Main Street event to raise money for alleyway redesign

Newton Main Street will be working to bring the community fresh food during the Farm to Table dinner event next week while raising money to transform a local pedestrian alleyway into an event space.

The Farm to Table dinner is centered around locally sourced ingredients and will include two entreés, pork and chicken, two sides, a cheese plate and baked bread. The dinner is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 16 in the DMACC Courtyard.

Main Street Program Coordinator Graham Sullivan said the fresh food will be catered by Hy-Vee, and there will also be a cash bar featuring Iowa beers and wines.

Silent auction items will also be available for purchase, such as, tables and chairs, artwork, lights and more, which are all planned to be a part of the alleyway between Uncle Nancy’s and Aleya.

Donors will then have their names put on a plaque to be hung in the alleyway, Sullivan said.

Donors don’t need to attend the dinner to be a part of the auction, but all ticket sale proceeds will go to the alleyway.

“JJ Express will be the entertainment for the night,” Sullivan said. “It’s expected to be a pretty low-key but fun night.”

Sullivan said Newton Main Street has been to several communities that have created pedestrian alleyways into event spaces and they thought the idea would fit perfectly in Newton.

“We want people to hang out and enjoy the downtown,” Sullivan said. “Our goal for this project is to create a place the community can use as a gathering space for small events and outdoor eating.”

A well-known muralist in downtown Des Moines put together a concept for a mural, which will go on the side of the Uncle Nancy’s building.

“We are working with Bolton and Menk to draw design concepts to change the drainage and concrete in the alleyway so that its more conducive to having tables and chairs placed in it,” Sullivan said. “We are wanting to add tables, chairs, art work, lighting and plantings to the transformed space.”

Sullivan said the city engineers will have a layout of the proposed space at the event.

“Residents should support this because it’s the only pedestrian alleyway on the square and is a very visible and a well-traveled area,” Sullivan said. “It would give people a place to eat their lunch, sit and read or just enjoy downtown a little bit longer.”

Contact Kayla Langmaid at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or klangmaid@newtondailynews.com