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The Elgin Downtown Neighborhood Association team celebrates at the site of their future incubator program. Photo courtesy of the Elgin Downtown Neighborhood Association.
Like many community-based organizations, the Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) in Elgin, Illinois, has been on a journey over many years. Founded by downtown property owners in the 1990s, the DNA had been part of the Main Street network in years past. However, after our state temporarily halted the program, we have been working independently.
Following the pandemic, we recognized significant opportunities for change, but we needed additional support to bring them about. Businesses have evolved in new ways that our local ordinances had never envisioned. An influx of new residents came to our city, and they needed new ways to connect with their community. Our organization had largely abandoned previous plans during the pandemic to help businesses survive. Facing these challenges and opportunities, our leadership found themselves asking, “Where do we go from here?”
Three years ago, we had the opportunity, through a pandemic recovery grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, to engage Main Street America in a strategic planning project and market study of the city surrounding our downtown. More than a snapshot of demographic data, this study led us, our stakeholders, and community leadership on a deep dive into Elgin’s identity, revealing both the barriers and the unrealized potential of our central business district, historic core neighborhoods, and community at large.
It surfaced key challenges, such as restrictive zoning and persistent image issues, among families living in Elgin, many of whom would visit our award-winning public library and recreation center, but rarely venture farther into downtown. The insights we gained became the cornerstone of our strategic plan, giving us a clear path forward rooted in real data and community input.
That engagement didn’t just result in a report — it forged relationships and demonstrated the value of collaboration on a large scale. Through Illinois Main Street, we were introduced to Ilana Preuss and the Recast City team, who invited Elgin into a national cohort of cities rethinking how to activate their local economies in the Recast Leaders program.
The Elgin maker’s market. Photo courtesy of the Elgin Downtown Neighborhood Association.
The national Recast Leaders cohort brings together Main Street and other downtown leaders from across the country to integrate small-scale manufacturing businesses into local economic and downtown re-energizing efforts. “Elgin did the footwork to talk to the small product business owners, learn about their needs, build new relationships with these entrepreneurs who can fill storefronts, and understand what they need to scale in the city,” shared Ilana Preuss, CEO of Recast City.
The cohort helped us conduct a focused, in-depth examination of small-scale manufacturing, community capacity, and market readiness. That process strengthened our case for zoning reform and supported us throughout the update process. Through the Recast Leaders cohort, we formed stronger relationships and a deeper understanding of the needs and potential of the large network of vendor businesses who participate in our annual Farmer Market.
Most recently, this work helped us secure the prestigious Hartford Small Business Accelerator Grant to fund the creation of a retail/production business incubator program, focused on scaling up local Elgin makers. The program isn’t an isolated project; it’s the direct outcome of years of intentional planning, partnership, and perseverance. The throughline across every win has been the collaboration, insight, and network provided by Illinois Main Street and Recast City. This is what happens when a broader ecosystem supports local leadership: vision becomes strategy, and strategy becomes action.
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Charles City, IA © Mark Wicks
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Little Rock, AR © Main Street Arkansas
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Memphis, TN © Four Way
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Biddeford, ME © Heart of Biddeford
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Tulsa, OK © Dr. Tiffany Crutcher
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For an Inclusive Recovery, We Need Support for Small Business and the Groups that Help Them
BDOs are place-based organizations that help small businesses and entrepreneurs to flourish. They have been on the frontline of support for the country’s hardest-hit entrepreneurs throughout the pandemic and have been working to enable thriving commercial corridors throughout the crisis.
Main Spotlight: Five Takeaways on Supporting Entrepreneurship from Matthew Wagner, Ph.D.
Matthew Wagner, Ph.D., Chief Program Officer at Main Street America, was featured on Breaking Down Barriers: a podcast from Startup Space highlighting stories of community leaders who break down barriers to entry for underserved and unrepresented entrepreneurs.
Main Spotlight: Windows of Opportunity — The Transformation of Empty Storefronts on Main Street
A vacant storefront is the perfect stage to creatively promote the available space or to showcase other businesses and events in the area.
Ripon, WI © RetailWorks, Inc
Small Businesses E‑Commerce Usage Continues to Increase as Holiday Revenues Were Mixed: Results from Our January 2021 Survey of Small Business Owners
We heard from 289 business owners in 35 states plus the District of Columbia in our new text message-based survey of small business owners across the network.
