Main Streets Mean Business

Ann Geier Edgar

More and more cities and towns today are partnering with residents, local governments, and private interests to revitalize their downtowns, which are becoming anchors for economic development.

If you were to stop in many cities and ask a young person for directions downtown, he might steer you to the busy street filled with strip malls and Wal-Mart. It might be a center of commerce in some towns, but it’s not downtown.

Downtowns began to decline with suburban sprawl and the growth of malls and discount stores. These shopping centers took business away from traditional downtown retailers, forcing them to move to the suburbs or shut their doors. Many downtowns slowly receded into desolate sections of vacant, decrepit buildings with poorly maintained streets, sidewalks, and signage. In short, downtowns were a place people avoided.

Yet that’s changing in many cities. There’s been an effort in recent years to restore downtowns to places of commerce, entertainment, and residence.

Healthy, strong downtowns are important to a city’s economy and image, said Doug Loescher, director of the National Trust Main Street Center. Downtown businesses provide job growth and represent a significant portion of a municipality’s tax base, Loescher said. Downtowns also represent the image of the community, which is important to attract businesses, residents, and tourists.

A vibrant downtown goes hand in hand with economic development. Loescher believes that downtowns are great places to incubate new businesses and entrepreneurs. Downtowns often contain the largest collection of small businesses, which are the backbone for job growth in the United States, he added.

The National Trust Main Street Center offers a program called Main Street USA to revitalize older, traditional business districts throughout the country. These locally directed programs give downtown business owners and community leaders the knowledge, skills, tools, and organizational structure needed to revitalize their downtowns, neighborhood commercial districts, and cities or towns, into vibrant centers of commerce and community.

South Carolina’s Main Street program has 12 member-cities. Cities and towns are accepted into the program based on criteria such as strong partnerships between residents, local government, and private interests; the potential to sustain and attract businesses to downtown; and a demonstrated commitment from residents to meet the goals of the program.

"All of these Main Street SC member-cities have unique and sellable assets to position their downtown areas as anchors for economic development," said Beppie LeGrand, manager for Main Street SC. "By taking advantage of the training and networking available through the Main Street SC program, all of these towns can learn from each other by sharing their successes and challenges."

South Carolina’s Main Street program has 12 member-cities.

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Marion’s Main Street program, the Historic Marion Revitalization Association, has been working to beautify its downtown and bring in more businesses, according to Executive Director Chuck Wiegert.

The group has been working to help small business owners pay for façade improvements through a matching grant program. They are also launching a streetscape program featuring new trees and decorative pavers.

"All of this improves the appearance of downtown," Wiegert said. And with an aesthetically pleasing downtown, the group hopes to bring in more retail shops and restaurants that will attract vacationers from the Grand Strand for a day trip.

"We’re looking to bring new businesses to Marion," Wiegert said. "The snowbirds at the beach will come if there are enough antique stores."

The city is trying to advertise itself with the billboards so common along the route to the beach. The Carolina Amphitheater has posted a message on its billboard inviting travelers to "Visit Downtown Marion," and the revitalization association is considering grant money or borrowing land to put up its own signs.

Marion is in one of the poorest counties in South Carolina. A new Super Wal-Mart store has located between Marion and Mullins, and "a lot of poor people in the area feel it’s a godsend," Wiegert said. But a big-box retailer cannot compete with what the downtown offers, he said.

"Your downtown is the soul of your community. It’s where people come to do so much more than go into a Wal-Mart," Wiegert said. "It’s our heart and soul. If we lose that, we’ll be just like some of those towns that are just strip malls."

Downtown Florence is emphasizing its culture and history, and helping to improve quality of life for its residents.

Plans are under way to construct a performing arts center in downtown Florence, in conjunction with Francis Marion University and the city. An architect has been secured for the project, which is being partially funded through the Doctors Bruce and Lee Foundation. The center will have a 500-seat outdoor amphitheater and an indoor theater. It also will house classes for the fine arts program from the university, said Florence Downtown Development Coordinator Kendra Cobbs.

The new performing arts center will be located near the existing Florence Little Theater and will be part of the flourishing arts and cultural district, Cobbs said. The Little Theater, incidentally, had been located outside of town, but officials there decided to move to downtown to be part of revitalization efforts.

The city also is working to establish a downtown historic district. Florence submitted a proposal to the state historic office in December. There are 30 properties in the downtown historic area; most of these buildings hail from the late 19th century to early 20th century. The majority of these could fall under the historic designation. Others need some repair or façade removal to apply, Cobbs said.

"Downtowns are the core of the cities. It’s where the city started and developed," Cobbs said. "With sprawl, downtowns were forgotten, but now there’s a push all over the country to redevelop downtowns."

