Downtown Marketing and Development

Insights and observations on the redevelopment and revitalization of post-industrial towns on the Route 422 Corridor in Southeastern Pennsylvania.

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Death of the Greenline

When you are a revitalization coordinator in a town, you learn to “go wide” with projects so you can have the greatest impact in a community. Business people and governments raise a bunch of money, articulate all their hopes and dreams, and hand them to you to make a reality.

New Opportunities

The winds of political change flew through the state capitol last fall, as we were the recipients of a new governor. Any time the government changes administrations, new priorities bring new programs for communities across the commonwealth.

State Stores in the Downtown

Main Street Managers talk to each other all of the time. One manager will encounter many of the same problems encountered by another manager. One problem continues to come to the forefront of issues relating to the downtown… losing your Liquor Control Board (LCB) state store.

Transit Oriented Development is a Plus for a Community

America of the 1870s saw a lot of towns suddenly appear along the rail lines as the population moved westward. Chicago and Los Angles grew into large cities and rail hubs from small towns, because people wanted to be near transportation. Smaller towns like Sayre, Pennsylvania started as a company-controlled entity as the railroad located headquarters there.

Vision and Development

I was in Phoenixville the other day and found that the new downtown development is being constructed that will soon transform downtown Phoenixville. The project has been in the works since 2010. My working the project through the initial approval process was my first consulting job after the Main Street CDC in Phoenixville.

“I Am Main Street” Begins

The effort to create a more dynamic and self-sustaining downtown/neighborhood revitalization effort is finally ready to kick off. Eight downtown managers from around the state have banned together to form the “I AM MAIN STREET” organization. Starting anything from scratch is a difficult task, and there have been many ups and downs while starting this movement.

Promotions and Festivals as an Economic Development Tool

There is always a need for things to happen in a downtown around Christmas in order to spur year-end sales. It is hard for a downtown to compete with big box stores or the chain stores that are located in malls. People try to shop in the downtown central business district as a way of securing alternative goods that are not part of the homogenized offerings of the chains and the big box stores.

Downtown Development as a Profession

Many people ask me “How did you get into the downtown development business?” The fact is that I am not sure how it happened. I remember in the early years it was not really a profession, and it was hard to explain what I did for a living.

Can Something Be So Bad It Is Good?

I have worked in a number of communities that have attempted to revitalize their downtown, and faced obstacles because of poor housing stock surrounding the downtown. The commonwealth attempted to address this problem with the Elm Street program. If the housing stock around the downtown is deteriorating, in many cases it deters people from entering the area.

Future of Main Street/Budget Constraints Imperil Program

It appears that a number of things have not gone well for the Pennsylvania Main Street program the last few years. Severe budget cuts and the loss of a designated specific line item in the Commonwealth budget have hurt the program. The number of Main Street programs across the state decrease annually, as local budgets shrink along with the Commonwealth’s budget.

What is Your Town's Vision?

Each town is a unique entity with different strengths and weaknesses. Some towns have a strong building stock, some have strong retail and others have little of anything. The focus on what your town has to offer can many times be overlooked.

The Importance of a Sense of Place

One of the hardest things to do as a main street manager is to develop a sense of place for the town.  Many times when someone is hired to revitalize a town there is really just a thought of what the town “used to be” back when it was in it’s heyday. People talk about how the crowds could not be accommodated on the sidewalk because there were so many people shopping. In most cases that perception of what it “used to be” is not relevant to what it is now. 

Acting as an Agent of Change

Recently I was honored by the Governor as an Agent of Change and inducted into the Keystone Society for Tourism. It was something I had not expected but the category and the spirit of the award fit the style of downtown management that I employ and I was happy to be recognized. I am the first Main Street Manager to be honored by the award.

Organizational Relationships

Many times downtown Main Street Boards delegate some of the nuts and bolts of the revitalization to committees. Committees could include economic development, design, and promotion. Some Main Street Boards are creative and have an inter-group committee to interact with other agencies. Committees are where the work gets done and the community input is secured.

Providing Leadership

People often ask me what is economic development? I always respond that it is a process. To ensure economic development occurs, you need to organize, plan and execute, and then evaluate. There are no magic wands, and no sure fire method to be successful at economic revitalization and development. You need to find the right combination.

Creating a Community Development Corporation

The funding for downtown programs has changed as some of the new regulations continue to emerge. Every time a Governor changes the rules on the housing and development money change a little bit. Each Governor puts his or her own spin on things and tries to tailor funding toward their philosophy. 

Keystone Initiatives Centerpiece of Governor's Community Development Plan

Every time we elect a new governor, programs are tailored to meet the goals of the administration. I have dealt with the Keystone Communities in a previous column. The long and the short of that article was that there would not be any “new” Main Street or Elm Street programs awarded with the new administration. Communities have an opportunity to become a Keystone Community, but they have to pay the administrative costs by providing at least a 60 percent of a full time employee to carry out mission.

Combating Aberrant Behavior in a Downtown Setting

Many towns have problems with people on the street doing things that make consumers a little skittish when considering visiting a downtown. Many times these folks are not really doing anything bad. They are just down on their luck. But there are times when illicit activity is the prime reason for them being in the downtown.

The Wonderful World of Grants

I have been exploring what grants are out there on a federal level, and I will tell you there are many. The federal government funds all kinds of stuff. I have seen grants to fix things in foreign countries and to fund research for all kinds of things.

The other day I came upon a grant for people to drill wells, it goes like this:

How Do You Find Grant Opportunities?

How do you find grant opportunities? People ask me all the time about how could they go about getting a grant. Normally there are not too many grants for individuals, but there are some. Most of the time grants are for non-profit organizations. Any non-profit advocating for a public purpose, as defined by the IRS, is eligible for a grant. There are grants available to help individuals in the arts, as well as grants for categories and classes of people who have been underserved in the past.

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