Though it took 20 years and a lot of planning, the city of Lebanon recently broke ground on a walking trail connecting the train station to the historic mill and leading into the downtown area. This beautiful new path will allow visitors to enjoy these historic landmarks and local businesses on foot, hopefully creating a more cohesive shopping experience. Robyn Willis, the executive director of Historic Lebanon Main Street, says this kind of win makes all the effort worth it.
“That’s been really important to me, to come alongside the Mill and people who own historic buildings like that and try to encourage them and connect them,” she said.
Historic Lebanon is a nonprofit organization and an accredited member of Main Street America, a national organization with 1,100 Main Streets across the country, 47 of them in Tennessee. Historic Lebanon serves as a district of about 13 blocks and 200 businesses around Lebanon’s downtown square. Willis is the only paid staff member, supported by an 11-person board of directors, committee members, and a pool of community volunteers.
Born and raised in Hendersonville, Tennessee, Willis attended Tennessee Technological University before working for a decade at Procter & Gamble in Jackson and Nashville, Tennessee. When she and her husband, David, had their two children, Lincoln and Lily, Willis made a deliberate choice to step away from corporate life to help with her husband’s fledgling company, Ravenflight Web & Media.
The family moved to Wilson County in 2012, and Willis says it is the best of both worlds, being small but close to Nashville.
“It had a small town feel but a lot of great amenities,” she said. “My husband started his own business in web design, and I started helping him get that off the ground in Wilson County,” Willis said. “Ravenflight’s office is in the historic Mill. As part of the downtown business community, I became very involved with the downtown merchants.”
In 2018, Willis joined the Lebanon Wilson County Chamber of Commerce board as special events vice chair. Later, she became the Downtown Lebanon group facilitator, working alongside her predecessor at Historic Lebanon, Kim Parks, who led the organization for 11 years.
“I feel like moving from a career in chemical engineering into what I’m doing now with community development, economic vitality, and historic preservation, I’m still using the skills I learned in project management and leading team projects,” Willis said. “I feel like I can make an impact here where I live. In those other jobs, that was not as tangible.”
Historic Lebanon’s focus is on four main areas: organization, economic vitality, promotion, and design.
“So many people hear Historic Lebanon, and they think we’re just solely focused on buildings or history, but that is only one element of what we do,” Willis said.
“Organization” refers to funding, sustainability, and partnerships with the city, chamber, downtown merchants, and the tourism department. “Economic vitality” means connecting new businesses with available spaces and supporting those already there. “Promotion” is about marketing the historic downtown as a shopping, dining, and entertainment destination and inviting people to come, visit, and explore. The “design” aspect centers around enhancing visual quality, improving streetscapes, and preserving the unique historic and architectural character.
Historic Lebanon awarded 12 facade grants in the last year to help beautify historic buildings. The organization also funded new wayfinding kiosks featuring a current business directory on one side and an 1802 historic map of the square on the other. Five historic plaques were recently installed on significant downtown buildings.
The Mill itself is one of Willis’ favorite historic fixtures in Lebanon that has been transformed. It was formerly a wool and blanket factory but is now home to a brewery, cafe, ice cream shop, Pilates studio, and art studio, among other businesses. Willis hopes to generate even more interest from vendors and businesses.
“I would love it if we had no empty storefronts and The Mill could be a place that was 100% utilized with businesses,” she said.
Willis says she wants to see longtime merchants celebrate new milestones, more facade grants funded, and for Lebanon to become a destination that draws visitors from everywhere.
“I want it to continue to grow and be a place that families want to go and visit,” she said. “There are always things changing and improving. I encourage people to revisit the downtown area, even if they’re from here. Take a stroll, get a cup of coffee, go to lunch, go to a show.”
Parking is free around the square and in adjacent lots, including the First Baptist Church lot just off the square. There is plenty to see and do. Willis says the most magical time to visit is at Christmas, and there are quite a few community events planned for the season. GN
To see the calendar of events and get more information, visit: www.historiclebanon.com
