WEDC grant funds Shops at the Greenspace in Pittsville

Matthew Day

Staff

August 3, 2026

PITTSVILLE – Downtown Pittsville is seeing a renewed sense of energy as funding from a state grant has led to the opening of a new market village: the Shops at the Greenspace. 

Alderman Michael Hobbs said the shops were made possible after the city was awarded the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation’s (WEDC) Vibrant Spaces Grant.  

The grant, per wedc.org, “is designed to assist communities in creating vibrant and engaging spaces that make it easier to recruit and retain residents, sustain a robust labor force and enhance local quality of life.” 

Hobbs said the $29,000 grant, which was matched by the City of Pittsville, was used to transform a long-vacant lot “right in the heart of downtown” – the former location of a gas station that was later designated as a vacant brownfield site and sat undeveloped for years. 

“Basically, it got used for piling up snow in the winter,” he said, “and other than that, it was just a grassy, empty lot.” 

A number of ideas arose over the years, Hobbs said, as public servants and citizens brainstormed how to better use the space.

Within the last six years, Hobbs said the community raised funds for a pavilion and ice rink on the lot, bringing some activity to the site, “but it wasn’t necessarily something that helps with the downtown.”

Hobbs said the improved Greenspace – as it came to be called after its remediation – was a welcome addition to Pittsville, able to host live music, holiday events and other gatherings for the community. 

However, as the owner of a local ice cream shop – The Cranberry Creamery – and board member for the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, Hobbs said “part of my passion is small business.” 

“Cities supporting their commercial districts – supporting their businesses in a meaningful way – is one of the biggest priorities a lot of cities miss,” he said. 

When city leadership learned about the concept of a “market village” featuring a number of small shops, Hobbs said it slowly gained support as a fit for Pittsville, with potential to help revitalize its downtown. 

He said the original idea is attributed to the borough of Tionesta, Pennsylvania – “a little town of 500 people, up in the mountains.” 

“They took a city block where an industrial building/commercial area had burnt down, and they put in these little sheds for people to operate businesses out of, and [it was a] wild success,” he said. “It’s part tourist attraction, and then part business incubator.” 

Hobbs said the concept had originally been pitched to and considered by the City of Pittsville about six years ago, but it was only after submitting it for the Vibrant Spaces Grant that it would become real. 

Thanks to the funding, he said Pittsville was able to afford four such sheds for the Greenspace.

Hobbs said the 12-foot-by-12-foot structures were designed in the 1880s “false-front” boomtown style. 

“It looks really inviting,” he said.

Shedding some light 

Hobbs said the goal with the Shops at the Greenspace is essentially fourfold. 

First, he said the space provides a centralized event area for locals, describing the backdrop of the sheds as “an enhancement to what was already happening,” such as vendor fairs and downtown Pittsville’s Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. 

One of the new sheds, Hobbs said, is dedicated to public event rental when it’s not serving as a warming shelter for the ice skaters in winter. 

“We can activate that space year-round,” he said. 

Building off the first goal, Hobbs said the second goal of the shops is to increase Pittsville’s ability to recruit and retain talented workers. 

“It’s a cute little way to showcase that our town is alive and well, and things are going on here,” he said. “People choose to live in communities that do have a vibrant, active downtown.” 

Hobbs said the activities and unique retail options – not to mention the uniqueness of the sheds themselves – also help to support the third goal of the shops: attracting tourism. 

The area has long drawn outdoor enthusiasts, he said, particularly to Northwood County Park and Campground, Dexter County Park & Campground and Sherwood Park and Campground. 

“All three of them are gorgeous campgrounds,” he said, “but I don’t think Pittsville – economic development-wise – has ever concentrated on offering those people something to do or a reason to come to town.” 

With a number of people traveling into the Pittsville area, Hobbs said the traffic “does you no good if they don’t see anything on either side of the road, and just drive through.”  

“[The shops] give people a reason to stop and explore,” he said.

Lastly, and no less important, Hobbs said, is the goal of fostering regional entrepreneurship. 

“[The shops] are a way for people to try retail business on a small, lower-risk scale,” he said. “You’re not signing expensive leases, not renovating spaces.” 

Hobbs said the shops are designed to create a stepping stone for entrepreneurs by offering an affordable way to gain experience and “low-cost test” the viability of a new venture. 

To be approved for shed rental, he said the process starts with an application at pittsvillewi.gov.

Applications are then ranked on a merit-based point system, Hobbs said, administered by the Community Development Authority (CDA), determining the uniqueness of products, local production, business preparedness and more. 

For approved applications, he said business owners can choose between renting for $150 per month or $1,500 for a full year. 

Hobbs said the funds are utilized by the CDA to maintain the shops and any other infrastructure at the Greenspace. 

“We’ll make sure the costs of helping the businesses get going aren’t being shifted straight onto the city taxpayers,” he said. 

So far, Hobbs said two of the sheds have full-time tenants – Katie’s Boho Vibes and K&K Kraftworks – with both having signed full-year leases. 

He said he anticipates further interest as others observe the results of the early renters. 

Pittsville positivity 

Hobbs said any number of positive outcomes are possible for the shops, based on the results in Tionesta. 

“They’ve had people who started out in the sheds actually move into full-size commercial buildings in the town,” he said. “Some of the businesses just prefer to stay small, and they like operating the size they have. But it also turned into an event venue/gathering space in a place where people just stop and check out and see what’s going on, so that’s kind of the hope for [the Shops].” 

With a number of vacant, larger commercial spaces available in downtown Pittsville – many of which will require some level of renovation – Hobbs said he hopes the entrepreneurial encouragement and support for local businesses will emanate from the shops throughout the town. 

“I think it will have an attraction in that regard,” he said. “And as an event space, it’s already working really well for the community. It gives just one more public spot to come downtown.”