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Image Source: City of Bozeman, MT
By the late 1970s, many of America’s downtowns were struggling amid the rise of suburban malls, big box retailers, and sprawling commercial development on the edges of city centers. All over the country, Main Streets, once bustling centers of commerce and community, were left with crumbling infrastructure, high vacancy rates, and a weak economic base.
To help counter this troubling trend, the National Trust for Historic Preservation launched Main Street America (originally called the National Main Street Center) in 1980. After partnering with coordinators in a handful of states to implement programs tailored to their respective communities, MSA’s revitalization initiative spread across the country, focusing on smaller downtowns rather than large metros.
As this movement to preserve the country’s downtowns celebrates its 45th anniversary, Community Playmaker explores how Main Streets have changed over the decades and the trends and innovations emerging in downtown development.
Over the last few decades, Main Streets have encountered a slew of new challenges, from the rise of online shopping to the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, the Chicago-based MSA has helped over 2,000 communities preserve their downtowns. The organization partners with corporations, foundations, and government entities to deliver grants and consultation services for economic development, historic preservation, urban planning, finance, and public affairs.
Matt Wagner, MSA’s chief innovation officer, said smaller cities and towns around the country are rolling out creative initiatives to enliven their downtowns, tapping into new innovations and historic strategies.
While some Main Street businesses are embracing new technologies, other trends reflect a return to the past. For example, some downtowns are seeing a revitalization of craft industries like coffee shops, breweries, distilleries, clothing retailers, bicycle shops, and candy stores.
“Decades ago, most manufacturing was downtown, but it went away,” Wagner said. “Now it’s coming back but in a different form. You can manufacture just about anything now along Main Street at a smaller scale. That’s brought a whole new dimension of consumers who are interested in customized, unique brands.”
Another trend that harkens back to the past is downtown residential development, which is critical in creating a communal sense of place. Historically, shop owners lived above their stores, but during the 1970s and ‘80s, as people fled to the suburbs, many of those spaces were abandoned.
“Now you’re seeing more people wanting to live in a downtown,” Wagner said. “They want to be able to walk to their neighborhood cafe, barber shop, post office, or maybe even their job. That’s been a big shift.”
Wagner added that what sets Main Street corridors apart from other commercial districts is they’re multifaceted, with professional services, manufacturing, retail, and special events. It’s where people come to gather and socialize.
Image Source: City of Bozeman, MT
An important tool in achieving downtown revitalization is collaboration. Bozeman, Montana has an economic development nonprofit, Downtown Bozeman Partnership, that works closely with city officials.
“The partnership that we have with the Downtown Business Partnership is vital to the growth and maintenance of downtown,” said Bozeman Mayor Terry Cunningham. “We work with them hand in glove.”
He said the two organizations collaborate on a downtown plan that is revisited every five years and presented to the city council. “We look at what’s the vision for the future. We all sit in a room together and try to figure out what’s best for downtown, because what’s best for downtown is also what’s best for Bozeman.”
Cunningham said a big part of Bozeman’s downtown plan focuses on the area’s natural beauty. The city boasts the expansive Main Street to the Mountains trail system, which connects the downtown to parks, retailers and other points of interest. The scenic Bozeman Creek runs through downtown, along with bicycle boulevards.
This embrace of the great outdoors extends to the downtown retailers, which include many outfitters that sell gear and clothing for skiing, fly fishing, camping and other adventures. There’s also a popular hardware store, a co-op food market, restaurants, jewelry stores, and art galleries with pieces depicting the local scenery and wildlife.
In addition to his work with the DBP, Cunningham is the city liaison to the Downtown Bozeman Urban Renewal District’s Board of Directors.
“We discuss everything from infrastructure projects to affordable housing solutions to parking supply and enforcement,” he said. “We are in regular conversations with business owners and property managers. We are not the experts of downtown business and want to learn from their experiences, rather than impose our will upon them. It’s a collaborative process where we value the skills and experiences that people bring to the table.”
There’s also the Downtown Bozeman Business Improvement District. It’s an organization of property owners who collaborate with government officials, business owners, and residents who work to keep downtown safe and vibrant, focusing on maintenance and beautification efforts, from graffiti removal to planting flowers.
“It’s these little details and accessories that make downtown a positive experience,” Cunningham said.
Similar to Bozeman, Emporia, Kansas’s economic development nonprofit Emporia Main Street works with city and county officials to spearhead and manage the city’s downtown development.
