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ANN

UAL REPO

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2017Indepedence

Celebrating 10 Years!

Message from State Coordinator 2

Downtown Reinvestment Stats 2017 & Cumulative 3

2017 Main Street Revitalization Grant Recap 3

Meeting the Needs of Oregon Communities 4

Oregon Main Street: Main Street Track 4

Main Street Approach 5

Technical Assistance Services Provided by Oregon Main Street 6

Where in Oregon are Performing Main Street and Transforming Downtown Communities? 7

Oregon Main Street Highlighted Along Oregon Highways 7

Network Community Profiles 8

2017 Excellence in Downtown Revitalization Awards 14

Oregon Main Street Contact Information 16

Table of Contents

2017 Oregon Main Street Annual Report 1

Oregon Main Street celebrated our 10th Anniversary in 2017. HB 3418 was passed in the 2007 Legislative Session establishing Oregon Main Street under Oregon Economic and Community Development. By 2009, the pro-gram was jointly administered in Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD). Since 2011, OMS has been fully integrated into Heritage Programs in OPRD. From these early beginnings, our Network has grown to include 82 towns, commercial neighborhood districts, and county members. We are exceptionally proud of what our communities are accomplishing in main-taining and enhancing the economic vitality of their traditional business districts while preserving their unique community character and assets.

OMS was started at the beginning of the economic downtown. Despite this factor, our top tier communities continued to see private sector reinvest-ment in building improvement projects, net new business growth, business expansions, and net new jobs being created (see stats). This points to the power of the Main Street Approach®, but also to the strength of the local leaders who work so diligently on projects and activities to sustain their downtowns. We are so grateful to the many volunteers and main street executive directors for their time, energy, creativity, and passion for their communities.

2017 saw the first round of grants allocated through the new Oregon Main Street Revitalization Grant program. This is a powerful new tool to help close the funding gap on building improvement projects that will spur economic development activities. 26 projects received funding for projects ranging from workforce housing to theater restoration, brew pubs to upper floor development. Plus, the legislature approved an additional $5 million of funding for a second round of grants in 2019.

Our communities are also being recognized nationally. Buster’s Café in downtown Cottage Grove received the National Main Street Center’s Busi-ness Leadership Award – the first time in 10 years this award was given. And, we are very proud that Downtown Oregon City Association is a semi-finalist in the Great American Main Street Awards. This is our first commu-nity in Oregon that has made it this far in the competition. Awards will be announced by the National Main Street Center in March – regardless of the outcome, it is quite an honor to have made it this far in the competition.

While we have come a long way from the inception of the program, our Network communities continue to push themselves to build on and expand the good work they are achieving. One of the best things is the spirit of col-laboration and sharing among our programs. This helps our communities learn from each other, share best practices, and generally inspire each other to push themselves just a little farther and harder. We can’t wait to see what the future brings!

Sheri StuartOregon Main Street


Message from State Coordinator

*Combined data from Performing Main Street and Trans-forming Downtown tiers.


$ PRIVATE INVESTMENT2017 - $19,504,985Cumulative - $97,218,322

PUBLIC INVESTMENT2017 - $6,047,785Cumulative - $99,134,718

NET NEW BUSINESSES2017 - 49Cumulative - 647

NET NEW JOBS2017 - 625Cumulative - 3,367

BUILDING REHAB PROJECTS2017 - 162Cumulative - 1,258

VOLUNTEER TIME2017 - 28,710Cumulative - 180,434

$OPEN

Downtown Reinvestment Stats for 2017 and Cumulative*

2017 Main Street Revitalization Grant RecapThis year the first round of the Main Street Revitalization Grants were awarded. This grant was established during the 2015 Legislative session with an initial infusion of $2.5 million. In 2017, another $5 million was included in a bill ensuring that we will have at least have another year of grants for Oregon Main Street Communities.

This grant can only be awarded to those in the Oregon Main Street Network and awards are to be used to acquire, reha-bilitate and construct buildings on properties in designated downtown areas statewide; and to facilitate community revitalization that will lead to private investment, job creation or retention, establishing or expanding viable business or creating a stronger tax base.

27 matching grants were awarded ranging from façade im-provement to elevator access and seismic upgrades. Awards ranged from $17,500-$100,000.

Funded projects include:

• Klamath Falls Downtown Association will receive $100,000 to install elevators in two downtown buildings. The project will address the goal of downtown housing and make available 20 units.

• Astoria Downtown Historic District Association will receive $100,000 for a downtown housing project that comprises 40 units and retail space. Housing is a proven need in this community and people living in downtowns support downtown businesses.

• A $100,000 project in Burns will restore a historic hotel left vacant for decades.

