Using the funding mechanism created by state law and known as redevelopment, city officials have helped local merchants and business owners turn the 1200 acres of Old Town Clovis into a fully refurbished turn-of-the-century style getaway. As a result store and shop occupancy rates skyrocketed from 50 to 95 percent. Old Town Clovis has become center stage for a spring and summer full of festivals, beginning with Big Hat Day, Clovis Rodeo Days the last weekend in April, scores of Farmers Markets, and finally, the wrap-up each year, Clovis Fest in September, which draws about 50,000 visitors each year. Other redevelopment efforts have transformed another area in Clovis to the north and pockets of residential areas. The result: higher property values, happier owners, and a more vibrant community.
An impressive redevelopment effort begun more than 20 years ago transformed downtown Clovis into an attraction drawing local residents as well as those from far away. Sunset Magazine, in fact, chose to highlight the treasure we know as Old Town Clovis. Puffs of white clouds dance overhead in bright-blue skies as couples stroll hand in hand, stopping here and there to peer into bright and bold windows. Classic brick sidewalks along new vibrant green streetscapes lead the way to a feast of restaurants – Italian, French, Mexican and English tea. Quaint antique shops brimming with treasures beckon. Old Town Clovis offers a getaway -- a respite from the hurried, hectic life we lead. It’s a world away, too, from the sleepy ranch town it once was.