Main Street communities also focus on local assets beyond just the downtown. The Town of Great Falls has established public and private partnerships in its efforts to develop a nature-based tourism initiative using the nearby river as a draw.

The town, which is located beside the Catawba River, has spent the past three years negotiating with Duke Energy to put water back in the riverbeds, said Glinda Coleman, executive director of the Great Falls Hometown Association. Currently the utility operates three dams in the area, and the federal license expires for the dams in 2008. As part of the relicensing process, town officials have been negotiating for recreation activities in the area.

"We’d like to have water released on weekends from March to October for whitewater rafting," Coleman said. "These are some of the best rapids in the Southeast."

Town officials envision fishing spots and canoe and kayak areas. Great Falls also is working on establishing over the next decade a state park on islands currently leased by the state Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism. Officials hope to add trails and access areas to the islands while protecting the shoreline from development.

Coleman notes that the town is approaching economic development in a nontraditional way by promoting its natural resources. Officials expect that will attract tourists, and that other businesses will develop to support the nature-based initiative, such as outfitters or coffee shops.

After years of struggling to compete with the nearby vacation destination of Myrtle Beach, Conway finally has learned to capitalize on its own history and natural assets.

You can tell a lot about the quality of life of a community by its arts scene, said Larry Biddle, board president of Conway Main Street USA.

Several working artists call Conway home, and they have studios and galleries in the city. To put a spotlight on the arts and to bring people downtown, the Local Artists Guild began sponsoring Art Walks. Galleries open their doors the first Saturday of each month to showcase artists’ works. The city also has an active theater scene, which regularly features plays, holiday performances, and children’s shows.

Yet it’s not just the arts in Conway that make this city special. A trip downtown allows visitors to see beautiful historic buildings, sample food from award-winning restaurants, and shop in wonderful retailers that could compete with those in bigger cities, according to Biddle.

"This is a great destination," Biddle said. "It’s rich in history, and every year it’s coming together more." Conway has just begun tying the city in with the Waccamaw River, with the recent additions of residential space over retail shops on the riverfront.

After years of struggling to compete with the nearby vacation destination of Myrtle Beach, Conway finally has learned to capitalize on its own history and natural assets. "We have very little neon here," Biddle said. "The neon is on the Grand Strand, and that’s fine. Our neon is history."

Once, the railroad was the center of commerce for Hartsville, and a bustling rail yard was placed right in the middle of town. Over the years, the rail yard became less an economic necessity and more of an inconvenience and an eyesore.

Officials with the City of Hartsville have taken on an economic development project to relocate the rail yard. The project will result in additional retail space downtown, open up green space for residents, and create a safer walking environment for students from Coker College and the Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics, according to City Manager Jim Pennington.

The project has been in the works for about three years, as officials negotiated with the railroad and complied with requirements from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control. Public and private entities have cooperated to make the project a reality.

Officials are on the final leg of preparing land, and after that a road will be redesigned, said Judi Elvington, executive director of the Hartsville Downtown Development Association. Once it’s finished, there will be sidewalks and a walking path for students, a retaining pond with a fountain, and more room for commercial activity.

It’s rare that a downtown has an opportunity like this to expand, Elvington said, adding that this is the first new street to be added to downtown in 50 years. While it’s been a slow process, Pennington believes the changes to downtown will be exciting.

"This is something for the residents of Hartsville that will be permanent," he said. "It’s a vista to our future."

The city of Bennettsville has been working to improve the appearance of downtown, attract new businesses, and assist underprivileged youths in the community.

With the help of grants from the state Department of Commerce, the city has rehabilitated the facades on 98 buildings. Many of the buildings downtown are more than 100 years old and have beautiful Victorian architecture, said Ken Harmon, executive director of the Bennettsville Downtown Development Association.

The city also is working on a streetscape project, has added new directional signage in the downtown and outside city limits, and has begun a marketing campaign to promote the downtown.

A large focus of Bennettsville’s Main Street program now is on recruiting new businesses, Harmon said. The city developed a Business Recruitment Fund that offers up to $10,000 to help business owners start up and expand businesses in the downtown area. Officials would like to bring in nighttime restaurants, a department store, a shoe store, and clothing stores for women, children, and men.

The rural community also received a boost when it was selected as one of five sites in South Carolina for a Magic Johnson Foundation Technology Initiative. The center in downtown Bennettsville provides computer access plus training in jobs skills and technology. The program aims to make children and adults competitive in a high-tech economy, despite a lack of funding or resources, by giving them access to technology.

The City of Laurens has established its own unique marketing and development tool through its annual "Squealin’ on the Square Festival."