• A $100,000 project in Independence will rehabilitate an underused building to be a local brewery.

• Several communities were selected for work to repair or restore their historic theaters: The OK Theatre in Enter-prise $100,000, the Rivoli Theater in Pendleton $100,000, the Bungalow Theater in Woodburn $100,000, and the Hill Theatre, now a retail store, in Hillsboro $100,000.

Other communities awarded grants include Baker City, Ban-don, Beaverton, Carlton, Corvallis, Florence, John Day, La Grande, McMinnville, Newberg, Oregon City, Port Orford, Portland, Reedsport, St. Helens, Stayton, The Dalles, and Weston.

MAIN STREET TRACKexploring

downtowntransformingdowntown

associate performingmain street


Oregon Main Street has a tiered structure to provide as-sistance to all communities in Oregon whether they are just beginning to explore options for their downtown or seeking national recognition as an accredited Main Street® town. The Main Street Track is for communities who wish to use the Main Street model to organize their downtown revitalization efforts in a traditional down-town setting.

Communities participating in the Main Street Track must have:

• A cohesive core of historic or older commercial and mixed-use buildings that represent the community’s architectural heritage and may include compatible in-fill.

• A sufficient mass of businesses, buildings, and den-sity to be effective.

• A compact and pedestrian-oriented district.

Oregon Main Street is a Main Street America™ Coordinating Program. Main Street America™ is a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Oregon Main Street works with communities to develop comprehensive, incremental revitalization strategies based on a community’s unique assets, character, and heritage. Services are based on the successful Main Street Approach developed by the National Main Street Center and include training and technical assistance. The goal is to build high quality, livable, and sustainable communities that will grow Oregon’s economy while maintaining a sense of place.

An important objective of Oregon Main Street is to provide assistance to all communities in Oregon whether they are just beginning to explore options for their downtown or seeking national recognition as an accredited Main Street® town. To accomplish this, services are offered through a tiered system.

AssociateAssociate is for communities that do not wish to become a designated Main Street community or wish to apply the Main Street Approach® in a non-traditional commercial setting. Communities participating at this level receive notification of workshops and conferences sponsored by Oregon Main Street but do not receive technical assistance. Interested communities may join at any time by completing a brief application form.

Exploring Downtown is for com-munities just starting a downtown revitalization effort and wish to learn more about using the Main Street Approach®. Interested communities may join at any time by completing a brief application form.

Transforming Downtown is for communities who are committed to downtown revitalization using the Main Street Approach® but need technical assistance to help them develop the organizational struc-ture. Application rounds are held as resources permit.

Performing Main Street is for those communities with independent nonprofit organizations who are fully committed to using the Main Street Approach® as the basis for their downtown revitalization ef-forts. Application rounds are held as resources permit.

Oregon Main Street: Main Street Track

Meeting the Needs of Oregon Communities


Oregon Main Street uses the successful Main Street® methodology developed by the National Main Street Center as its foundation for assistance. The Main Street Approach® is centered around Transformation Strategies that articulate a focused, deliberate path to revitalizing

or strengthening a downtown or commercial district’s economy. A program’s work on Transformation Strategies should be organized around the Four Points: Economic Vitality, Design, Promotion, and Organization.

Organization helps everyone work towards the same goals and maximizes involvement of public and private leaders within the community.

Promotion brings people back downtown by helping to attract visitors, shoppers, and investors.

Design enhances a district’s appearance and pedestrian amenities while preserving its historic features.

Economic Vitality stimulates business development and helps strengthen the district’s economic base.

The Main Street Approach®

A revitalization program’s work – and its Transformation Strategies – need to be informed by a solid understand-ing of local and regional market data, and sustained and inclusive community engagement. With a set of strategies

in place, the organization will then assess what kinds of activities, resources, people-power across the Four Points will be necessary to bring the strategy to life. Progress will be measured by economic metrics and quality outcomes.

The National Main Street Center’s experience in helping communities bring their downtowns back to life has shown time and time again that the Main Street Four Point Approach succeeds only when combined with the following eight principles:

∗ Comprehensive: A single project cannot revitalize a downtown or commercial neighborhood. An ongoing series of initiatives is vital to build community support and create lasting progress.

∗ Incremental: Small projects make a big difference. They demonstrate that “things are happening” on Main Street and hone the skills and confidence the program will need to tackle more complex problems.

∗ Self-Help: Although the National Main Street Center can provide valuable direction and hands-on technical assistance, only local leadership can initiate long-term success by fostering and demonstrating community involvement and commitment to the revitalization effort.

∗ Public/private partnership: Every local Main Street program needs the support and expertise of both the public and private

sectors. For an effective partnership, each must recognize the strengths and weaknesses of the other.

