Site for Santa tourism center in Albion gets cleared out
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The Albion Betterment Center gave people a chance to see the first floor of 128 North Main St., a site the ABC is working to make a Santa tourism center.
The ABC closed on buying the site last month from the Henri Pulley estate.
The Betterment Committee today from noon to 1 p.m. gave people a chance to buy bins of items, as well as old doors and furniture.
There are two big open areas in the building on the first floor. Stan Farone, a former village trustee, checked out the site today. The building has been largely vacant for more than 25 years. Farone remembers when the site was a furniture store.
“I’d like to see a year-round Christmas store,” Farone said. “We need something to draw people here day after day.”
The Environmental Construction Group in Albion sent five of its employees to help clear out stuff from the building (shown in back in the middle). Shawn Wright of the ECG is inside a dumpster from ARG Disposal in Albion. ARG donated two dumpsters to help clear out the building.
Other volunteers also helped move items to the dumpsters.
The Betterment Committee wants to turn the vacant two-story building on Main Street into a tourism center that celebrates Santa. The group wants to develop an interactive tourism center with displays about the Charles W. Howard Santa School and Christmas Park, which Howard ran for many years near his farmhouse on Phipps Road.
The Betterment Committee envisions the first floor as interactive exhibits and displays, as well as room for a bakery and food operator. The site could also offer services, including showers, for canal boaters, cyclists and other visitors.
The second floor is envisioned to offer space for artists – painters, potters, and others in need of studio space. The second floor has large windows that let in natural light that would be ideal for artists, said Natasha Wasuck, a member of the Betterment Committee.
The ABC is applying for grants to help with the project and welcomes donations from the community. The group is eyeing to have the site open by Christmas in 2026.
This photo shows the other side of the building at 128 North Main St.
Jerome Pawlak is a member of the ABC board of directors. He said Albion has made progress in celebrating its heritage with the Santa school, which opened in 1937 and had its last class in Albion in 1965, before moving to Michigan.
There are signs, murals and a bronze statue all celebrating Santa and Charles Howard. Route 31 in Albion also is dedicated as the Charles Howard Memorial Highway.
“There is interest in Santa,” Pawlak said today, looking over items at 128 North Main St. “We have a legacy with Charles Howard. We live in a historic community and this can be part of its revitalization.”
Valerie Rush also is on the ABC board and she has been portraying Mrs. Claus for about a decade. She looks forward to volunteering at the site, greeting people and highlighting Albion’s Santa story.
“I think it’s a great project,” she said. “It’s filling another building in the downtown. We have something very unique here and people are very excited about it.”
The group is a 501c3 organization that accepts tax deductible donations. Donations can be sent to Albion Betterment Committee, c/o Joe Gehl at 14487 Baker Rd. in Kent, NY 14477.
There is an online giving option. Click here for more information.
