ARTISANS FOR STARTERS

SOUTH COLTON — It's hard to miss the vibrant stained glass hanging in the roadside window of Adirondack Artisans.

The store's owner, Linda M. Dunning, is working to ensure that this tiny hamlet on Route 56 just outside the blue line will someday be just as beautiful.

"When I look at this town, I see the place where I grew up. I don't want it to die," she said. "This is the forward movement we needed."

Mrs. Dunning opened the store Memorial Day 2007. The idea was to give local artists a place to show and sell their work. There were six contributors that day.

"I believe our 100th artist is right around the corner," Mrs. Dunning said. "They're all pretty much local people supplementing their income with things they've only shown family and friends at their homes."

The store attracts 30 to 40 visitors a day, who check out everything from stained glass and hand-knit mittens to purses made from clothesline and soap from goats' milk.

There's room to grow. The state Department of Transportation reports that an average of 1,200 vehicles drive by her store daily, Mrs. Dunning said. That traffic could be visiting not only the store, but also a bed-and-breakfast, restaurant and vibrant community if Mrs. Dunning has her way. She's been working with surrounding property owners and Colton town officials to chase public assistance for sprucing up the area.

"I want us to be a destination, not just a place where you stop to use the rest room," she said.

She's doing her part. She recently received a $20,000 low-interest loan from the St. Lawrence County Local Development Corp.

"We realize that to help some of our more rural communities, we have to try to tailor what we offer to meet their specific opportunities," said Patrick J. Kelly, LDC executive director. "It's nice to have the flexibility of the micro fund because a lot of programs are for industry and manufacturing."

At Adirondack Artisans, contributors set their price. Mrs. Dunning attaches up to a 30 percent mark-up for the store.

"Things that are here you might see in Lake Placid for two and three times what they are here," she said. "It's a business with a co-op flavor."

Mrs. Dunning expects to soon add a 19-seat coffee shop, diner and lunch eatery in the store.

"We're in the final steps with the board of health to open, hopefully, in the beginning of August," she said.

She wants to serve the early-morning crowd. A dime will buy a cup of coffee starting at 5 a.m. Baked goods will be available in the morning and lunch will be served until 4 p.m.

"We're starting relatively small because we want it to succeed," she said.

She expects to employ as many as six full-time people and three part timers between the store and eatery once it's rolling. Currently, it's her and her daughter Jolene E. Dunning, 24, who manages. Mrs. Dunning works full time as an administrator at Potsdam Central School.

She's looking forward to the future of her store and her community.

"It's like we've seen what we can do when we work together," she said.