Town Devastated By Steel Mill Closure Reborn Thanks To Ncaa Ref And The Hope For New Grocery Store

Town Devastated By Steel Mill Closure Reborn Thanks To Ncaa Ref And The Hope For New Grocery Store

Once the steel and manufacturing jobs dried up, the town of Venice began to sink.

This Illinois community lost two-thirds of its population, before seeing its last remaining grocery store close, and even its only school.

But things are looking up again thanks to an unlikely ally, who presented himself as a financial and managerial conduit through which state money could help turn the lights back on in the town.

In his pomp, Ed Hightower was an award-winning college basketball referee and school superintendent for Edwardsville School District. Refereeing 12 NCAA Division I Final Fours, the 1990 World Championship of Basketball in South America, the European Basketball Championship in 1993, and the Goodwill Games in 1994 and 1998, Hightower built a storied career for himself that allowed his later years to be spent in stressless comfort.

But now he’s taken $3.5 million from that nest egg and put it up as an investment for a new grocery store in Venice, just 20 miles from Edwardsville where he grew up.

The “Venice Market” will receive funding help from the state, which will lease it from Hightower who will manage the business.

“It will put fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and healthy options within walking distance for families—who have gone without them before too long,” town Alderman Tyrone Echols said at a press conference. “But this project is about more than access to groceries.”

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“I will have skin in the game to make sure it’s successful,” Hightower told CBS News, who added that it’s part of his motivation—part of the belief system his mother instilled in him, that giving back is important. “[M]y mom always taught us that you don’t get there by yourself.”

The grocery store is just one of several new projects on Venice’s shores. A new school opened in 2021, breathing new life into the community, while a medical clinic and affordable housing are also on their way. State money, along with numerous nonprofit and for-profit partners, are footing the bill for Venice’s transformation.

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“It doesn’t matter what color you are, what belief you have, you want to reside in a safe environment where you can go to school, you can get your groceries,” Hightower said.

Local residents speaking with CBS News said they hope these transformative investments mean that the town starts to grow, rather than shrink, and that their children don’t grow up feeling like they have to move away for an opportunity.

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