Each year, about 20,000 people descend on the Historic Square downtown to participate in the barbecue cook-off, car show, contests, and children’s events, said Jonathan Irick of Main Street Laurens USA. These visitors eat in the restaurants and visit the shops downtown.

"It’s a tremendous opportunity for our businesses to have 18,000 to 20,000 customers right outside their door," Irick said. It also has put the city in the national spotlight. Because the festival is sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society, the city has been contacted by numerous magazines for more information. "It’s given us the opportunity to get our name out there," Irick said.

Laurens also looks to grow its economy in 2008 by recruiting new businesses and by helping existing businesses to grow or improve. "Your downtown speaks volumes about what direction your city is going in," Irick said. "If you have a declining downtown, visitors think the city is declining.

"For years, people would avoid downtown Laurens because of the empty storefronts," he added. "Now downtown is one of the first places we bring industrial prospects."

In Lancaster, officials are using tourism as the engine to drive economic development.

A county-wide Main Street organization called See Lancaster has formed a partnership with the Lancaster County Chamber of Commerce and the Lancaster County Economic Development Corporation to promote the area. The group also works closely with the City of Lancaster, said Frank Keel, executive director of See Lancaster.

The group is focusing on weekend tourism events that will bring visitors in overnight. An air show is planned for May, the first event of its kind in the region for the past 15 years. Music and arts shows have been popular events, as well as a barbecue festival in Kershaw.

Downtowns are the barometer for local economies, according to Keel. "If you drive downtown and it’s boarded up and dead, the economy is not doing well. But if you drive through and it’s healthy and thriving, that gives you an idea of how the city in general is doing."

Downtowns also represent the community’s identity and connect residents with the past, Keel said. "Many people remember as children shopping downtown or driving downtown to see Christmas lights."

A recent renovation of Henry Chambers Waterfront Park, overlooking the Beaufort River, has allowed every resident to have "their own little piece of waterfront property," said Joy Locke, director of Main Street Beaufort USA.

The park was first built in the 1970s and experienced a great deal of wear and tear over the next few decades as a popular spot for residents and visitors. A plan was first developed in 2000 to remediate the park. Over the next several years, work was done to repair structural problems, landscaping, and storm water and electrical systems.

Today, the park links residents, visitors, and business owners in the downtown area. "It is a great asset to our city," Locke said. "It’s constantly being used by residents and tourists. It brings people downtown."

The playground at the park also attracts many families, who also shop and eat downtown. "It instills in young people that this is the true heart of the community," Locke said.

Officials in the town of Summerville have put their efforts into new signage and a new parking garage to bring visitors downtown.

The new parking garage was dedicated in November 2007, and officials are beginning to publicize to shoppers and visitors that parking is free and available downtown, said Jami Sheppard, executive director of the Summerville Main Street program called Downtown Restoration, Enhancement and Management, or D.R.E.A.M.

The group has been working to beautify the entranceway into town by planting flowers and trees and adding new signage. Officials also are working to recruit businesses for a new building in the downtown historic district. They are seeking a mix of restaurants, professional services, and retail, Sheppard said.

Summerville has laid the groundwork in its revitalization efforts. "Now we’re building momentum," she said.

There’s a new trend in Orangeburg for businesses to relocate downtown.

It’s a trend city officials are pleased to note. A furniture store is looking to move downtown. The Department of Public Safety just moved its office downtown. And, notably, a sporting goods store has left the mall and relocated downtown.

The downtown has few empty storefronts and a good mix of retail and restaurants, though the city is working to attract even more, said Bernice Tribble, executive director of the Downtown Orangeburg Revitalization Association.

The city also is making use of its older buildings. A former hotel has been refurbished for student housing. A turn-of-the-century firehouse is now the new home of city council chambers.

"Instead of downtown Orangeburg being a place people run away from, now it’s a draw," Tribble said. That’s important, because downtown is the heart of a city. "It’s everybody’s turf."

Manning, the newest member of Main Street SC, joined a few months ago.

Manning, the newest member of Main Street SC, joined a few months ago. Mayor Kevin Johnson said his city has made improvements to its downtown over the past several years and hopes the organization can help the city to continue its efforts. "It’s in the core of what we’ve been doing," Johnson said.

Johnson hopes to see improvements to storefronts and to add residences and apartments downtown. There also are some vacant properties downtown that he would like to see filled. "We want to retain those who are doing business downtown and, in turn, attract more businesses to our downtown area," Johnson said.

For additional information about the Main Street SC program, contact Beppie LeGrand at (803) 933-1231 or at blegrand@masc.sc. ¨