webinar – Connecticut Main Street Center

Case Study: The Beatrice, NE, Approach to Defeating Negativity

Written by Christine Schilke on March 31, 2023. 2 Comments

The community of Beatrice, Nebraska had been struggling with negative perceptions and apathy due to economic setbacks in recent decades. Community leaders needed to take action to push back the perception of negativity and defeatism.

In 2015, they came together and developed a plan to help facilitate change. By 2018, Beatrice was named the #1 micropolitan community in Nebraska—#14 nationally—for large scale (mostly manufacturing) economic development projects by Site Selection Magazine. Now, post-COVID Beatrice is working to gain back the momentum they had been building.

In this webinar, Michael Sothan, the Executive Director of Main Street Beatrice, will share the journey of changing the perception of Beatrice and six lessons learned along the way.

Sponsorship opportunities available! View the flyer

About the Presenter

Michael Sothan is the Executive Director of Main Street Beatrice in Beatrice Nebraska (pop 12,300). He has been with Main Street Beatrice since 2013 and has been a part of Downtown Beatrice’s efforts to become listed on the National Register of Historic Places, undertake façade improvement programs, and regularly guides downtown improvements, events, and economic development efforts.

Michael is a graduate of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. He resides in Steele City, NE (population 60) where he and his wife Megan have purchased an 1890’s grocery store with plans for its rehabilitation. Michael enjoys living history interpretation and the outdoors when not working on community development efforts.

CMSC Members-Only Webinar: How to Collect, Maintain, and Leverage Your Main Street Inventories

Written by Christine Schilke on March 31, 2023. Leave a Comment

Critical to any Main Street initiative is understanding your community’s assets. This is done by collecting information on various assets and documenting the information for it to be updated over time.

In this CMSC member-only workshop, we’ll cover:

The importance of Main Street inventories
The types of inventories to maintain beyond common assets
What information you should collect
Strategies and tactics to collect and maintain information
How to use inventory data to market your Main Street.

This is a tactical how-to workshop including templates for live attendees.

Sponsorship opportunities available. View the flyer

CMSC Webinar – Using Public Art for a More Vibrant and Welcoming Community

Written by Christine Schilke on September 14, 2022. 3 Comments

When public art is supported and implemented thoughtfully and strategically, it adds tremendous cultural, aesthetic, and economic value to a community.

It facilitates a sense of place and community pride. It can encourage civic engagement and build social capital through raising public awareness of important local issues and connecting residents to their neighbors and their shared history.

In this webinar, you’ll be inspired to think differently about and incorporate public art in your communities. Our panel from around the country and Connecticut will speak to innovative public art programs that provide economic impact and create more inclusive communities.

Learn about Connecticut’s Office of the Arts new public art programs and how to take advantage
Hear how a Connecticut placemaking organization employs diverse artists to beautify, bring positivity, and spark economic vitality in neighborhoods through public art
Learn how a winter light festival brings in 189,000 visitors in the dead of winter and contributes $3.7m in economic impact while activating typically overlooked neighborhoods
Hear how communities are using music to drive economic development and ordinances you can implement to support a music economy

Meet the Panelists

Tamara Dimitri, Program Specialist, Art in Public Spaces at Connecticut Office of the Arts
Matt Conway, Founder at The Rise Up Group
Alisha Sullivan, Executive Director at Willamette Light Brigade | Portland Light Festival
Kate Durio, CEO The Americas at Sound Diplomacy

This event is free, but registration is required

This event is approved for 1 credit for certified planners
With thanks to our AICP Certification Maintenance Provider FHI Studio.

CMSC Webinar: Supporting Small Businesses on Main Street

Written by Christine Schilke on September 14, 2022. 4 Comments

We all know small businesses are the lifeblood of Main Street, but are we giving them the support they need or actually want?

Supported by Main Street America’s 2022 Small Business Survey, we’ll review the findings and highlight the top three types of support small businesses want: incentives & financial support, increased district-wide marketing & promotion, and stronger organization of businesses in the area.

Learn how to take these findings and create effective programs to support your small business.

Implement a façade improvement program that energizes vacant spaces and encourages new business starts
Strengthen your district branding to change perception, involve everyone, and engage new partners
Upgrade Merchant Meetups with informal storytelling events that bring the business community togethe

Meet the panelists:

Mike Powe, Ph.D., Director of Research at Main Street America
Julio Concepcion, Executive Director at Hartford Chamber of Commerce
Lauren Coakley Vincent, President & CEO at Bridgeport Downtown Special Services District
Melanie Lenci, Founder & Funmaker at Kick-Ass Entrepreneurs and Brenda Tozier, Administrative Assistant at Silver City Main Street (New Mexico)

This event is free, but registration is required.

This event is approved for 1 credit for certified planners
With thanks to our AICP Certification Maintenance Provider FHI Studio.

CMSC Webinar: How to Fill Vacant Storefronts

Written by Christine Schilke on September 8, 2022. Leave a Comment

JOIN US FOR OUR EXPERT-LED WEBINAR

Every Main Street will face vacancies from time to time, and COVID only exacerbated this challenge across Connecticut and the country. Not only are persistent vacancies detrimental to creating and sustaining a vibrant downtown, but they also have a negative economic impact on the community.In this webinar, our presenter Ilana Preuss – international speaker, and fierce advocate for creating great places and small-scale manufacturing – will share:

Innovative approaches to filling vacant storefronts from around the country
Programmatic ideas to collaborate with property owners
Long-term solutions to keep storefronts full by supporting local small business ecosystems

This webinar is approved for 1 CM credit for certified planners.
With thanks to our AICP Certification Maintenance partner FHI Studio.

Register here

About the Presenter

Ilana Preuss is the founder and CEO of Recast City and the author of the new book “Recast Your City: How to Save Your Downtown with Small-Scale Manufacturing.”

Preuss’ passion for great places grew out of her experience working with small and large cities all over the country when she led the technical assistance program at the U.S. EPA Smart Growth Program, and as the Vice President & Chief of Staff at Smart Growth America. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Urban and Regional Studies from Cornell University and a Masters of City Planning from the University of Maryland.

Tag: webinar