GETTING A FACELIFT — The People’s National Bank building, located at 10 W. Main St., is slated for inside and outside renovations, including the addition of an elevator. The renovations were made possible through a $4.572 million award from the Appalachian Community Grant Program. -- Christopher Dacanay

ADENA — It’s a dream dating back more than two decades, and it’s about to become a reality.

About two years ago, officials with the Village of Adena dusted off a roughly 20-year-old downtown redevelopment plan — a plan that, with some updates, they submitted to the Ohio Department of Development’s highly-competitive Appalachian Community Grant Program.

Offering $500 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to projects in 32 Appalachian Ohio counties, the program awarded Adena $4.572 million in May, during its last round of funding. Those funds will finance a streetscape and building renovation project in Adena’s downtown, progress on which has been moving “pretty quickly” since the award, according to Adena Village Council member R.J. Konkoleski.

The redevelopment plan that served as this project’s foundation came to be around the year 2000, during Konkoleski’s first years on council — he departed for a time but returned about six years ago.

A planning grant made the preliminary work possible, Konkoleski recalled, but financial concerns shelved the project.

BIG PLANS — Adena Mayor Brenda Roski and Village Council member R.J. Konkoleski looked over the blueprints for the renovations to be made to the People’s National Bank building. -- Christopher Dacanay

“Nothing had ever lined up, but this (Appalachian grant) sure did,” Konkoleski remarked Jan. 27.

“We really fit what the state was looking for this time,” he said. “They’ve said this wasn’t for the three C’s — Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. They wanted this to go into the small towns, something that would transform a community. This program was a good match for us. I was shocked that we were awarded the grant, but I’m not surprised, because our project was a really good project for this.”

Adena Mayor Brenda Roski said that Konkoleski ensured grant parameters were met, and the entire project is possible because of a supportive village council.

She recalled being moved to tears in Geneva May 9, when John Carey, director of the Governor’s Office of Appalachia, told her that Adena’s project had been fully funded.

The project itself looks to renovate the historic People’s National Bank building at 10 W. Main St., transforming it into a business hub and community center.

It will see work done along West and East Main streets, South Bridge Street and North Mill Street, intended to make the thoroughfares more inviting and restore a “turn-of-the-century” feeling, Konkoleski said.

When the Appalachian grant opportunity presented itself, the village brought in consultants to identify appropriate projects, Konkoleski said. Consultants immediately recommended renovating the bank building, which at the time was mere weeks away from being demolished.

Saving the building required conversations with owners Randy and Many Borkoski, for whom the change of plans posed a risk.

“They had everything lined up to have this building torn down, and if this didn’t come through, they’d be starting this process all over,” Konkoleski said. “Fortunately, that’s not where we are today, so everything worked out. They really had to believe in what we were doing to take that risk, so we certainly appreciate that.”

Renovating the building is something the Borkoskis “really wanted to see,” Konkoleski added. Work will be done in the absence of Randy Borkoski — a village council member, funeral director and lifelong Adena resident — who died Dec. 17.

The Borkoskis were “very generous in giving us that building,” Roski said, crediting the gift for the grant applications success.

Plans call for the bank building to undergo restoration inside and outside.

The top floor will become a meeting room, which will serve the village and general public, including local club meetings.

A new elevator will connect each floor, making the entire building handicap-accessible.

Konkoleski said that the village will issue a formal request for proposal, seeking businesses that are interested in leasing space.

Prospects include a retail establishment and restaurant with outdoor, sidewalk seating.

An old People’s National Bank sign will be incorporated into the finalized structure.

The building is currently held by the nonprofit Adena Historical Society, which will maintain ownership after renovations conclude.

Konkoleski said that having a nonprofit partner boosted Adena’s grant application, relieves the village of having to moderate leases and maintenance and opens the building up for future grant opportunities.

