MADISON, Ind. (WDRB) -- Several new businesses are opening their doors in Madison, including four that opened this September in the historic downtown district.
"The four businesses this month were added to about 15 last year alone," Madison Mayor Bob Courtney said.
Lynn Pennington, who's lived in Jefferson County, Indiana, his entire life, said the time is finally right to become a first-time business owner in his community.
Pennington's shop — Pennilane Antiques — is filled with nostalgia.
"We've bought and sold antiques for the last eight or nine years and we've done antique malls," Pennington said. "And we just decided, 'Hey, let's bite the bullet and buy a building, redo it and go from there."
Signs, boxes, glass pieces and candy line the building on Main Street that Pennington said sat vacant for more than two decades before he moved in.
"This was two years in the making," he said. "We bought the building — it had been vacant for 26 years — and we brought the whole building back to life."
Just down the street, another new business — The Pearl Plate — is offering new options for kitchen necessities and keeping dollars in Madison.
"I've always wanted to have a business downtown Madison. I'm from Madison," said Tyler Mingione, the owner of The Pearl Plate. "I named The Pearl Plate after my grandmother. Her birthstone is with pearl, so that adds some extra meaning to it, too."
Courtney said he believes local businesses will attract tourists and people who want to live in Madison.
"We're literally leveraging up hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment that's benefitting Madison’s economy, making our quality of life better and, essentially, making this the regional destination that we always knew it was," he said.
Next to Pennilane Antiques is a new store called The Grime Scene. It's bringing natural cleaning supplies, towels and home goods to downtown Madison. And also on Main Street, Alison Waverly Designs markets new, vintage and blended jewelry to local shoppers.
This September is just a small piece of Madison's recent growth. It's not just the downtown that's growing. Madison's Hilltop area is also bringing in a shopping center with national retailers like Hobby Lobby and T.J. Maxx, with others to be announced soon.
Courtney called Madison a regional destination with even more growth on the way.
"We've worked really hard the last three years to make sure we've put ourselves in this position to attract investment, and that is the key to all of our growth here," Courtney said. "It's very exciting. We get to showcase all the best of Madison."
Pennington said business has been wonderful so far, and there's no place he's rather set up shop.
"Everything about Madison is just family," he said. "Even the small businesses down here, everybody works together. Even if it’s your competitor, we’re all still working together."
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