Carla Massoni has always worked for herself. When she left her job with Senator Joe Tydings, she went to work with Joyce Huber Smith in a private employment service in Washington, DC. Within one year, she joined Joyce as a partner in Georgetown Employment Service – a partnership that would last for twenty years. Then, in 1985, Carla moved to Chestertown and later purchased the Imperial Hotel. Her most recent venture has been her highly-regarded art gallery on High Street. For more than two decades she has seen up close and personal the stark realities of
running a business in Chestertown.
The past twenty-five years here have been filled with a quality of life that she has never regretted, but they have also been a financial roller coaster for Carla and her businesses. As the town transitioned from a well-established and lucrative hunting locale to a more general and not particularly well-defined tourist destination, she, along with many of her colleagues in the downtown retail sector, has felt the elation and the misery that comes with owning a small town commercial enterprise.
Carla is not discouraged, however, and in keeping with her long-standing reputation for candidness, she speaks of both the opportunities and the pitfalls as Chestertown looks toward the years ahead.
Chestertown Futures is a two-year project of the Chestertown Spy to provide a sustained community conversation on Chestertown’s future and aspirations through the unique voices of twenty-four members of the community representing all aspects of greater Chestertown. By design, these interviews are longer than most broadcast interviews to allow each participant ample time to express their views. It is therefore advisable to allow time for the YouTube video to load the interview fully before viewing, which may take up to three to five minutes.
Cindy Fulton says
This interview with Carla Massoni was most fascinating to me. She stated very clearly the situation that Chestertown finds itself in today and suggested some excellent ideas. We not only need visionary people, but we need to teach the people who are here to think in a visionary manner. Carla is one of those people who understands marketing well. I would like to see a visionary conference for our people happen this fall. Beautifully and diplomatically analyzed by Carla…Well Done!!!
Beth says
Well said. There is much to wonder about, discuss, plan, and hope for. Hopefully we can all create a plan together.
MBTroup says
Carla – For whatever it’s worth, I thought this was brilliant. A SWOT analysis in 8:26.
Keith Thompson says
Carla…well said, and it needed to be.
jenifer says
Brava, Carla!
eliott says
just heard from some who should become MAYOR
Carla Massoni says
Eliott – I think we already have a fine mayor.
Tony Weir says
Carla is, as always, spot on in her views. And she expresses those views with a combination of charm and enthusiasm that is hard to find these days.
I agree that the opportunity to improve the waterfront via Washington College is huge, and key to a better Chestertown. I hope that attempts to squeeze the college for additional contributions don’t ruin the opportunity.
Abbey, (Eliza) says
As a relative newcomer to Chestertown, I see many similarities in ‘growing pains’ between Charlottesville, VA and Chestertown. Granted, UVA is a university, and Charlottesville more populated, still, many of the issues Chestertown is facing as it grows its historic downtown are very much the same as what Charlottesville was going through about 20 years ago. Striking the balance between charm and success as a business center is a hard thing, and the more steeped in history, the harder it is. With business growth (at least on the brick and mortar level) comes traffic- foot traffic and auto traffic, parking issues, public safety, facility accessability, infrastructure load, etc. not to mention how the long-standing locals feel about all of the above. As a chef, I’ve seen the difficulties small businesses face. And Carla’s right, owning/running a restaurant and/or hotel these days coudln’t get much more difficult. Again, striking a good balance is key- and wildly hard to achieve. Please the locals and serve what they want to buy, or focus on tourists and the broader region, try to get outsiders in- and risk alienating the locals. Few places get it ‘right’ evidenced by how many restaurants have lasted the test of time in this- as well as many other small towns across the country. Seldom do we see a home-spun local hot-spot where the locals actually open their arms to a ton of unfamiliar faces taking up their favorite seat at the bar or table in the diningroom, but what happens if they do (open their arms to stragers), is quite amazing. We all become less insulated (and isolated) from the world; the tastes, the smells, the fabrics and colors, the attitudes, beliefs and dreams (yes, even dreams) become vivid– just an elbow away– and we all get the oportunity to learn something we might not have known. When small towns broaden their scope– through a ‘visionary’ council focusing on wise growth, good things can happen. The historic ‘downtown’ area of Charlottesville was once the dividing line between the haves and the have-nots; an area with a lot of ’empty eye sockets’ for store fronts. Now a walking mall, the town planners figured out how to market the properties on the mall to a wider audience without losing too much of its historic character (there really is no historic character in empty store fronts), and what I see now is a far cry from what I encountered when I helped start a coffee business there in 1989.
I think Chestertown could do great things too, but as Carla said, it takes visionaries.
So well said, Carla. Thank you for your candor.