Montana Main Street Affiliate Program Announces New Affiliate Members

The Montana Department of Commerce today is proud to announce the new 2008 affiliate members of the Montana Main Street program: Townsend, Whitehall, Shelby, and Glasgow.

"The Montana Main Street program http://www.mtmainstreet.mt.gov is a proven method to help revitalize downtown commercial districts," said Governor Brian Schweitzer. "The affiliate program is a perfect fit for smaller, rural communities like Townsend, Whitehall, Shelby, and Glasgow. I look forward to see what these communities will accomplish in the future."

Developed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1980, Main Street is a historic preservation-based economic development program that has been used in 2,000 communities nationwide to spark life into traditional downtown commercial districts.

"The Main Street approach encourages communities to use their unique assets – distinctive architecture, pedestrian-friendly atmosphere, local ownership, and personal service – to rebuild their downtowns," said Anthony Preite, Director of the Montana Department of Commerce. "Countless Montana communities already have these distinct qualities to build upon."

The Montana Main Street program is based on the National Trust’s philosophy, which advocates restoration of the historic character of downtown while pursuing traditional development strategies such as marketing, business recruitment and retention, and public improvements.

The affiliate program in Montana was created for small, rural communities that are exploring downtown revitalization, said program coordinator Julie Burk. Communities with fewer than 5,000 residents can apply for affiliate status.

"The intent is to make downtown development training and education available to a larger number of Montana communities," Burk said.

As part of the Montana Main Street affiliate program, Townsend, Whitehall, Shelby, and Glasgow will receive training in the four points of Main Street (organization, design, promotion, and economic restructuring), reference materials from the National Trust, membership in the National Main Street Network, and free registration to the annual Montana Main Street conference. In addition, people from the affiliate communities will be invited to attend quarterly trainings on a wide variety of topics, such as volunteer recruitment, fundraising, and business retention.

The 2009 application cycle will be announced April 1, Burk said. For more information, contact Burk in Helena at 841-2756, or log onto http://www.mtmainstreet.mt.gov

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Marissa P. Kozel
Communications Director, Director’s Office
Montana Department of Commerce
406-841-2772 (o)
406-465-7208 (c)
[email protected]