The Congaree Vista Guild, a non-profit, membership-based organization comprised of a wide variety of restaurateurs, shop, business, gallery owners, and homeowners in the Vista, has elected new officers for 2017.

J Britt, CEO of Magnolia Development, Inc. and project director for Midlands Arts Conservancy, will serve as president of the Vista Guild board, and Merritt McNeely, South Carolina State Museum director of marketing, has been named vice president. Alexis Lindsay, an associate with Sowell Gray Robinson Stepp & Lafitte, will serve as secretary. Hal Stevenson, CEO of Grace Outdoor, will serve as treasurer.

“Our Board works to foster long-term growth and success in the Vista,” said Congaree Vista Guild Executive Director Meredith Atkinson. “We have a variety of experience and expertise on the board that will continue to improve Columbia’s arts and entertainment district, while also ensuring responsible growth and development in our neighborhood.”

Todd Avant, Kelly Barbrey, Richard Burts, Stephen Chesley, Lea Cooper, Rosie Craig, Clark Ellefson, David Erbacher, Mike Evans, Beth Frost, Guy Jones, Dale Marshall and Rick Rowe also serve on the Vista Guild board. Columbia Development Corporation’s Fred Delk will serve as an ex officio board member.

“This neighborhood has so much to offer Columbia, now, more than ever, and we are excited to promote and expand business and arts experiences in the Vista,” said Britt.

The Vista has long been Columbia’s creative center, and is now the Midlands’ place to go for nightlife and entertainment. The Congaree Vista Guild board strives to encourage healthy growth in the Vista, while seeing that the Vista is a vibrant symbol of historic preservation and adaptive reuse in Columbia.

For more information about the Vista Guild, visit www.VistaColumbia.com or contact Meredith Atkinson at (803) 269-5946. Follow the Vista Guild on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @VistaGuild.