Programs

The Main Street Approach is a community-driven, comprehensive method to revitalize older, traditional business districts throughout the United States.  It addresses a variety of issues and problems that face traditional business districts. The underlying premise of the Main Street approach is to encourage economic development within the context of historic preservation. The Main Street Approach advocates a return to community self-reliance, local empowerment, and rebuilding of traditional commercial districts based on their unique assets: distinctive architecture, a pedestrian-friendly environment, personal service, local ownership, and a sense of community.

The Main Street Four-Point Approach™ is a comprehensive strategy that is tailored to meet local needs and opportunities. It encompasses work in four distinct areas, which are represented in our committees:

• Design

• Economic Restructuring

• Promotion

• Organization

Focusing on these four areas helps to create a balanced downtown and combine to address all of the commercial district's needs. This philosophy and the Eight Guiding Principles behind it make this method an effective tool for community-based, grassroots revitalization efforts. The Main Street approach has been successful in communities of all sizes, both rural and urban. Follow the links from this page to read more about these principles.

The Main Street approach is incremental; it is not designed to produce immediate change. Because expensive improvements, like pedestrian malls or sports arenas, often fail to address the underlying causes of commercial district decline, they do not always generate the desired economic results. In order to succeed, a long-term revitalization effort requires careful attention to every aspect of our own downtown.