Owner Mike Rezi First and Only Founder Partner of Movement to Preserve Downtown Cookeville

Jun 8, 2015

Nissan of Cookeville Store Front

Mike Rezi originally hails from Florence, Italy, but that has not dimmed his desire to preserve downtown Cookeville and improve business conditions in the downtown area. Coming from Italy, Mike is no stranger to preserving the past and brings this sense of preservation to his home in Cookeville. Mike is now the one and only Founder Partner with CityScape and has this to say about his association with them, “I’m very excited to be partnering with CityScape. I want to bring fresh ideas here. Downtown is such a thriving place.”

A New Beginning for Mike Rezi

Mike first became associated with Cookeville when he became the owner of Cookeville Nissan in 2012. Then in November of 2014 he bought a home on 6th St. firmly establishing himself as a member of the Cookeville community. Since moving here, Mike says that he has fallen in love with the area and went on to say “I love the downtown atmosphere, I love walking in the area. So when I saw the CityScape signs, I looked into it.”

Shortly after finding out what CityScape’s intentions and interests are, he thought that working with them would afford him the opportunity to make a difference in what the organization had already started. According to Mike, “It’s all about preserving your roots, that’s how Italy is – proud of their history and revitalization. And CityScape is doing just that.”

Proud of the Association

At the same time CityScape is proud to be able to partner with Cookeville Nissan owner Mike Rezi. The organization feels that having Mike as the only Founder Partner will be of great help in the coming years as they work hard to restore and revitalize the downtown area.

Rezi says he feels that in working with CityScape and helping others to start and maintain businesses in the downtown area he will be doing his part to keep the entire area healthy and thriving. He goes on to say, “I’ve been impressed with the downtown business, they all work together.”

Rezi went on to talk about the number of unique stores and restaurants featuring local dishes that have opened up downtown. “I like to share ideas,” Rezi said with regard to his new relationship with CityScape. Among the many popular ideas being considered are a Farmer’s Market that could be used to increase awareness of locally grown produce.

He is also noted as saying that people in his home city of Florence are much like those in his new home here in Cookeville, in that they take great pride in their own locally grown produce and homemade items. The time invested in improving the downtown area is sure to make those who live here appreciate their hometown even more, despite the fact it will take a lot of time and effort to achieve hoped for results.

A Word about CityScape

CityScape is a local tax-exempt, non-profit organization created specifically to build a partnership between the private and public sectors. The goal of this partnership is to revitalize the Historic Downtown Cookeville business district. CityScape is an officially recognized Main Street Program and has been certified on both a state and national level by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

With the support of people like Mike Rezi and many other businesses and citizens of Cookeville, we can all look forward to a thriving and healthy downtown area that will continue to attract new businesses in the future. All it takes is a desire to make a difference, something Mike Rezi is very familiar with.