As for the project’s street portion, the village plans to replace sidewalks, curbs and gutters, as well as plant rows of street trees and install new light poles with an historic look — complete with outlets for Christmas lights or possible future street festivals.

Sporadic work will be done on the historic streets themselves, limited to replacing bricks where previous work removed them.

Konkoleski said the village is considering design specifics, including the type of trees to plant, and fleshing out plumbing, mechanical and electrical aspects.

Adena’s project entered the bidding stage for architectural services following the grant award, Konkoleski said.

Following that process — which saw the village engage with Zanesville-based APG Architects — the village ironed out design details and put the project out to bid again, ultimately contracting with Grae-Con Construction Inc. of Steubenville.

Comparing Grae-Con’s cost estimate with the architect’s, the numbers were “shockingly right on target,” Konkoleski said.

Parties have a meeting every two weeks, figuring out additional steps that need resolved, including using maps to avoid water and sewer lines, selecting the right type of street tree and obtaining necessary permits with the Army Corps of Engineers for working near Short Creek.

Plans call for construction to begin May 26, Konkoleski said. Work is anticipated to last between 18 and 24 months and must be complete by 2026, according to ARPA guidelines.

Building renovations will account for roughly half of the grant funds, Konkoleski said.

How much of the streetscape work the village can get done is dependent on remaining funding.

Konkoleski added that the cost of materials will factor into the final price, and additional funding sources may be used if the grant funds don’t reach all the way.

“We could’ve started the building earlier, but that would actually increase costs because it would be a longer overall construction period,” Konkoleski said. “So, we’ve elected to run the building and the street at the same time to make the money go further because we want to do as much work as we can do with the funds we’ve been allotted.”

Konkoleski and Roski project that this project will dovetail into future improvement for Adena — a community that’s seen an influx of younger families due to oil and gas developments.

Adena’s small-town atmosphere is a draw for those individuals, Konkoleski said, and restoring that feeling after the last 30 years’ worth of decline is a priority.

Once propped up by the coal mining industry, Adena has lost its abundant amenities like grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations.

Bringing a grocery store back to the area is a major goal, Roski said, noting that the area is considered to be a “food desert.”

Having a grocery store in town would be a benefit for individuals who don’t want to or can’t drive to get groceries, particularly the elderly, Konkoleski said.

He hopes Adena’s street revitalization work will help generate momentum that will lead to a grocery store investment in town.

Adena has “no shortage of projects,” Konkoleski said.

Future plans include making further improvements to the streetscape, pursuing state funding programs benefiting parks and recreation and replacing water lines.

Although it’s not perfect, Roski and Konkoleski said, the village is finally financially situated to begin these types of undertakings, following longstanding fiscal turmoil.

Behind the village’s process is a “good team and good council,” Roski said, acknowledging the village’s clerk and her predecessor, as well as the current secretary.

Konkoleski said support has poured in from the Ohio Mid-Eastern Governments Association, which submitted the Appalachian grant program application that included Adena’s project, among others. The Jefferson County Port Authority — another major supporter — put forward Adena’s project for the application.

Roski, a former postmaster who’s in her second term as mayor, added that the Brooke-Hancock-Jefferson Metropolitan Planning Commission has offered support, having previously aided the village with obtaining a $1 million grant to pave its main road to U.S. Route 250.

Reflecting on the overall revitalization of Adena, Konkoleski said, “There are people moving here. I think the idea of a small town in Main Street America is becoming more popular with some younger people, young families. They want to be able to take their kid to the park, maybe go hunting in the hills around the area.

“I think all that has positioned us at a point where, No. 1, we don’t want to lose any businesses that we have and, No. 2, there’s now an opportunity to get back some things that we used to have or maybe even find some things that we’ve never had before that might do well here. We’re trying to build the infrastructure and create the environment that gets someone to say, ‘Hey, I want to open my flower shop. Why not in Adena?'”

(Dacanay can be contacted at cdacanay@heraldstaronline.com.)