Local business and property owners form Magnolia Downtown Association

Photo by Photo Shawn Arrajj

Neighborhood advocates and business owners were among the community groups that participated in listening sessions May 9.

A grassroots effort to make improvements in downtown Magnolia is being organized by local business and property owners in the area. The Magnolia Downtown Association is not meant to be a formal organization, but rather a way for people interested in enhancing downtown Magnolia to find ways to get involved and start making things happen, said Frank Parker III, who has played a key role in getting things off the ground.

"It's something property owners and business folks have been talking about for some time," said Parker, who chairs Magnolia's Planning Commission and also runs his own business, Caliche Limited, on Brantley Lane. "The next step is finding out how much interest there is in the community in helping the city develop this area."

While the group is still in the early stages of being organized, Parker said it has already identified a few potential projects to take on. Broader goals include solving the limited parking issues around The Stroll and drawing more entertainment venues and events to the area. At this point in the process, Parker said the main thing is reaching out to the public to get more people involved.

"It's a volunteer organization, so right now we're just trying to get people together and get a couple of focused ideas on the table that we can work on," he said. "Anyone who has ideas for the downtown area or who wants to help in any way they can is invited to take part."

Most of the people involved in the early stages work around the Magnolia Stroll—the United Methodist Church, Montgomery County Grille, Community Cleaners and Chicken Express, among others—but the association is open to everyone, Parker said.

Meetings will be held on the third Tuesday of each month at the Magnolia Community Building, 422 Melton St., Magnolia. The next meeting will be Feb. 19.