Expansion of the National Main Street Program

As many downtowns nationwide began to face their decline and shift into irrelevance as the suburbs began taking over, the National Trust for Historic Preservation took a concerted interest to research what was really going on behind this decline and if there was anything that could be done to save the fate of downtowns from complete absolution. They began studying and analyzing various downtowns in the Midwest to pinpoint which factors were at play, as well as to create a program which would aid in remedying this downfall to include economic rehabilitation and the preservation of invaluable historic structures.

From the study region of the Midwest, the National Trust chose three downtowns, Galesburg, Illinois, Madison, Indiana, and Hot Springs, South Dakota, that would become their pilot communities to further analyze and implement unique rehabilitation plans for each locale. Once the research was gathered, the National Trust hired program managers to implement these revitalization plans for each of the communities through grants. Once the designated time span of three years passed, the downtowns were again analyzed and it was found that all of the pilot communities had greatly benefitted from the National Trust’s efforts. New businesses had opened and “occupancy rates and property tax collections had increased.”[1] More impressively, “for each dollar which went towards implementation of the Main Street Program, an average of $11 had been invested by the private sector in rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of buildings in the pilot communities.”[2] This meant that historic and vacant buildings in towns were being brought back to life and given a new use once again.

The success of these pilot communities was reason enough to spread the success to other downtowns in an attempt to combat the plaguing damage most, if not all, downtowns were facing at the time. The National Trust started the National Main Street Center, based upon the success of the pilot communities. The original program managers became the key staff members for this new venture. With the joining of the International Downtown Executive’s Association, it was decided a state-level demonstration would be shared as the states could then pass on this knowledge with their towns and cities accordingly. States would also be able to network with other states, sharing their experiences and spreading this information even further.

Through another competition to implement this new state-level program, the National Trust chose Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas. Each state was then allowed to choose 5 cities and towns to participate in the study. After implementation and analysis another three years later, the results were again successful and promising: new local organizations were developed or strengthened, commerce increased, rehabilitation efforts improved and new construction projects were taking place. The program proved itself to be successful and so it continued to spread from town to city and state-to-state. An annual conference, fittingly named the National Town Meeting, began taking place to allow for expanded reach, further training opportunities and to create a network for experienced and newly interested communities.[3]

Overall the initial efforts of the Main Street Program of the National Trust realized through the pilot communities helped them to acquire the knowledge and insight into the reasons and factors that destroyed towns as well as those that could successfully rebuild them. The key factor in the Main Street Program’s rebuilding of downtowns and cities was public-private enterprise. With the right support and coordinated interests a successful program could be realized. The successes of the pilot communities created a framework that would go on to benefit many other communities before becoming the Main Street Program that exists today, which is known as the National Main Street Center Inc.. Today, they have expanded the program in an attempt to adapt and respond to the more complexities that time has brought about to cities and towns nationwide. It is likely this program will need to constantly adjust to the growing changes our cities and towns will continue to witness as they evolve, but the initial impacts of the pilot program will never be far from the framework.

[1]Gunther, Justin. “Unit 3: The National Main Street Program.” Class Notes, SCAD, Savannah, GA, July 7, 2014.

[2] Ibid.

[3] “History of the National Main Street Center.” National Trust for Historic Preservation. http://www.preservationnation.org/main-street/about-main-street/the-center/history.html#.U8HhtqidmoU (accessed July 8, 2014).