The Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation (DSDC) has a new Executive Director and a new direction towards the future. I recently sat down with Heidi Gilmond to discuss what brought her to Johnston County, what she brings to her new position with DSDC, and her vision for Downtown Smithfield.
A Little Bit About Heidi
“I was born and raised in Montana, raised my kids in Idaho, then moved back to Montana. So, I'm a northwest girl through and through. But living out there can be very isolating and challenging in ways. My husband and I wanted to go somewhere without snow and where things were happening. We were looking for an area full of opportunity for us, and our adult children.”
Heidi’s youngest daughter and partner decided they also wanted to make a change and started looking for a place to start a business. Heidi and her husband found JoCo while living in their 5th wheel RV, staying outside of Pine Level, and looking for a property as their kids looked for a place around Raleigh that would be a good fit for their business. Eventually they purchased a home in Goldsboro and not long after her daughter and partner found an opportunity to start a plumbing company in Smithfield.
“I spent 20 years in manufacturing for large corporations, international businesses, and I spent 10 years in hospitality. In the small town I’m from - Kalispell, Montana - tourism is the only industry there. I managed the convention center in the heart of downtown which gave me the opportunity to sit on the tourism business improvement district board, and I was also on the board of the Kalispell Downtown Association, where I was very active in developing our downtown business.”
Across her decades of experience Heidi says she learned a lot about herself, others, problem-solving, and about how businesses and the community have to work together, “I’m a crusader at heart. I love solving problems. I learned how economic development and the mechanism of community drives growth. My life has been about being a changemaker, about seeing things from a different perspective. I’m passionate about it. I want to use that here.”
She has spent time in recent years using that passion as a business consultant, including for both her kids’ businesses; making in-roads in the community and networking. Heidi was approached about the DSDC position earlier this year which led to many conversations about how her personality and approach might perfectly fit into what DSDC needs right now.
She officially started July 1st.
What is the DSDC and How Does it Work?
The DSDC is an economic development program. They work with the Town of Smithfield on a contract basis to administer the funds collected through a municipal service district tax (MSD) for the purpose of economic development and revitalization of downtown. Similar organizations and relationships like this are set-up in towns all over the U.S., in part thanks to the Main Street America Program; of which Smithfield is an affiliated Mainstreet Community.
The DSDC is a 501(c)3 managed by the Executive Director and a 15-member Board of Directors. In addition, the DSDC oversees four committees which each help the corporation to work towards its mission.
The first committee is Design and Appearance, the main purpose of which is to seek out opportunities and execute projects which would make the downtown more accessible, prettier and more inviting. The committee recently took what Heidi called a “walk-about” of the downtown area with the intent of taking an inventory of opportunities.
“I told them we were going to write down everything we see that could be fixed or cleaned, plus try to identify spaces that could benefit from any sort of beautification project. For example, we want to look for ways to partner with other organizations, like the Arts Council, so we considered where we could put public art now and in the future.”
The second committee is Promotions. This committee focuses on events to stimulate the downtown and its businesses, as well as marketing downtown to residents, visitors, and even future business owners to increase activation and awareness.
The third committee is Economic Vitality; this committee’s purpose is to find the ways to accomplish the organization's goals - approaching new businesses for downtown, fundraising, grant writing, historic preservation, etc.
Lastly, the Organization Committee helps in the recruitment and organization of volunteers and advocates within the community and from partner organizations to accomplish the objectives set out by the board and each committee.
A Way Forward: Three Things to Tackle in Year One
Though Heidi is only 3 months into her new position she’s already hit the ground running - more on that below. But, I asked her to walk me through, now that she has the lay of the land, what top three things she feels like DSDC needs to tackle in her first year in the position.
“This community needs some healing and I think that is the first thing that needs to happen no matter what we do moving forward. And that is going to come about through education, organization, and open communication. Bringing the community back together into a space where we are working together as a community and trusting each other.”
