Emporia Main Street is given the Great American Main Street Award

Press Release
2005 Great American Main Street Awards Announced
2006 Nomination Forms Ready in Summer 2005

Baltimore, Maryland (May 9, 2005) – Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and Doug Loescher, director of the National Trust Main Street Center®, kicked off the 2005 National Main Streets Conference, Cool Cities: Old Buildings, New Attitudes, and the 25th anniversary of Main Street by announcing the five winners of the Great American Main Street Awards during the Opening Plenary Session of the conference. The 2005 winners are Barracks Row, DC; Emporia, Kan.; Frederick, Md.; New Iberia, La.; and, Washington Gateway in Boston, Mass.

Emporia, Kan. – Named for a market center in Greece, Emporia was founded in 1857. A railroad, an educational institution, and retail and service businesses later transformed this prairie land to a vibrant downtown. However, during the 1980s, major employers, such as the railroad and local hospital, began to leave the community. In 1991, recognizing the need to address the economic, visual, and promotional issues facing an area experiencing this crisis, the Downtown Association, Chamber of Commerce, city and county governments, and other cultural entities worked together to become a Main Street community that has remained committed to retaining business downtown, meeting the needs of consumers, and increasing the presence of the arts in downtown life. Today, the vibrancy of Downtown Emporia is highly visible. In the last 12 months, Downtown Emporia has made even greater strides, including the completion of a $2.3 million streetscape project; 408 amazing renovation projects and upper story developments; and, a gain of 637 jobs and 124 new businesses.

Applications for the 2006 Great American Main Street Awards will be available in Summer 2005. For more information on the awards program, please visit http//awards.mainstreet.org.

Established in 1980, the National Trust Main Street Center® helps communities of all sizes revitalize their traditional historic commercial districts. Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the Main Street Center has been the leader of the preservation-based community revitalization movement and has proven historic preservation and community-driven economic development affects lasting change. Active in more than 1,800 downtowns and neighborhood business districts, the Main Street program has generated more than $18.3 billion in new investment. Participating communities have created 244,543 net new jobs, 60,577 net new businesses, and rehabilitated more than 96,200 buildings, leveraging an average of $35.17 in new investment for every dollar spent on Main Street initiatives.

For more information, please see National Main Street Awards News Release (PDF).