Local business expands into new location
Published 8:17 am Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Star Photo/Amber Wadovick Visitors got to browse Five-One-Eight's wares from over 50 local vendors. Owner Tracie Mosley Young said the relocation was years in the making.
Star Photo/Amber Wadovick Young said she wants Five-One-Eight to continue to grow, and making it its own thing allows Building 520 to evolve as an event venue like she always wanted it to be.
Star Photo/Amber Wadovick A new business also set up shop in the back of Five-One-Eight: The Art Space. Owner Marcia Ross said she wantes to provide her community a love of art and the creativity it encourages.
Building 520 celebrated its relocation Saturday with an Open House, showcasing what it has to offer both for local customers and artists alike.
Owner Tracie Mosley Young said the move has been years in the making.
“It has been a long time coming,” Young said.
Though seemingly a short move from 520 East Elk Avenue to 518, she said the move helps better suit what she wants out of both locations: to form a community-wide venue location at 520 and a local market in the new spot.
“I bought 520 because I have always wanted to see an event venue downtown,” she said.
For the past three and a half years, however, she had been unable to begin renovations on 520. Now she can continue the market she has helped create in one place and her dreams in the other.
One new business taking this opportunity is The Art Space at Five-One-Eight, a new art studio for the public to enjoy.
“I am a retired art teacher,” Art Space owner Marcia Ross said. “Recently, I had a dream to get back into teaching art.”
Nestled in a back room at the rechristened Five-One-Eight shopping venue, Ross said the location will serve to show people the joys art can provide.
“It showcases the need to create and encourages people to step out of their comfort zones,” she said.
Young said The Art Space and more have an opportunity to grow their brands and develop as businesses while they are vendors at Five-One-Eight, some of them growing up and moving to their own shops in town.
“Supporting my business supports 50 small businesses,” she said.
During Saturday’s Open House, Elizabethton residents got to see what that level of cooperation would look like, both by touring the wares Five-One-Eight hosts from local artists, and then getting to make some art of their own at the Art Space.
“It is exciting to see the support from the community,” Young said.
As for the renovations, Young said they will be “extensive,” and they will likely run for about a year and a half, renovating electrical, plumbing, etc.
“This is constantly growing,” she said.
The Art Space is hosting classes throughout the year starting in February. For more information, contact Ross at 423-430-0882 or by visiting their Facebook page.