Heidi sees that the people of Smithfield, the citizens and business owners, are such good people overall and one or two things have created tension and distrust in the recent past. She believes, that to start the healing process people need to know and understand that they have someone to stand up for them, on behalf of them.
“I want them to know that I won’t stand for bullying and that I will take the hit for them. I think that is a good start. Already in the last couple of months I am feeling a release of tension.”
Heidi says that the next step is planning. Deciding in partnership with the town on how DSDC and the downtown district fits into their strategic plan. How can the organization compliment and funnel that vision? What is the identity of Smithfield?
“Can we ground our history (good and bad), our culture, and our future in a united identity that embraces who we are and envisions what we can be. Let’s find the middle ground between ‘let’s change everything’ and ‘we don’t want anything to change’. We can be responsible with the change so that it becomes something great. It’s also important to let people know that they absolutely can be involved in that change.”
Lastly, Heidi wants to reassess the Mainstreet Program; how downtown maintains and utilizes its accreditation status (something the town has held since the late 80s). The concept of the program is that the core of your community is your downtown. The Main Street America Program was historically meant to be a re-centering of downtowns as the heart of their communities, especially as post-war suburban sprawl drew residents and visitors outside of city and town centers.
“I want that to become the feel of Smithfield again; we are the county seat and we are an important piece of the pie. We need to find things that draw people in, to share what we have. It is important to me to create a downtown that is vibrant, colorful, and fun, that’s interesting and exciting to experience.”
Heidi sees part of her job description as getting people to believe in themselves; letting people have a say and talk it out to change perspectives and tackle projects together. In order to get anything done you have to get people to see the potential. You have to let people see the work in progress so they can appreciate the finished product.
“My goal is to evangelize for Downtown Smithfield locally and regionally while being super communicative to residents and business owners to create a unified understanding of ‘here is what we do’ and ‘here is why we do it’ and ‘here is why it is important’.”
What’s New and What’s Next
Heidi gave me a rundown of everything the DSDC is currently working on, including a huge new mural for Downtown thanks to a grant from the Arts Council. It is off 4th Street on the side of the Wellons building and is being completed by artist Max Dowdle.
Visitors and residents can look ahead to three events happening between now and the end of the year. An Oktoberfest on the 12th of October with fun games and live music, plus themed food and beer. Then, November 1st will be the much-anticipated, annual downtown Wine Walk. Christmas will look a little different this year but with even more to experience. On Friday, November 29th a 2-day event will kick off promoting shop small and local vendors; starting Noon to 7PM there will be local shopping and a vendor fair, with a tree lighting that evening. There will also be a festival of trees in Town Park which will kick off that weekend and be available to view all season long. The next day, Saturday the 30th the local vendors will be back for more shopping opportunities Downtown with holiday activities like local performances, carriage rides, and Santa’s workshop.
Heidi said that DSDC is already looking at partnering with the Arts Council again for another grassroots grant to hold a multicultural fair in Downtown around February or March of 2025, “We want people to see, taste, and understand all the cultures we have here in Smithfield.”
Ham & Yam, Smithfield’s biggest festival, is turning 39 in 2025. They are considering some revamping of this staple festival - adding a 5k, maybe an art and food exhibition plus carnival games, bringing back the BBQ competition, booking a national music act, and introducing the idea of a Ham & Yam Queen and Court in partnership with the Ava Gardner Museum. All possibilities!
“We want to use this event to really, really showcase Smithfield. It should capture the spirit of our community.”
Lastly Heidi is determined to see the “library corner project” actually come to fruition; something the community and other organizations have worked towards in the past with no resolution. Clayton Narron is currently redesigning the space beside the library running from the back to the front of the building along Third Street. It will effectively be a pocket park - fenced-in for safety with art, green space, and more.
It’s a lot to tackle, but Heidi is excited and determined, “My vision is for Smithfield to be THE place people think about when they think about Johnston County. I think we are on the cusp of some really good things happening here.”
