Ashley R. Smith,
Canon City Mayor pro tem

With a few clicks of your finger you can literally start a revolution. Out of 12,000 applications Cañon City is in the top six nationally, and only in the Rocky Mountain Region, to be selected on the HULU reality TV series Small Business Revolution. If Cañon City wins the online voting contest, SBR will choose six small businesses to receive televised makeovers. With your online votes, this opportunity could revolutionize the destiny of our rural downtown.

As a small town we’ve been slowly pushing for upward mobility. The longtime closed historic Hotel St. Cloud, in the heart of downtown, has been purchased for renovation and we’ve built over 22 miles of hiking and biking trail systems. The former Western Buckskin Joe’s train ride is being historically preserved as a public trail traveling over and under train trestles to the stunning “Point Alta Vista”, an outlook hanging over a Royal Gorge cliff edge. We also have our iconic bridge, river rafting, scenic train, rock climbing, jeep tours, and zip lines.

You’d think we have everything going for Cañon City but we really need some fuel doused on the smoldering fire that could reignite our downtown. Many storefronts are either empty or struggling to survive. Significant monetary investments from this program could change that story. TV personalities Ty Pennington and Amanda Brinkman, hosts of Small Business Revolution, use their professional teams and $500,000 to spruce up storefronts, create inside transformations, provide professional mentoring, new websites, and marketing. What an opportunity!

When the SBR team came for preliminary interviews, a rally filled an entire block with residents chanting at the top of their lungs, “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” Overwhelmed, Amanda Brinkman almost lost her composure. I don’t think any of us have seen the likes of such local enthusiasm, pride, and tangible hope before.

It feels like the rumblings of a revolution are already starting. Outside support has come from Governor Polis, Colorado Springs Mayor Suthers, Pueblo Mayor Gradisar, and so many fellow cities. Thank you! After all, when the national light shines on one of us it shines on all of Colorado.

Based on past seasons, getting daily votes from outside Cañon City is critical. We need you and your friends help! Please go to VOTECOLORADO.US and vote for Cañon City. Each email address can vote one time per day until February 19, 7 p.m. MT. Our future depends on you. Let’s start a revolution together!

Ashley R. Smith is the Cañon City Mayor Pro Tem and Council Member for District 2. She is the mother of six, holds a black-belt in women’s self-defense, and serves on various community boards. Ashley can be contacted at ashley.smith@canoncity.org