Community Spotlight: Paving the Path from Pop-up to Permanent at the Batavia Boardwalk Shops
The Batavia Boardwalk Shops are freestanding, purpose-built structures acting as seasonal pop-up locations for entrepreneurs, offered in tandem with a business incubator program.
Batavia, IL © April Duda Photography
Business Spotlight: Black Entrepreneurs Leading By Example in Chicago
For Black History Month, we want to recognize and celebrate the Black business owners and entrepreneurs who have overcome challenges and obstacles in launching and running their own businesses, thanks to resilience, creativity, and hard work.
Main Spotlight: Pop-Up Retail: Not Just For Start-Ups, And Other Learnings From Its Evolution
As a vital place factor within an entrepreneurship ecosystem, pop-up programs allow for emerging businesses to test their product, gain consumer feedback, and promote their brand at an extremely low cost. In essence, allowing for a ‘fail-fast’ product development cycle.
Asheville, NC © Ablohkin
Coping with the COVID Crisis in the Midst of the Holiday Rush: Nine Takeaways from Our December Surveys of Small Business Owners and Main Street Programs
In early December, as the COVID-19 crisis intersected with a peak moment in the holiday shopping season, we surveyed small business owners and Main Street programs to learn more about how they were managing.
© Cindy Shebley
Jump off the Business Recruitment Train: The Real Returns are in Cultivating Local Entrepreneurship
New research by Main Street America suggests greater returns on our missions and resources can be had by transitioning to more deliberate economic vitality work centered on cultivating new business development from within our own communities and neighborhoods.
Community Spotlight: Storefront Activation Through Storytelling in Fredericksburg, VA
Fredericksburg Virginia Main Street (FVMS) is taking storefront activation to a new level with their new initiative, the Scan & Love Project, which tells the stories of business owners through personal and engaging videos.
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Tina’s Timeless Threads
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Center of the Yarniverse
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting The Bankery
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting BuzzBomb Brewing
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting The Owl Wine Bar & Home Goods
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Griff Goods
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Mockingbird Bar and Tacos
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
Economic Gardening Takes Root: Redesigning the Bricks & Clicks Business Retention Program During the Pandemic
Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance explores how they redesigned their Bricks & Clicks Business Retention Program during the pandemic.
Business Spotlight: Women-Owned Businesses on Main Street (Part 3)
Meet some amazing women business owners!
New Survey Results: How Small Businesses are Managing the Pandemic and Social Unrest
Read the results of our survey aimed at understanding how business owners are managing the recovery from COVID-19 and responding to recent protests and social unrest related to police violence against Black Americans.
Research Spotlight: Black-Owned Businesses on Main Street and Beyond
Our research team dug into some of the data about the state of Black-owned businesses on Main Street, the structural challenges they face, and how Main Streets can support them.
Main Spotlight: Holiday Shopping During COVID: What Should Main Streets Expect?
Matt Wagner explores how the pandemic may affect the shop small holiday weekend.
Main Spotlight: How Rural Economies Can Leverage the Rise in Remote Work
COVID-19 has led to a rise in remote working. How can small and rural towns leverage this shift to create vibrant local economies?
The Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses: Follow-up Survey Report
Detailed findings from our follow-up survey on the impacts of COVID-19 on small businesses to better understand the continued challenges businesses face as the crisis evolves.
Main Spotlight: Recovery and Revitalization Depend on Understanding Human Psyche
How does psychology impact the recovery of our downtowns after the COVID-19 pandemic?
Local Impact: Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday® is more than a day to shop. It’s a nationwide movement that shines a spotlight on the importance of supporting small businesses in communities across America.
Community Spotlight: Benson, North Carolina
The Town of Benson started a special project to highlight their downtown businesses.
Community Spotlight: Berkley, Michigan
The Berkley Downtown Development Authority (DDA) proudly debuted its Downtown Berkley Shopping Bag for a Cause through a partnership between Better Life Bags.
Main Spotlight: Learnings from the ESHIP Summit
Supporting new and existing small businesses, and the entrepreneurs who run them, represents a vital aspect of the revitalization of downtowns and neighborhood business districts.
