Editorial

Downtown welcomes new neighbor

Saturday, August 28, 2021

Welcome to the neighborhood Poplar Bluff schools!

We know it’s a little early. You won’t be able to move in until after renovations are complete at 200 S. Main St.

But we’re pleased to see this historic location in the hands of a new caretaker.

The former Bank of Poplar Bluff building has been an integral part of Downtown for more than a century.

It was “The Old Reliable,” when the white Bedford stone building opened in 1915 and was described later as “one of the chief factors contributing to Poplar Bluff’s continual growth for more than a half-century.”

With the relocation of Poplar Bluff School District’s administrative offices, the building is poised to have that impact again.

Dr. Scott Dill, superintendent, said the 16,000-square-foot building will be home to about 30-40 employees, with many visitors during the day.

“I think there’s so much potential here, and I really hope the gravity and the resources of the school district (being) present plants a flag that says downtown isn’t going anywhere,” Dill said after Wednesday’s closure on the property.

The building has been vacant since US Bank moved out, but it is one of many Downtown buildings to get a new owner in recent months.

It means more than ever that good things are on the horizon for downtown.

And while we’re welcoming our new neighbors, we want to thank those like Haffy’s, Foxtrot Coffee, Bronze Owl Brewing, the Hays family, McNeely Shoe Repair, Southern Care and Comfort In Home, Myrtle’s Place, Jim Faith Office Supplies, Productive Staffing, Bell Insurance, Cutting Edge Barber Shop, Carl Miller Law office, Little, Schellhammer, Richardson & Knowlan Law offices, Janet K. Brown law office, and everyone else who has stayed in the heart of the city and reinvested in the history of Poplar Bluff.

“I can’t wait to see what you guys do to the building and how many more people will be downtown because of the new restaurants we have coming in and more bodies throughout the day, which means more tax revenue from people eating and shopping,” Downtown Poplar Bluff Inc. Director Morgan McIntosh told the district after the purchase was finalized.