Author Visit
Wilkes County Public Library
May 15, 2008
Teen Game Tourney
Wilkes County Public Library
May 19, 2008
Book Club
Wilkes County Public Library
May 20, 2008
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more downtown events
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Downtown North Wilkesboro Committees
The National Trust Main Street Center offers a comprehensive commercial district revitalization strategy that
has been widely successful in towns and cities nationwide. Described below are the four points of the Main
Street approach which work together to build a sustainable and complete community revitalization effort.
Organization involves getting everyone working toward the same goal and assembling the
appropriate human and financial resources to implement a Main Street revitalization program. A governing board
and standing committees make up the fundamental organizational structure of the volunteer-driven program.
Volunteers are coordinated and supported by a paid program director as well. This structure not only divides the
workload and clearly delineates responsibilities, but also builds consensus and cooperation among the various
stakeholders.
Promotion sells a positive image of the commercial district and encourages consumers and
investors to live, work, shop, play and invest in the Main Street district. By marketing a district's unique
characteristics to residents, investors, business owners, and visitors, an effective promotional strategy forges
a positive image through advertising, retail promotional activity, special events, and marketing campaigns carried
out by local volunteers. These activities improve consumer and investor confidence in the district and encourage
commercial activity and investment in the area.
Design means getting Main Street into top physical shape. Capitalizing on its best assets — such as
historic buildings and pedestrian-oriented streets — is just part of the story. An inviting atmosphere, created through
attractive window displays, parking areas, building improvements, street furniture, signs, sidewalks, street lights, and
landscaping, conveys a positive visual message about the commercial district and what it has to offer. Design activities
also include instilling good maintenance practices in the commercial district, enhancing the physical appearance of the
commercial district by rehabilitating historic buildings, encouraging appropriate new construction, developing sensitive
design management systems, and long-term planning.
Economic Restructuring strengthens a community's existing economic assets while expanding and
diversifying its economic base. The Main Street program helps sharpen the competitiveness of existing business owners
and recruits compatible new businesses and new economic uses to build a commercial district that responds to today's
consumers' needs. Converting unused or underused commercial space into economically productive property also helps
boost the profitability of the district.
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