The Historic Hillyard Merchants Committee met for the first time this year, this morning at the Outlaw Cafe. First on the agenda was the upcoming Snowflake Ball - it was canceled because of low ticket sales.

Moving right along to upcoming events: there are plans for a Hillyard Hop on May 21 - complete with a parade, a car show and lots of special for Hillyard shoppers.
HIllyard it planing on getting in on Arbor Day this year. If everything works out, merchants will be giving away small trees in the week leading up to Arbor Day. The Northeast Youth Center is planing on helping out, too.
Another big topic on today's agenda is advertising. The Hillyard Merchants have been shopping around for a good deal on advertising. TV commercials are expensive (the price batted around was $15,000) and many business owners worry that they can't afford it. A point was made repeatedly that marketing Hillyard is not a one-time deal - what it takes is a campaign that businesses and community groups all can buy into. On Feb. 7 at noon there will be a meeting at the Outlaw Cafe to further discuss advertising and marketing efforts and offers.
The time is set for the Valentine's dinner: Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. at the Outlaw Cafe - please make reservations at the cafe.
And lastly, the parking spots have been cleared of snow by an independent contractor - so come on up.