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Downtown Dade City gets a new champion

Amy Ellis is the next director of the nonprofit that promotes downtown businesses and events.

By MOLLY MOORHEAD
Published August 26, 2005

DADE CITY - When Amy Ellis first set foot downtown in 1995, it was for a music gathering at a now-defunct restaurant.

"When I got there I was like "Wow, this is really cool . . . quaint, charming, all the words people use," Ellis, 35, said Thursday.

Three years later, she moved to Dade City and settled within walking distance of coffee shops, lunch delis and the old Crescent Theatre. Now, she's poised to head the nonprofit group that promotes downtown and all its events, attractions and businesses.

Ellis, a former St. Petersburg Times reporter, is the new director of Downtown Dade City Main Street. She starts work Thursday.

"I've always loved downtown, and when this position came available I thought how fun would that be to be a part of things that go on down there," she said. "Dade City has been really successful at bringing people. It seems like there's something going on every weekend."

Ellis replaces Sally Burns, a Dade City native and former project manager for Progress Energy, who is resigning after 16 months on the job for personal and health reasons. Before her, Ginny Solberg held the post for three years.

During her brief tenure, Burns revived a building improvement grant program and added a springtime festival to Main Street's list of yearly events.

Main Street formed in 1987, setting about making Dade City a tourist destination. It claims credit in such projects as downtown public restrooms and restoration of the historic courthouse, the city's aesthetic anchor. It puts on numerous events such as the fall Reverse Raffle, Christmas Stroll and SpringFest.

The organization, which counts more than 225 members, runs on a $72,000 annual budget, underwritten by fundraising, memberships and a $15,000 contribution from the city.

Ellis said she plans to first meet the downtown merchants, then people in the greater community, to solicit ideas. She hopes to implement some new events, particularly in the evenings.

"I really think Dade City could benefit from maybe some more cultural events - some music downtown would be awesome, maybe experiment with some more nighttime things (and) get people to consider Dade City as an evening place," she said.

Ellis was born in Boston and grew up in Miami. After graduating from the University of Miami, she worked at small newspapers before joining the Times, where she had been an intern. She first worked in the Citrus County bureau before joining the Pasco staff to cover crime in west Pasco. She later wrote about education and social services in central Pasco.

Since leaving the paper in 2000, she has freelanced and worked for nonprofit agencies.

"I really think that (newspaper) experience prepared me for this kind of thing," she said. "When you're a reporter you get to know everybody, and everybody gets to know you."

Nancy Johnson, Main Street president, said a search committee of Main Street board members and past presidents narrowed a pool of 12 applicants to six and then three. She said Ellis' background pushed her to the top of the list.

"We really felt that Amy, her educational background, her work experience and her overall enthusiasm as well as her involvement in the community, the committee just felt that she was a fit for Main Street," Johnson said.

They also liked her home address.

"We just decided that we think living in the area is a plus," Johnson said. "She had already shown a commitment to Dade City."

Molly Moorhead covers news about Dade City. She can be reached at 352 521-6521 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6521. Her e-mail address is moorhead@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 26, 2005, 01:36:21]