Great Mills Gaining Retail Space

Finish work has begun on the new, two-story shop space at the MD Route 5 intersection with Indian Bridge and Flat Iron roads across from Great Mills Trading Post. Potentially three tenants will be able to fit in the space, according to the Bubby Knott of Great Mills Trading Post, owner of the property.

Ebby’s Finishing Touches will become the new building’s first tenant.

The new building will ultimately replace the old Friendly Tavern structure, which has operated since 2013 as the showroom for Ebby’s Finishing Touches, a unique interior design firm. The building is across Indian Bridge Road from Great Mills Trading Post.

Ebby’s Finishing Touches owner, Ebby Bell, transformed the former watering hole into a bazaar of  textiles in 2013. The showroom displays some of the unusual, special order products the company has become known for acquiring  — tiles, fabrics, wood flooring, window dressings.

The showroom serves as headquarters for Ms. Bell and her cadre of three additional designers who provide a full array of residential and commercial design services for customer in the Southern Maryland area. Services begin with a free, in-home consultation. Ms. Bell explains her company’s mission is to make decorating easier for customers by bringing the selections to them.

Ebby’s design services can begin with the very first piece of flooring – from selection through installation – to selection of bedspreads to match window treatments on windows trimmed to match the cabinetry. One of the trickiest parts to redecorating is getting the details to match instead of making do with “good enough.”

Getting all the details to mesh appears to be working for the new building itself.  As the new construction spruces up the southeast corner of the intersection and opens up a greater line of sight for drivers, the intersection itself is getting a facelift.

The long-sought building approvals to replace the tavern with a building set farther back from the roads, coincides with a substantial re-paving project along MD Route 5.

While conducted mostly at night, the work on Route 5 between Great Mills and Indian Bridge roads did cause some traffic back-up, highlighting the bottleneck there familiar to morning and evening commuters. The Maryland State Department of Transportation is currently studying alternatives to addressing the Route 5 bottleneck.

For more information about Great Mills Trading Post, visit their Leaders Member Page.