Nearly 100 years after its original installation in downtown Shelbyville, the Julius Joseph Fountain, now fully refurbished and modernized, will come back to life in the next few days.

“The fountain is installed and completed and we will fire it up Friday or Monday and run it for about a month then shut it back down again for winter,” said Tom Davis, of Genesis Property Development, to the Redevelopment Commission Wednesday night at City Hall.

Upon Joseph’s death in 1921, the German immigrant who was successful in the local furniture business left a $5,000 gift to the city to build a fountain.

That fountain became operational in 1923 and lasted until 1951 when it fell into disrepair and was dismantled. The fountain returned to downtown Shelbyville in 1980 and has served as the centerpiece of the Public Square since then.

As part of a massive downtown redevelopment project, the fountain was completely refurbished and the base was rebuilt to resemble the original version in 1923, along with street lights that run along the side of what is now a center island.

“It’s up and if you haven’t seen it yet, it’s pretty neat to see something that is 100 years old standing and looks pretty new,” said Davis.

Traffic can now flow north and south through the Public Square (photo above) and access to West Washington St. is now possible.

The Balser statue will be returning in the coming days, according to Davis, and flags will be added to the three flag poles already standing.

Work continues on the east two quadrants of the Public Square with the goal of being finished by Thanksgiving.

The biggest issue holding up completion will be deliveries from vendors.

“The only issue we have right now is limestone delivery,” said Davis. “We have a single-source supplier, they are basically the only one that produces this limestone and we are the largest job they have on their books, and they are struggling to get us enough limestone on a weekly basis and staying ahead of us.

“We have a plan. We have had them schedule deliveries all the way through the first of November, which is about 10 more limestone semi deliveries. We know what we need to do but the Thanksgiving date is going to be real close. If we have good weather, we will make it by 100 percent.”

Davis was asked by RDC board member Sam Terrell about traffic flow through the downtown area. Davis admitted there is a traffic backup during the late afternoon rush hour but traffic is moving along at a reasonable pace.

The traffic lights at the intersection of Broadway and Harrison streets are controlled by the state. To adjust the timing of the lights to move more traffic through the intersection from north to south, and vice versa, that will have to come through the state, according to Davis.

In other Redevelopment Commission business Wednesday, an agreement with Mainstreet Shelbyville, Inc. was approved to set up a fund to assist downtown businesses purchase outdoor furniture.

“This is to encourage updating (furniture) and get a more consistent look throughout, not exactly the same, but nice furniture,” said city attorney Jennifer Meltzer.

Mainstreet Shelbyville will approve all the purchases, according to Meltzer. How the furniture is set up outdoors will go through the Board of Works or the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission, especially concerning bars and restaurants that serve alcohol.