to hold off a year.
   ”It was worth the wait,” she said.
   In addition to her own artwork, she also offers workshops and art classes for children.
   Two months after Gypsies and Green Lace Lion debuted, Garth Streete opened The Rustique House, where he offers re-purposed furniture.
   Among his current offerings is an old ladder he transformed into a shelf or a head rake he attached to the bottom a wooden tool box, a unique way to craft a wine rack, to be sure.
   Mr. Streete, a native of Jamaica, said he had experience with carpentry on a smaller scale, but was provided a new outlet for his creativity after being inspired by HGTV.
   ”It was so interesting to see what they would do,” he said of the channel’s programming.
   The creativity initiated by the various programs is now sustained by his fellow Mill occupants, he said.
   ”Creativity flows in this building,” he said. “When you walk in here and Ellen is over there creating something new. It allows you to grow creatively.”
   He has appreciated the welcome he has received in the borough and isn’t shy about how he feels for the community.
   ”I fell in love in Allentown,” he said, adding he and his wife hopes to relocate to the borough. “Allentown has such a rich vibe, I just wished more people could see it.
   ”It’s not about the dollars, it’s about the kind of people that you get,” he added. “That’s what it’s all about.”
   For more information on the shops in the Mill, visit www.oldmillgypsies.com, facebook.com/Rustique House and www.greenlacelion.com.