News & Events

Olde Towne Coffee Co
Friday, November 20, 2009

SOON TO OPEN — The Olde Towne Coffee Shop, offering everything from a fresh cup of great coffee to lattes, cappucinos, espresso, frappuccinos and fruit smoothies or light breakfast or lunch, will open in the next two weeks on?Market Street. Owner Tracie Mullins of Wintersville is putting the finishing touches on the shop, with her husband, Richard, fulfilling a lifelong dream

STEUBENVILLE - Downtown is continuing to redefine its future in the form of the American dream: Small businesses serving a particular niche.

From clothing stores to a bookstore, downtown has become more vibrant in big steps during the past six months. And the trend will continue, with a new coffee shop to debut in the next couple of weeks, as well as construction advancing to turn two buildings linked by an outdoor courtyard into a small business shopping mall.

Lou Stein, executive director of Valley Ventures, has been leading the matching of entrepreneurs with space downtown. The enthusiasm of the businesspeople and Stein continues to be contagious, with each step seeming to lead to more.

Take, for instance, the popular SoJo's Hot Dog House, 330 Market St. What started in the spring as a hot-dog vendor cart is working through plans to continue business year round from the storefront behind the cart. Owner Shelli Ocheltree of Wintersville said she's been excited by the response.

"I have seen this city come to life. It's been a breath of fresh air," Ocheltree said. "People come to our stand and sit at the table and start talking - people who don't even know each other."

SoJo's offers a variety of all-beef Nathan's hot dogs, the big, juicy kind one normally associates with New York street vendors. A variety of toppings, from the usual hot-dog condiments to coney dogs, kraut dogs, a Mexican dog and the special Joe Dog with ranch, cheddar and bacon bits is available. The dogs are served in two sizes: The 7-inch lap dog or the quarter-pound Sojo Dog.

In addition, there are pepperoni rolls, nachos, chips, lemonade, old-fashioned sodas and water available. SoJos also is adding ice cream, filling a need Stein said a survey about downtown found was the top item people want.

Ocheltree and her husband, Joey, said they plan on being open every day that there's good weather, and they're working on the plan to move into the storefront behind the cart to allow better year-round service. SoJo's also delivers downtown. It may be reached by calling (740) 346-6635 and is open daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

"People are excited to see the town coming back to life, and this is the start," Joey Ocheltree said. His wife added, "We want to be the kind of place that people are on their way through Steubenville on their way to Pittsburgh and they'll say they have to stop for a hot dog and some ice cream."

Soon to join them on the block is the Olde Towne Coffee Co. Tracie Mullins is the owner, and the store will be one of the keystones to the planned downtown mini-mall concept.

Olde Towne Coffee Co. fronts along Fourth Street with its own entrance to the street, but it also has an entrance that leads into the planned mini mall area, that will be behind SoJo's. A food court and space for small retail shops is planned. The store will offer gourmet varieties of coffee and the specialty drinks, such as lattes, frappuccinos, cappucinos, espresso and will have fruit smoothies available. Light breakfast and lunch items also are planned. The shop has a bright, cozy feeling in a classic, small downtown storefront.

Mullins said she and her husband, Richard, a contractor, have done most of the work on the remodeling and she's always wanted to run her own coffee shop. Planning for the shop came together over the past six months or so, she said.

"This is the county seat. There are almost 3,000 employees in the offices, the courthouse, the city building, the medical offices and the banks. There is incredible foot traffic," Mullins said. "All people will need to do is walk across the street for a bagel or a cup of coffee. We're already getting positive feedback. We want to be an added choice for people downtown. The other businesses are very supportive. It's incredible."

Mullins said Olde Towne Coffee Co. will offer its coffees, Berardi's Fresh Roasted Coffees, for sale in beans or ground packages, and deliveries downtown will be available. The shop will be open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday hours are being planned.

Mullins said she's also excited with the store's opening into the planned public court in the mall area.

Stein takes visitors through the building, which is being remodeled in stages. The Fourth Street building plans include a public area for people who buy food at the hot dog shop or the coffee shop to be able to sit and eat. There will be additional retail space and an upstairs meeting area to accommodate small business meetings.

The buildings, all owned by Ed Chambers of Steubenville, Stein said, are connected in the back by a small open-air courtyard. Stein said the area can be refurbished to resemble an Italian community's outside public space. Across the courtyard, a visitor can walk into the back of the building that faces onto South Fourth Street and will include more retail spaces. Stein said plans are to start with retail spaces on the front of both buildings and work through the structures back to the courtyard. In addition, loft apartments can be housed on the upper floors of both buildings, he said.

Chambers said he wants the combined buildings and courtyard to give startup businesses a place to get estabished with reasonable rents in a well-maintained building.

"I want to redevelop the heart of downtown Steubenville with people whose hearts want to do something," he said. Chambers wife owns Tina's Impressive Seconds clothing store on South Fourth Street.

Chambers said it's a matter of making people comfortable with coming back to shop downtown.

"We're getting the ambience of what it used to be. People in Steubenville speak to each other, be it the judge, the doctor or some guy from the homeless shelter. People say 'good morning, how are you doing.' You don't have that elsewhere," said Chambers. "It's one of my favorite things about downtown Steubenville, the way everyone speaks to each other."

During the past six months or so, downtown has seen a new bookstore, BookMarx, a clothing store, JourneWear, a baby boutique, Forever Young all open and joining the community of longtime downtown businesses.

Another new business further up Market Street is Dee's Urban Fashions, which opened on North Fifth Street about 18 months ago and has moved to a 3,000 square-foot store space on Market Street just up from Chase Bank. Darryn McCormick has a store in Wheeling in addition to his downtown location.

"The reception here has been good overall. Business has been a little slow because of the recession but all in all, it's pretty solid," McCormick said. "I've got guarded optimism."

The store is open from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and offers young, urban fashions, what older folks might call "hip" or "hot," McCormick said.

"It's a look all its own," he said.