2 Galt business groups formed in effort to boost merchant visibility

Two business areas along C Street have organized to try to get more Galt residents to frequent the downtown and Oldtown areas.

The Downtown Merchants Association formed a few months ago to gain more visibility along Lincoln Way and shopping areas to the east along C Street. Meanwhile, a group of Oldtown merchants have banded together to gain more exposure for the area between Lincoln Way and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks.

The downtown group formed in the spring or early summer when merchants on Lincoln Way just south of Galt High School approached deli owners Michelle and Gary Tuttle about poor business signs and scarce parking on Lincoln Way.

Merchants began to brainstorm what would make the C Street commercial area more successful, Michelle Tuttle said.

"My thing is, 'We need to be cute,'" she said. "Downtown Lodi is cute."

The Downtown Merchants Association approached the Galt City Council during the summer to ask about getting better signs. Ideas include adding directional signs for downtown and Oldtown Galt, possibly with a landmark like the city water tower on the sign, said Michelle Tuttle, who has owned Country Deli the past two years.

Gary Tuttle makes a sandwich for a customer Monday afternoon at Country Deli in Galt. Tuttle and his wife, Michelle, helped found the Downtown Merchants Association. (Ross Farrow/News-Sentinel)

Another idea was to create maps at or near the Galt Market to inform out-of-town flea market shoppers of what merchants as close as two blocks away have to offer.

City Councilwoman Barbara Payne, who attends Downtown Merchants Association meetings along with Vice Mayor Andrew Meredith, said the one map of Galt will be built at the flea market eating area, and another will be placed at one of the entrances. Additionally, plans are in place to construct directional signs to area businesses, Payne said.

"They were very responsive to us," Michelle Tuttle said.

Adam Studebaker, who opened JAM Electronics about a month ago on C Street and has attended one Downtown Merchants Association meeting, said that Galt needs to solve its traffic problem.

"It's inconvenient to drive around here," Studebaker said. "Lodi is only 10 minutes away. It's more convenient for people to go on down to Lodi. It's easier to drive out of Galt than to drive around Galt."

A separate nameless group of Oldtown merchants have conducted two special events during the summer and are planning another in November to bring crowds to Oldtown to better acquaint them with the business area west of Highway 99.

Business organizations at a glance

Downtown Merchants Association — Contact: Michelle and Gary Tuttle, 745-2354.
Oldtown business group — Contact: Joe Pryor, 744-1391.
Source: News-Sentinel staff.

Headed by Joe Pryor, owner of Vintage Interiors at Fifth and C streets, the Oldtown group was formed for pretty much the same reason as the downtown group. The difference is that the city renovated the Oldtown area, generally between Fourth and Seventh streets, in a $4.5 million redevelopment project that was completed in 2002.

The area is patterned on a smaller scale after Lodi's School Street, with brick facades and 1920s-style street lamps and other quaint amenities.

But many Oldtown buildings remained vacant for a while.

"There's a sellable product not being sold or marketed," Pryor said. "You can either do something to improve, and if you don't improve it, it won't improve itself."

So the Oldtown area conducted an open house, and later it hosted a Hot August Nights event that featured 40 classic cars made possible by Oldtown business C&J Guthmiller, a car club member.

"I'm trying to create some fun in Oldtown," Pryor said.

Both events have resulted in a few more customers to Oldtown businesses, he added.

A holiday craft fair is planned in the Oldtown area for Nov. 17; and next year, Pryor plans a big celebration in the spring for Guthmiller and Spaans Cookie Co., both of which will celebrate their 50th year in business in Galt.

Contact reporter Ross Farrow at rossf@lodinews.com.

Reader Feedback

The community changed wrote on Sep 18, 2007 10:32 PM:

" Instread of "howdy neighbor" Galt changed to who stole my car? Why did the West side ever self destruct the way it did. I won't go over their after dark, it looks like a battle zone. I only speak English and its not good enough for the west side. It reminds me of Tijuana, but with paved streets and no donkeys. "

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Herald Resident wrote on Sep 18, 2007 10:08 AM:

" I have always done as much business as possible in Galt. It's close & I have a loyalty to Galt. Unfortunately, in many instances the business have been unethical (flooring), unresponsive(glass and interior design), make you stand in line for checkout for too long a time every time(major drugstore)had pies that had no sugar, and pumpkin pie that tasted like bacon(cookie store). It has become a job to keep business in Galt. "

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