Creating Equitable, Inclusive and Transparent Cities: A Year in Review
The Equitable Economic Development Fellowship is a two-year, one million-dollar effort funded by the Surdna Foundation and the Open Society Foundations to help equity, transparency, sustainability and community engagement become driving forces in local economic development efforts.
Community Spotlight: Mini-Grants Offered to Small Businesses in Jefferson, Iowa
The Jefferson Rotary Club partnered with Jefferson Matters: Main Street to offer mini-grants for building facades and storefront signage to two dozen businesses for up to $500 each.
A Memorable Makeover on Main Street
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) partnered with Retailworks, Inc., a commercial interior design, display and branding firm headquartered in Milwaukee, to launch Wisconsin’s Main Street Makeover Contest.
Creative Discovery on the Maker Trail in Enid, Oklahoma
Kelly Tompkins of Main Street Enid shares more about the Maker Trail project and how it inspired creativity and helped people discover downtown.
City Sidewalks, Dressed in Holiday Style
Too often, as we’re strolling our favorite Main Street, we pass empty or dark shop windows that make us want to hurry home a little bit faster. Imagine instead, a charming streetscape adorned with vibrant, lively window displays, showcasing retailers’ favorite products and seasonal gift ideas.
Community Spotlight: #ShopSmall in Goldsboro, North Carolina
Small Business Saturday promo pic from Downtown Goldsboro, North Carolina, showing all the folks who took the pledge support a small business in their community.
Using Local Search Trends to Attract More Customers to Your Main Street
We’ve put together a practical list of some of the things that local store owners can do right now to help them capitalize on this increasing trend in local searches.
Network Spotlight: Main Street Iowa Restaurant Week
From authentic comfort food to farm-to-fork fresh and everything in between, these restaurants, bars, and cafes are key to the thriving social, business, and residential life in the historic commercial districts in Main Street Iowa communities.
Fab Lab Sparks Rural Opportunities
Located in southeast Kansas, Independence (pop.8,799) is home to Fab Lab ICC, which is on track to be the world’s leading innovator in combining entrepreneurial mindset education with a fab lab maker space.
Community Spotlight: Morganton, North Carolina
The craft beer industry is playing a key role in the rebirth of Main Streets and neighborhood commercial districts across the county.
Rethink Storefront Accessibility to Rethink Community Viability
Appealing to mobility-challenged shoppers yields benefits beyond the store.
Sparking a Movement in Small Business and Small Towns
Being the only person in the know can be fun, exhilarating even. Except when you are the one person out of 600+ in a room and you know bad news is coming.
The Lowdown in Downtown LaBelle
Fritz the dog has made his way into the hearts of the residents of LaBelle, Florida, and helped our Main Street Community find a way to make what we do more noticeable.
Pop-Up Altavista 2.0
Altavista On Track, the local Main Street organization, is working to cultivate and sustain local entrepreneurs with an educational business launch competition, Pop-Up Altavista 2.0.
The Bright Center: A Space for Winchester’s Bright Minds to Create, Innovate and Thrive
In Winchester, Virginia, one woman’s vision and commitment to downtown’s revitalization created an innovative community space for the Creative Class.
Why Business Retention and Expansion Plans are Important for Downtowns
A business retention and expansion plan, properly implemented, not only helps keep businesses open but possibly even helps them expand.
Business Investment Guides: “Think B.I.G.”
The first rule of conducting business is “make it simple.” The easier it is to pay for merchandise, get entertainment or obtain a service, the more likely it is that people will take advantage of those options.
Small Box – A Creative Retail Project
Main Street communities across the country are no stranger to seeking creative strategies to solve their most nagging issues – vacant buildings, marketing downtown, bolstering retail to name a few.
Supporting Immigrant Entrepreneurs in the Heart of Boston’s Main Streets
To understand the role that immigrant business owners play in Boston’s small business ecosystem, you need only to walk through any Boston Main Streets district.
Measuring the Economic Impact of Storefront Improvements
Façade appearance is a critical aspect of the overall aesthetic appeal and unique character of downtown.
Sign Design Guidelines
A lot of signs are necessary to make a downtown work well, but not every community knows what a good sign system looks like, or how instrumental it can be to the creation of a successful downtown.
Improving Performance in Main Street Iowa Communities
Main Street Iowa, a program of the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s Iowa Downtown Resource Center, created a one-of-a-kind three-year program to provide help for performance venues located in Main Street districts.
