In 1972, Hensley’s Corning Plumbing & Heating moved into 713 Davis Ave., but in 1991 relocated to their current location at 721 Benton Ave., taking over an old NFO storage building there. Corning officially became a Main Street Community in 1990, one of the first rural communities to be part of the Main Street America program. A tornado that year did some minor damage up and down the commercial district and the Hensleys took advantage of facade planning and grants offered by Main Street in 1991 to be the first to redo the Benton side of their old property as well as the front of their new store.

Of course, Sally Hensley took the alley shortcut when she had to go to Davis Ave, as did many merchants who parked on Benton. It was a treacherous walk with irregular and broken bricks, and puddles or ice to navigate to avoid a fall. Finally in 2008, the Main Street Design Committee had had enough. School Superintendent Mike Wells organized volunteers to pull up the bricks and relay the salvageable ones in a smooth and attractive path down the center of the alley. The walls on both sides were stuccoed and painted to match and picnic tables and benches were placed for a place to gather. Of course, because it has such a nice ring to it, the alley was christened “Sally’s Alley”. In 2024, the north wall was turned into an Iowa bird mural by regional artist Zach Jones. Triangular shaped shade fabric stretches between the buildings to make it even more attractive. The Design Committee hopes that the space is an inviting restful area that enhances the ambiance of Main Street.