Situated roughly halfway between Topeka and Wichita, Emporia is noted for its historic downtown, which boasts a welcoming mix of antique stores, boutiques, coffee shops, restaurants, and performing arts venues.
MSA recently recognized Emporia in its Main Street Forward Awards, which highlighted communities that showed exemplary recovery and resilience efforts amid the COVID-19 pandemic, noting its significant relief funding and small business support.
Casey Woods, executive director of Emporia Main Street, explains that the nonprofit maintains its budget through city and county appropriations, along with membership investments and annual fundraisers.
“We have an exceptionally close and collaborative relationship with our city and county government,” said Woods.
Emporia native and City Commissioner Becky Smith is one of three city commissioners on the nonprofit’s board of directors, along with one county representative. “We have a chamber of commerce, and we have a regional development association, but Main Street Emporia takes the lead on our downtown,” she said.
Smith said that growing up, Emporia had a vibrant downtown, with big department stores and a busy pharmacy where she and her friends hung out.
Like so many other small towns, Emporia’s downtown started to decline in the 1980s, as businesses shuttered and people moved away. “We didn’t even know what the word ‘entrepreneur’ meant back then,” she said.
Emporia Main Street was established in 1991 to revitalize the downtown area.
Image Source: City of Emporia, KS
“Once that group came together, we slowly started to swing back in the other direction.”
Smith was part of that effort. Over the years, she has worked for the nonprofit, as well as managed a downtown bookstore, and owned a winery, which she closed during the COVID-19.
As Emporia rebounded, Smith said the city focused on vacant downtown properties, creating ordinances “with some teeth.”
“It was either sell or move on. We couldn’t have folks just sitting on empty stores as they turned to blight. When an industry is going through site selection, one of the main things they look for is a healthy and vibrant downtown.”
Of course, adequate funding is key to any downtown’s vibrancy, and Woods with Emporia Main Street said that remains the nonprofit’s top priority.
“Funding in general is a big hurdle in rural America because the costs to develop businesses and properties are basically the same as any place else,” he said. “If you buy lumber in a rural lumber yard or a big city, there isn’t a huge price differential, but the rent rates and profitability generated on those different businesses or buildings are substantially different.”
To help address this resource gap, Woods said the nonprofit manages a variety of loan programs. For example, the downtown has a historic district that provides state and federal historic tax credits for facility buildouts. Woods also pointed out how the organization works with different downtown businesses on alternative funding solutions. The popular Radius Brewing Company, for example, took part in a securities exchange exemption that enabled the company to offer and sell securities through crowdfunding.
Emporia also offers a program called Show of Hands, an entrepreneurial pitch competition that ties community members to local startups and expansions. After paying a cover charge, community members vote for their favorite business idea, and the funds are converted to a grant for the entrepreneurial concept of their choice.
“People starting their businesses can submit their expenses and we rebate them based on the funds raised through the competition,” said Woods.
Last year, Emporia Main Street authorized about $640,000 in low- or zero-interest loans that are matched with traditional bank financing.
“We take some of the risks off of our local rural financial institutions and allow them to be in a better position to loan dollars and fully capitalize business startups,” Woods said.
Emporia also takes advantage of a new $400,000 state grant to support upper-floor housing in commercial buildings in designated Main Street communities. The Residential Opportunities on Main Street grant program, adopted last year, helps create new housing opportunities and enhances the livability and functionality of downtowns.
“This can have a tremendous impact on Emporia’s downtown buildings,” said Woods. “It also has a significant impact on businesses when customers are living directly above them. It’s helped us extend business hours, the viability of local businesses, and generate more investments.”
Complementing these various funding resources are Emporia’s business classes. Working with the Center on Rural Innovation, Emporia Main Street offers five-week, cohort-based bootcamps for tech entrepreneurs. The E-tech Startups course teaches entrepreneurs repeatable and scalable business models, and attendees make a final business presentation at the end of the program.
The nonprofit also has a downtown business incubator, which offers office space for little to no rent. As the business grows, the rent gradually increases closer to the market rate, with the goal of helping businesses secure a permanent location. There’s also a fabrication lab, which helps people produce their products in either prototypes or small batch manufacturing.
“There’s a lot of things that entrepreneurs need to know before they start a business, and they need to develop a team approach as opposed to going it alone,” said Woods. “We assess the individual entrepreneur or developer and fill in the gaps to help them cross the finish line and have a sustainable, profitable business. We walk them through every step of the way.”
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