Saturday, October 19, 2013

30 Ideas in 30 Days: #8 The Strength of Main Street

30 Ideas in 30 Days

There are certain affinities between the Better Block approach that started in 2010, and the Main Street Four-Point Approach® established nearly three decades prior.

Downtown Middlesboro, ca. 1930's. Credit: Discover Downtown Middlesboro.

Idea #8: The Strength of Main Street

When historic downtown areas were struggling, preservation advocates came together around a vision that involves grassroots community based action to respond. What resulted is the Four-Point Approach that recommends action in each of the following areas: Organization, Promotion, Design, and Economic Restructuring. These just happen to correspond with the four elements of real estate value: Civic, Social, Physical, and Economic. Through organizing the community to bring about improvements in each of these areas, incremental actions will help to bring about the comprehensive change needed over time.

Fast forward to 2010 with emergence of the Better Block movement. With Better Block there are many shared goals. Most prominent is the desire to improve the physical appearance of places. This clearly corresponds with the Design committee. Pop-up stores, food trucks and carts, and mobile vendors all deal with varying the retail mix and providing amenities people need. This clearly corresponds with the Economic Restructuring committee and their work. Then there is Organization and Promotion. In the Main Street world Promotional events help to promote a positive image of the downtown area and attract people through retail promotions and special events. Clearly Better Block accomplishes this goal. Organization, on the other hand, deals with marshaling the people, will, and resources needed to bring change about. Once again, Better Block fulfills this goal too.

In a way Better Block is a faster, cheaper, and better fulfillment of what Main Street advocates have been working on for decades. It would serve advocates on both sides well to borrow from one another and to more fully explore opportunities for partnership.

Better Block Middlesborough was held from October 25-27, 2013, in Middlesborough, Kentucky. To help with planning for future events like this, please consider making a donation today!

 Managing the Event
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