SHARON, Pa. – Organizers of a new event designed to bring people downtown say they hope to expand it beyond the current site.
The inaugural River Market: A Sharon Riverfront Social will take place the last Friday of each month through October, beginning this week, along the riverfront at the original Quaker Steak & Lube downtown. The event, which will run from 5-9 p.m., is being presented by Allie’s Sweet Tooth, Quaker Steak & Lube and Warehouse Sales, with support by Small Town Storyteller Communications Co. and Sharon Community Development Corp.
Allie Adams, owner of Allie’s Sweet Tooth, conceived of the event following the announcement last fall that WaterFire Sharon, the arts and music festival first held in 2013, would not return this year. The event attracted a lot of people who supported the downtown businesses and vendors.
Unable to sleep one night, Adams began creating logos and presented them at one of the monthly business roundtables hosted by SCDC and subsequently reached out to Brenda Steines, general manager of Quaker Steak; Sherris Moreira, owner of Small Town Storyteller; and Mike Lisac, owner of Warehouse Sales.
“We just wanted something laid back that people could stroll through, enjoy a drink or food from Quaker Steak, shop different types of vendors, sit around a fire pit if they want to – just be able to shop and mingle and hang out in downtown Sharon,” she said.
“For someone like myself, who is so intimately involved in the economic development and the revitalization of downtown, this is the kind of thing that we get excited about,” said Evan Gruver, Main Street manager for SCDC. River Market is bringing together talented, passionate people from various organizations with different goals for their businesses, all of whom are saying they believe in downtown Sharon and how special it is.
“They’re taking their time, talent and treasure to create something that we’re going to be proud of, that we’re excited about and that’s really going to bring the community together, and people from outside the community, just to see what’s happening down here as we continue to grow and redevelop,” he continued.
The intent is to start small, Lisac said. “If you get more and more vendors and more people involved, then you can grow it instead of trying to be huge at first. And then if you don’t get a large turnout, it becomes a problem,” he remarked.
“We feel like it’s a good start,” Moreira said.
“We eventually would like to see it develop into something that we can bring downtown, close a side street and have it grow,” Adams added. “We just kind of wanted to build something that could potentially become something bigger.”
The River Markets will feature live music, artisan and pop-up vendors, fire pits overlooking the Shenango River and local food. In addition, each event will focus on a different area nonprofit organization, with a dine-to-donate fundraiser at Quaker Steak and a collection drive for items needed by the featured organization.
Quaker Steak, which has been in business for 52 years, has held such dine-to-donate events in the past.
“I thought it would be a good way to give back to the nonprofits that are involved with the market,” Steines said. “It’s important to be involved in the community.”
The beneficiary of the first River Market will be Shenango Valley Animal Shelter in Hermitage. In addition to contributing to the shelter through the Quaker Steak fundraiser, people attending the event are invited to donate items ranging from dog and cat food and toys to multipurpose cleaners, bleach and latex gloves.
The shelter is in the final stage of fundraising for a new building that is under construction and targeted to be open in September, according to John Moroco, Hermitage city commissioner and a member of the shelter’s board of directors. Planning for the no-kill shelter’s new building was underway before 2020, then the Covid-19 pandemic “put the brakes on,” he said.
Once completed, the new shelter will have 46 dog kennels and be able to accommodate up to 80 cats, Moroco said. That compares with 22 dog kennels and an approximately 35-cat capacity at the existing shelter.
“The building that we’re in currently is close to 50 years old. When it was built, it was expected to have a lifespan of at most 30 years,” Moroco said. “It’s very small, and the needs have changed dramatically.”
When the project resumed, costs were “significantly higher” than before the pause, he continued. The final cost is expected to exceed $2 million when the new building is complete, and the shelter is looking to raise the last funds needed, approximately $200,000.
“The community has been very supportive,” he said.
One of the goals of the event is to drive traffic for downtown Sharon’s business community, the event planners acknowledged.
Steines said WaterFire increased business at Quaker Steak, especially in the early years when it was one of the few dining options open. Over the years, more food vendors participated in the event.
Allie’s Sweet Tooth was “dead center” of the celebration, so the shop was always very busy. “It was a nice boost,” Adams said.
Warehouse Sales didn’t see increased traffic during WaterFire “because we’re just a little bit off the beaten path,” but businesses patronized the hardware store in advance to get things ready and after for any needed repairs, Lisac said.
“It was always good for the town, which then is good for us,” he added.
River Markets also are scheduled for July 31, Aug. 28, Sept. 25 and Oct. 30. Anyone interested in the events is invited to email originalqsl@gmail.com.
Pictured at top: From left are John Moroco; Lily, a dog from Shenango Valley Animal Shelter; Allie Adams; Mike Lisa; Evan Gruver; Aaron Guzzo and Brenda Steines.