Hamlet’s Eventful Future

HAMLET — Mechelle Preslar has transformed Hamlet into a hub of activity since stepping into her role as director of Hamlet Depot and Museums in 2020. Through her leadership, the city has seen a surge in community events, renovations and long-term projects that aim to enhance Hamlet’s cultural and economic landscape. With April kicking off an eight-month stretch of events, Preslar’s vision continues to shape the town’s future.

“April through December, we are busy with the events,” Preslar said. “April through November, the first Saturday of every month, we have our city lake pop-up markets. Then, food trucks start and run in April to October, they are the second and fourth Fridays. On the second Friday, we have a cruise-in that goes with the food trucks, and then on the fourth Friday, we have Box Car concert series that goes with the food trucks. The first one is April 11.”

Preslar’s journey as director began during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting her to find innovative ways to keep the community engaged.

“We had COVID and all this stuff, and I was like, ‘What can you do to bring people here? Everything’s closed?’ So I started the food trucks,” she said. “Then, I built on food trucks and had cruise-ins, and then I built on cruise-ins and had concerts. It’s like I took the whole job to another level.”

Beyond event planning, Preslar has overseen major improvements to Hamlet’s attractions. The Visitor’s Center, Depot and gift shop have all undergone renovations to enhance the experience for residents and visitors alike.

“The Visitor Center that we’re in now has been painted within the last two years in stages,” Preslar said. “We started in the office, then we painted out in the main museum. We have new floors, which started here in the office, then we went out into the museum and we also have some new exhibits out there.”

Exhibits now include a display honoring Sam West, a renowned shagger who teaches dance lessons in Hamlet, and an exhibit dedicated to the Rockingham Dragway. Preslar emphasized that the museum aims to celebrate all of Richmond County, not just Hamlet. Additional renovations have included the repainting of the static display in Main Street Park, a project that benefited from a grant through the Foundation of the Carolinas.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the completed renovations is scheduled for April 25 at 5:30 p.m. at Main Street Park.

“At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, we will have the mayor and council here,” Preslar said. “We will have a representative from the National Railroad to speak, Tyree Massagee, who is a retired CSX engineer but also worked for Seaboard Airline. He’s going to speak, and Mr. G.R. Kindley, who made a nice donation and was also instrumental in the renovations of the Depot, he’s going to speak, so we are excited about that project.”

Another upcoming project on Preslar’s agenda is a mural of the Orange Blossom Special.

“We have looked at the old Birmingham building right next to the Tornado across the road there,” she said. “The problem is the building is not city-owned, and it’s changed hands to a new owner from when we started talking about the mural. The nonprofit hasn’t had a chance to sit down with the new owner.”

Despite this hurdle, Preslar remains optimistic: “We are looking forward to being able to secure a location and hopefully making that dream happen.”

Preslar’s work has expanded beyond events and renovations. She has also grown her team, welcoming Tony Kubiak as a full-time assistant. Kubiak has been instrumental in enhancing the depot’s social media presence and marketing efforts.

“Now the best part is that I have Tony, who is throwing it out there,” Preslar said. “Events that have been going on for five years, people are like, ‘Wow, we didn’t know you were doing this.’ Because it’s one thing to plan the events and bring all the moving parts, but I didn’t have the time to dedicate to the social media.”

Kubiak’s contributions extend to event promotion, including designing a t-shirt featuring dates for Hamlet’s upcoming events. His efforts have also supported local animal adoption initiatives for the Richmond County Animal Shelter.

“We hope that is bringing more traffic to them for people to adopt and not shop for the perfect pet,” said Preslar.

Looking ahead, one of Preslar’s most ambitious goals is the restoration of the Hamlet Opera House.

“Restoring the opera house has been a vision of mine since I came five years ago in 2020,” she said. “It will require a lot of money, but I am a firm believer that the project of the renovation of the depot that had to be picked up and moved and renovated happened, so you can’t tell me that we can’t renovate the opera house.”

Preslar is currently in discussions with various agencies to determine a path forward for the project. She also wants the community’s input on whether to restore the opera house to its original function or repurpose it for business incubators.

“The biggest support we would need from the community would be if we get that far and we start doing fundraisers, to please come out and support like they have in the past,” she said. “No event is successful without community buy-in. We always need community support, whether we’re fundraising or we’re having food trucks or we’re having a concert.”

Hamlet’s community engagement will continue with a movie in the park event on June 20, featuring a screening of Luca. “I’ve always envisioned a movie in the park. Tony took my vision and he literally made it happen,” said Preslar.

Kubiak echoed the importance of outreach.

“I’ve heard people say that there’s not a lot to do in Richmond County, but there’s always a lot going on,” he said. “It just takes the right advertisement and the right community engagement to make an event work.”

With a packed calendar of events, ongoing renovations and ambitious plans for the future, Preslar remains committed to her mission.

“I have a lot of visions for Hamlet and I feel like we will get to that point,” she said. “It’s a process, but we will get there.”

As the events season kicks off, Preslar invites the community to take part.

“We hope that you will come to our events and support us,” she said. “We do start on April 5—first Saturday in April starts the long line of our events. Then, second and fourth Fridays and then the last Saturday in April, this is our fourth year, we have our Walk’N Wag fundraiser.”

With unwavering dedication and a growing team, Preslar continues to leave an everlasting impact on Hamlet, bringing people together and creating a sense of community.