Village of the Porches

Greenup, IL (population 1,532) certainly lives up to its billing as the “Village of the Porches,” which predominates in the downtown area. It is a very unique feature of their downtown that they are trying to capitalize upon. When I was in town giving a talk to their growing Chamber of Commerce, I told them that I had only seen one other town that compared….Oxford, MS, one of my favorite downtowns.

Greenup has a number of other attributes for a town its size. They have a wonderfully restored soda fountain and confectionery; vineyard; and a new covered bridge. Being on the old National Trail also offers some interesting tourist potential.

But it is those porches that I kept thinking about as I drove out of town. How could Greenup brand itself more with those porches and use it as a springboard to new opportunities?