Town Crier Articles

Mike Youngblood Sr., of Twiddy Realty, is the new President of the New Town Commercial Association (NTCA), an inherent part of the community almost since its inception. Mr. Youngblood has been involved with New Town for 25 years and on the Commercial Association Board for “a while.” He expresses great confidence in its existing systems and solid reserves, and hopes to continue that success.

 

Other members of the incoming NTCA Board of Directors include Scott Grafton (Vice President), Leigh Houghland, Sean Hughes, and Drew Haynie. After 20 years of service, previous President Larry Salzman has stepped down, but will be on board as an advisor. As Mr. Youngblood says, “Mr. Salzman’s continued involvement will provide continuity while we embrace change.” 

 

The Commercial Association exists to represent and serve the business owners. Its members include the owners of New Town's multifamily buildings with hundreds of residential units, so therefore thinks in terms of benefitting the whole community often through the work of its Marketing and Charging Stations committees. Chaired by Scott Grafton of Ironbound Gym, the Marketing Committee and its volunteers coordinate enhancements such as programming and decorations for the holiday season. The Committee has a separate budget and professional assistance. Mason and Markwith helps to create the marketing plan, including an in-house media department. Culture Fix is their events coordinator. Some of these events are in conjunction with James City County and draw in visitors. Along with our residents, an increasing number of visitors drive electric vehicles, so the NTCA’s Charging Stations Committee is working on a long-term plan to add more facilities. 

 

There is also a single cooperative committee with the New Town Residential Association (NTRA), the Shared Amenities Managing Committee. The NTCA and the NTRA both contribute to expenses for certain joint amenities (e.g. decorations, dog station maintenance, BMP’s, some trails), so Mr. Youngblood would like to see “more direct interface and involvement between the two organizations.” Although the NTRA and NTCA use different management companies, Mr. Youngblood feels comfortable working with NTRA’s Chesapeake Bay Management while also touting mutual cooperation strategies. An amendment to the Shared Amenities Agreement which would reflect the reality of separate management companies was approved by the NTRA during its annual meeting in December 2022. The amendment will be on the Commercial Association’s agenda for consideration at its annual meeting in the last quarter of 2023. 

 

Residents have expressed concerns about the empty store fronts on Main Street, which are owned by a Connecticut company. NTCA Board member, Drew Haynie, is their local leasing agent. He has commitments for some of the storefronts, with Planet Fitness in the final stages of construction, Virtual Reality Gaming Arcade recently opened, and Zoom Room dog training’s staff is already working during construction. As we all know, most retail has suffered since the pandemic, but services are on the upswing, so perhaps we can again look forward to a vibrant Main Street.  Meanwhile, roughly a million square feet of commercial space in other areas of New Town is occupied by various businesses and government entities. There are thirty-four different owners of commercial properties, with Settlers Market being entirely separate from New Town. 

 

Of course, all of the members of the Commercial Association want a vibrant, full community that will keep their businesses active. To that end, NTCA Marketing and a group of volunteers coordinated with James City County Recreation to sponsor the summer concert series, bringing lots of toe-tapping, seat