Casmir & Leigh, LLC
The finances all worked out, so they were fine that we weren’t maximizing profits, knowing that our mission was more community revitalization than a profit-focused venture.
People
Colorize a historic photo. That was Joshua Catalano’s grad school assignment in 2016, and he chose a century-old shot of a post office and a meat market in his hometown, St. Marys. Years later, Josh and his wife, Briana Pocratsky were teaching history and sociology, respectively, at Clemson when one of those buildings went up for sale. The other building followed. The couple set out on what Josh calls “a business venture second and a community development effort first” to preserve historic assets that now house The Diamond Perk coffee shop, Rather B Embroidery and apartments.
Progress
The couple spent much of their savings on a down payment for the purchase of the first building. For the second building purchase, the St. Marys Area Economic Development Corp. suggested they contact The Progress Fund, which required a significantly smaller down payment and loaned them $202,500 to complete the purchase.
Impact
There’s “something magical” about St. Marys, says Briana. “It’s such a pensive, thoughtful, poetic place,” she says. Now two of the town’s few surviving historic buildings are safe, as are its “third place,” renovated upper-story housing — all with reasonable rents. To “stop the small-town erosion that’s happening,” says Josh, requires “something that’s not just driven by capitalist forces.”
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