Coast Finalists for the Knight Cities Challenge
Local cuisine, coast history, and unique retail: all three are good ideas for the Biloxi-Gulfport area. These ideas made the cut in a national competition that started out with 4,500 applicants. News 25’s Kristen Durand gives us a look at the local visions of our three finalists in the second annual Knight Cities Challenge.
Chef Danie Rodriguez hopes her idea to bring a community kitchen to Vieux Marche will help get a slice of the $5 million in grant money up for grabs, money that would be used to bring the perfect blend of local art and flavor to Vieux Marche. “All of the downtown areas across the Gulf Coast have rebuilt since Katrina, some of them quite successfully, and Biloxi hasn’t done that yet. I think we need to kick start that,” said Rodriguez.
Chef Danie is one of the 158 finalists in this year’s Knight Cities Challenge, a national call for ideas to make the 26 communities where Knight invests more vibrant to work and live. She believes showcasing our Coast cuisine and culinary diversity in the historic downtown area will bring new life to Vieux Marche with a little something to suit anyone’s palette. “Food always draws people down here,” said Rodriguez, “So, if they can come and get a free sample, maybe look at some local artisans and things that Biloxi is known for, I think it will draw a crowd down here and get the ball rolling.”
Another finalist, Maryanna Rogers, hopes to get a portion of the grant to transform six small businesses in Biloxi in to “Story Stops” which would promote authentic storytelling, as well as our region’s culture and food.
Over in Gulfport, the city’s Main Street Association has a plan for an empty lot to transform into an urban retail village made out of repurposed shipping containers. Gulfport Main Street Director Laurie Toups said, “It gives us the wonderful opportunity to collaborate and partner with the state port group and their tenants. It’s a good working relationship.”
The shopping area would be anchored at the corner of 13th Street and 28th Avenue in downtown Gulfport. “So, it will be in a U-shape with the community area in the center for seating, for public art, for music, for just coming together on an afternoon and having something frosty to drink or eat and hangout while you shop and maybe listen to a little music. It’s going to be a lot of fun, we want people to make it theirs,” said Toups.
The winners of the grant are set to be announced in the spring of this year.
Chef Danie Rodriguez hopes her idea to bring a community kitchen to Vieux Marche will help get a slice of the $5 million in grant money up for grabs, money that would be used to bring the perfect blend of local art and flavor to Vieux Marche. “All of the downtown areas across the Gulf Coast have rebuilt since Katrina, some of them quite successfully, and Biloxi hasn’t done that yet. I think we need to kick start that,” said Rodriguez.
Chef Danie is one of the 158 finalists in this year’s Knight Cities Challenge, a national call for ideas to make the 26 communities where Knight invests more vibrant to work and live. She believes showcasing our Coast cuisine and culinary diversity in the historic downtown area will bring new life to Vieux Marche with a little something to suit anyone’s palette. “Food always draws people down here,” said Rodriguez, “So, if they can come and get a free sample, maybe look at some local artisans and things that Biloxi is known for, I think it will draw a crowd down here and get the ball rolling.”
Another finalist, Maryanna Rogers, hopes to get a portion of the grant to transform six small businesses in Biloxi in to “Story Stops” which would promote authentic storytelling, as well as our region’s culture and food.
Over in Gulfport, the city’s Main Street Association has a plan for an empty lot to transform into an urban retail village made out of repurposed shipping containers. Gulfport Main Street Director Laurie Toups said, “It gives us the wonderful opportunity to collaborate and partner with the state port group and their tenants. It’s a good working relationship.”
The shopping area would be anchored at the corner of 13th Street and 28th Avenue in downtown Gulfport. “So, it will be in a U-shape with the community area in the center for seating, for public art, for music, for just coming together on an afternoon and having something frosty to drink or eat and hangout while you shop and maybe listen to a little music. It’s going to be a lot of fun, we want people to make it theirs,” said Toups.
The winners of the grant are set to be announced in the spring of this year.
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