.. L!!!....!!........!..............................!..........................R #age # #pprox#mare#y #,uuu worcs AN AMERICAN ENTREPRENEUR TERRY GROVE - DOWN-TOWN BOOSTER #'.. ... Written by June Grayson '''' # Photographs by Richard Grayson ''#.' How do you revitalize Main Street, U.S.A.? If you need a script, Terry Grove cou!d write it. Grove . .''##' is a St. Charl#s, Illinois, businessman and real estate developer £  §  '#§  whï haó evolveä hió owî promotionaì ideaó eveî aó  hå  haó  boughô #.#.##'# .#.and sold down-town properties. At first, these ideas might seem .'.#' ove#blown, even manic, but they work. Other communities already find them worth copying. .' ' It is no secret that the automobile and the shopping .''' . mall have changed the way Americans shop, perhaps forever. Some business districts even die. That did not happen in St. Charles. "You have to provide new reasons for people to come into '#'..' the down-town area,"according to Grove. "The residents do not #'''..' comå  becauså  theù arå drivinç tï thå malló tï shop®  Yoõ havå  tï          dra÷ tourists. You do that by creating an image of the down-town #'..#', Š district as a place to go to have fun." !# '', ' .PA Š .. L!!!!!!..!.!.!.....!.!.........................................................R .. :;"' ,# .(!:.#.##:.. #..# . ::'. '''. . There are a lot of ways to have fun in down-town St. "'' . Charles. Some of those ways are the ideas of Terry Grove. Board the bright-red, British, double-decker bus at any .#'.# of the city motels to make the rounds of the sightseeing areas. .Stop at "Century Corners" which anchors the east end of down-town -#''' ._ #.####. with it's turn-of-the-century restored shops and homes andaaPPenn- sylvaniá Dutcè restaurant®  Hoð oî thå buó agaiî foò thå wesô enä '#.®  ##### #of down-town Main Street to enjoy historic "Old St. Charles" - ##''' ..' ''''..# #eight blocks of landmarks housing 35 craft and specialty stores ##.''' # #! and 100 antique dea!ers. Eat at the Old Church Inn built of stone '' ' ##.####§  iî  1851®  Attenä thå seasonaì festivitieó sucè  aó  thå  Mid-Americá i.#####. .' canoe race with over a thousand participants, a Scarecrow Contest on the village square, and the Christmas Tree Decorating Contest i ### . '''' . ##...##in the exhibition hall. #'#''''''#.i# Grove did not plan to be an idea man for St. Charles but alw#ys wanted to be a successful business man. "I started #.. .#''' ###.###£ £ caddyinç aô thå St® Charleó Countrù Cluâ wheî É #aó 1² yearó old® #® .#... I was too small to carry the golf bags so I had to use a cart. . #i. You can imagine what I looked like then, since I am not very big #§  ''now.¢ Grovå ió 6´ incheó talì anä weigh£ 13µ pounds®  "Thå  success ###########fuì peoplå É meô therå becamå mù rolå modeló anä friends®  I'vå beeî £ ''''#' ###.#'.##financially independent ever since." Hå  decideä  thaô thå studù oæ financå anä la÷ woulä  providå          thå besô foundatioî foò lateò businesó success®  "É workeä threå  jobó          tï put myself through law schoo|, When real estate boomed in ...#. .#. #the 1970s and I saw other people I respected investing in real '#''' Š.'.#.#_##'estate, I did too." ### ''... . ##i.i .PA Š .. L!!!.!!!....!....!....!................................!......................R i.;.#" Grovå  boughô  hió  firsô  locaì four-flaô  wheî  hå  waó  28¬       'his#father had to co-sign the mortgage, and he and his new bride .i moveä  intï  onå  oæ thå flats¬  workinç aô theiò  full-timå  jobó  dur ##.###'#' #ing the day and restoring the other three flats on evenings and #weekends."We bought two other apartment buildings to fix up, sel!ing them as soon as the capita! gains period was up and always #'' . making a profit." Their first commercial property was a deserted and de- terioratinç  littlå  churcè  anä parsonagå adjoininç  thå  businesó             district. "My wife, Laurie, is the creative one and she saw the possibi!ities that no one e!se had seen." The parsonage became their first antique store and the church a magnificent restaurant ..#i'' . ' . 'with real stained-glass windows, the origina! church pews for #'#' '### seating, and a white-washed interior overflowing with lush hanging plants. Aó  morå retaiì storeó deserteä down-towî foò outlyinç  malls¬        morå buildingó werå foò sale®  Grovå next®  turneä aî emptù  automobilå        showroom into "The Market" with 28 specialty shops under .' ' one roof. He instituted the concept of shared clerking with one central ca##ier so that no shop owner has to work more than two ' '. days a week even though the stores are open all seven days. Hå haó sincå converteä threå otheò storeó intï "Antiquå I¬ II¬        anä  III"¬  usinç  thå  samå concepô oæ shareä clerkinç anä  makinç  St®        Char!es the antique capital of the midwest United .... States. ''. , i. His latest acquisition, a huge building adjoining the Š ''''''   .PA Š .. L!!.!..!!!.!!.....!...........................!......!.........!!..........!..................R ..#.. - . . Fox River, serves as a meeting and convention ha!!. Grove expects /### thå firsô annua¡  Christmaó Treå Decoratinç Contesô anä Displaù tï ###£ ######bå  helä during the coming ho!iday season will bring thousands of ''##.. . #....#########new visitors to St. Charles shops and restaurants. Grove doesn't claim his ideas are original. "Why not .##########copy something that is already successful? My forte is to take an #####.# # idea and run with it." Grove shares his script for down-town renewal as follows: .i... 1) create a new identity for the area, something that is fun and .##'# attracts outsiders, 2) choose a catchy name and form an organization #####. # to#promote it, 3) give a press dinner and send out press releases introduce it, 4) start -| . Bureau that can qualify for #!ocaì  supporô  anä governmenô grantó anä  arrangå  publicity¬  programs¬  ###.##.#anä  tours¬ 5) plan recurring seasonal festivals, 6) have a year ##..''##®  arounä  meetinç  anä  conventioî  hall¬  anä  7© introducå  somethinç  ne÷  ''§  #£  and.co!orfuì periodica!ly, i.e. - the Red Bus. '' ''. ''. Grove operates on the "win-win" principle. "The pie does not have to stay the same size, so that if my piece gets big''' ger yours gets smaller. We can make a bigger pie so that we all get a bigger piece." Grove has done more than secure his family's financial # future. "I've had fun all the way." ############### .PA Š