The Main Street Program is a comprehensive, community-based revitalization approach, developed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1980. Main Street grants are often used to enhance the business districts of Pennsylvania’s core communities with improvements to existing businesses, streetscape upgrades and other rehabilitation projects. These programs have made positive changes in many older downtown areas. Communities across the U.S. apply its four key components with great success:

1 – Design

Design means getting Main Street into top physical shape. Capitalizing on its best assets such as historic buildings and the traditional downtown layout is just part of the story. An inviting atmosphere can be created through window displays, parking areas, signs, sidewalks, street lights, and landscaping; good design conveys a visual message about what Main Street is and what it has to offer.

2 – Promotion

Promotion means selling the image and promise of Main Street to all prospects. By marketing the district’s unique characteristics through advertising, retail promotional activities, special events, and marketing campaigns an effective promotion strategy forges a positive image to shoppers, investors, new businesses and visitors.

3 – Organization

Organization means getting everyone working towards common goals. The common-sense formula of a volunteer-driven program and an organizational structure of board and committees assisting professional management can ease the difficult work of building consensus and cooperation among the varied groups that have a stake in the district.

4 – Economic Restructuring

Economic Restructuring means finding new or better purposes for Main Street enterprises. Helping existing downtown businesses expand and recruiting new ones, a successful Main Street converts unused space into productive property and sharpens the competitiveness of its businesses.

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