CANTON—With a heavy golden sledgehammer and a symbolic blow to a downtown wall, local and state officials joined the owners of Nature’s Storehouse on Thursday, April 2 to officially begin the demolition and expansion of the landmark Main Street business.

The ceremony, facilitated by the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, marked the start of construction for Nature’s Café. Owners Clark and Yen Maine used a golden sledgehammer to knock the first holes into a wall in 19 Main St., adjacent to the current Nature’s Storehouse storefront.

New York State Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley, who attended the ceremony to celebrate the $497,000 New York Forward investment, said the expansion represents the heart of regional development.

“This is about community,” Secretary Mosley said, noting that businesses like Nature’s Storehouse are where people “congregate to talk and to share information or news of a newborn or that of an expansion.”

Calling Canton’s New York Forward award, a “force multiplier,” Mosley said the initiative is designed to create regional destinations while cutting the red tape that often slows small business development.

“Nature’s is more than just a local business that provides healthy foods and nourishment,” the Secretary said. “It operates with a philanthropic mindset. This is not just about dollars and cents—it’s about what makes sense to the people we serve.”

Owners Clark and Yen Maine, the fifth owners of the business since its founding in 1972, noted that the expansion is a critical piece of revitalizing the downtown core. For Yen Maine, who is currently preparing for her U.S. citizenship test, the project holds personal significance.

“This is somewhere I didn’t know... this is something I was looking for—neighbors who know our names and the land,” she said, describing the expansion as a version of the “American dream” and a testament to equal opportunity.

Mayor Michael Dalton and Assemblyman Scott Gray also offered remarks, praising the "sweat equity" of the owners and the collaborative work of the local planning committee, Empire State Development, and Canton Economic Development Office.