Otto Beatty Jr. Men's Shop expansion gets $330,000 boost from Franklin County's COVID funds

More than 300 Franklin County men soon will get a chance to dress to impress, thanks to a sizable clothing donation from the late husband of U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty and more than $300,000 from the county's federal COVID relief funds.

The county Board of Commissioners unanimously approved on Tuesday giving $330,766 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to Impact Community Action for the Otto Beatty Jr. Men's Shop.

Otto Beatty Jr. was a longtime Democratic state lawmaker and community activist who died in May 2021. He previously served for many years as the attorney for Impact's predecessor, the Columbus Metropolitan Area Community Action Organization.

A partnership with Nehemiah House of Refuge, the shop provides men who earn $27,180 a year as a single person or $55,500 for a family of four with a professional wardrobe and other services when looking for work.

American Rescue Plan Act: Eight Columbus-area municipalities lost federal relief funds because they didn't apply

Beatty family legacy in Greater Columbus: Joyce Beatty lists Blacklick home for $1.2 million

Impact and Nehemiah House have partnered for the past decade, including to provide clothes through the latter's Rise Up men's clothing program. The county's COVID relief funds will go toward expanding the shop at Impact and running it for one year, said Jenny Snapp, chief operating officer of Franklin County Economic Development and Planning. Future operational funding will come from the county's federal Community Service Block Grant funds.

Expansion costs include $130,000 for construction of the boutique and office space; $93,000 for furniture; $36,500 for fiber optic cables and security systems; and $7,600 related to a computer networking system, according to financial information Nehemiah provided to the county.

Annual operating expenses include $36,000 for a project manager and administrative assistant through Nehemiah; $1,200 to replenish clothing; $6,000 for dry-cleaning; $5,738 for clothing racks, hangers and suit covers, office equipment and furniture; $4,500 for administrative costs; and $9,000 in rent for the space.

The project also received $200,000 from the city of Columbus, $100,000 from Grange Insurance and $50,000 from the Columbus Foundation.

"This pandemic has been devastating, particularly to communities of color, and we want to help with that recovery effort by getting people back to work," Impact CEO Robert "Bo" Chilton said. "Now we're able to take this to another level by bringing that service in-house at Impact, where not only will people be able to receive an outfit that will make them feel good, make them feel powerful, but they'll also receive the supportive services to remove employment barriers, so they can get back to work and earn a living wage."

After Beatty's death, county Commissioner Kevin Boyce said he personally reached out to Impact to honor his longtime mentor, and Beatty's family agreed to donate his sizeable collection of professional attire, including shirts, ties, shoes and suits, sizes 38 to 52.

"I remember that day, when (Chilton) came over, and I said, 'I have a few items;' I think they were a little overwhelmed when they realized it was hundreds in each" type of clothing, Congresswoman Joyce Beatty said during Tuesday's meeting.

County commissioners, all Democrats, also shared their own memories of the late Beatty. Board President Erica Crawley recalled his efforts to help her when she first joined the Ohio House of Representatives, a position she left in 2021 after two years to become a commissioner.

John O'Grady recalled how Beatty treated him as his own person, as opposed to simply the being the son of a former Ohio Democratic party chairman and state commerce director.

Boyce recalled working as an aide in the state Legislature, where Beatty served, when the lawmaker took him to lunch — but not before stopping by a men's shop on Alum Creek, where he asked a bewildered young Boyce his size and ended up buying the aide a slew of dress shirts.

"I'm telling you he probably bought 60 shirts that day; I'm probably underestimating that," Boyce said. "He bought all these shirts, we get in the car and go back and he said, 'You know, you've always got to have a clean shirt. You've always got to have a good shirt.' … He didn't know me; he didn't have to do that, but he did."

It was the start of a years-long mentorship that Boyce said prevented him from becoming just another statistic.

"I can honestly say but for a handful of other Black men, who invested time in me (and) confidence, there's no way I'd be here," Boyce said with tears in his eyes.

"What Otto did with me is extend an already substantial legacy that the Beatty family has had on central Ohio and more importantly the legacy that the Beatty family has done for Black men in our community."

A grand opening of the new clothing shop at Impact Community Action, 711 Southwood Ave., is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Monday.

Contact Nathaniel Shuda at (614) 245-0319 or nshuda@gannett.com.

Follow him on Twitter at @NathanielShuda or Facebook at facebook.com/NathanielShuda.

Get more political analysis by listening to the Ohio Politics Explained podcast

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Men's shop named after late husband of U.S. Rep. Beatty opens Monday