The Main Street ApproachTM has proven to be one of the most cost-effective economic revitalization tools available for communities and urban centers. What started as a small pilot program in the late 1970s has grown to include nearly 2,000 communities in more than 40 states. Throughout the country, communities have utilized the Main Street ApproachTM to rally residents around a focused enhancement strategy that transforms their community and enhances their quality of life.
With its own distinctive assets and sense of place—the approach offers community-driven initiatives with a practical, adaptable frameworks for downtown transformation that is easily tailored to local conditions.
The Kansas Main Street program provides technical assistance and support for communities working within the approach. We assist local programs in developing transformational strategies that articulate a focused, deliberate path to revitalizing or strengthening their downtown or commercial district’s economy. Centered around four points—economic vitality, design, promotion and organization—these strategies guide the local program toward a distinct vision of what they want their community, and downtown, to be.
From 1985 to 2012, more than $600 million in redevelopment took place in participating Kansas communities. This included the opening or expansion of 3,800 small businesses, creating more than 8,600 new jobs. With the return of the state program in 2020, 25 previously participating communities and new programs will once again have the resources and tools they need to breathe new life into their communities and historic commercial districts.