∗ Identifying and capitalizing on existing assets: One of the National Main Street Center’s key goals is to help communities recognize and make the best use of their unique offerings. Local assets provide the solid foundation for a successful Main Street initiative.

∗ Quality: From storefront design to promotional campaigns to special events, quality must be the main goal.

∗ Change: Changing community attitudes and habits is essential to bring about a commercial district renaissance. A carefully planned Main Street program will help shift public perceptions and practices to support and sustain the revitalization process.

∗ Action-oriented: Frequent, visible changes in the look and activities of the commercial district will reinforce the perception of positive change. Small, but dramatic improvements early in the process will remind the community that the revitalization effort is under way.

Eight Guiding Principles


Oregon Main Street provides technical assistance to communities based on the level of participation in the Oregon Main Street Network. Services are intended to help communities develop or strengthen their organizational capacity to implement a comprehensive, preservation-based, downtown revitalization strategy.

The types of assistance communities can be eligible for include:

• Reconnaissance Visits• Developing Mission/Vision Statements• Goal Setting/Strategic Planning • Board Roles and Responsibilities & Committee Training • Development of Work Plans• Quarterly Executive Director/Program Manager Meetings• Quarterly Workshops & Annual Conference• Local Program Evaluation• Resource Team Visits• Assistance in Hiring an Executive Director/Program Manager• New Executive Director/Program Manager Orientation• Introduction to Main Street Presentation• Specialized Technical Assistance• Design Assistance• Reconnaissance Level Historic Surveys• Scholarship to the National Main Street Conference• Steering Committee Development

Technical Assistance HighlightsLa Grande Main Street Refresh, March 2017The “Main Street Refresh” initiative aims to rethink the traditional Main Street model so the program is more responsive to economic context and its out-comes are directly measurable. Oregon Main Street entered the pilot roll-out of the Refresh process through a technical service for the La Grande Main Street Downtown program in March 2017. The team included Matt Wagner, Vice President of Revitaliza-tion Programs National Main Street Center, and Sheri Stuart. We familiarized ourselves with the district by reading background materials, making a two-day site visit, holding a pre-visit survey exercise, as well as a Refresh webinar for the Board of Direc-tors. We then looked at a few key data sets (demo-graphics, buying power, sales leakage, and business inventory) and we proposed one primary market with four possible sub-Transformation Strategies based upon what we learned from the site visit, mar-ket data and community feedback. We presented the draft strategies at a board meeting to assess reaction and garner feedback.

Storytelling, August - October, 2017It is often challenging for organizations to commu-nicate the impact of their efforts because the work is broad. This can impact an organization’s ability to attract funders and volunteers – the very foundation of a thriving revitalization effort. To help address this issue, Oregon Main Street offered free techni-cal assistance to develop compelling stories that inspire new support and commitment to Oregon Main Street communities. Five communities were selected for this assistance: Dayton, Astoria, Hills-boro, Florence, and Albany. The chosen organiza-tions participated in a webinar with PR Consultant Ryan Schwartz, worked with Ryan over the course of two months to develop their story, and presented it at the 2017 Oregon Main Street Conference. The goal was to focus these stories on specific people, fixed in time, showing cause and effect in order to create an emotional connection and show why their work matters.

People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did,

but people will never forget how you made them feel.

- Maya Angelou

Technical Assistance Services Provided By Oregon Main Street

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Main Street Overview

Organization Meeting

Board/Commmittee Training

Board Retreat/Goal Setting

New Manager

RLS

NetworksMeetings/Trainings/Webinars

NMSC Conference Scholarships

2017 OMS Services Provided


Where in Oregon are the Performing Main Street & Transforming Downtown Communities?

Key: Performing Main Street Transforming Downtown

Every year Oregon Heritage, with the help of Oregon Travel Experience, has the opportunity to place signs at popular rest stops along Oregon Highways highlight-ing an aspect of heritage in Oregon.

During 2017, in order to honor the tenth year of Oregon Main Street, ten signs fea-tured communities in the Oregon Main Street Network.

Communities featured include Albany, Baker City, Coos Bay, Cottage Grove, Independence, Klamath Falls, La Grande, Oregon City, and The Dalles.

Oregon Main Street Highlighted Along Oregon Highways!


Where in Oregon are the Performing Main Street & Transforming Downtown Communities?

Key: Performing Main Street Transforming Downtown

Performing Main StreetAlbany Downtown Asso-ciation (ADA): 2017 was a banner year for Historic Downtown Albany. Over 12 new businesses opened ranging from a downtown nursery, restaurants, retail, yoga studio, and 2 new ta-phouses. Successful events included Restaurant Week to boost business in the

off season, as well as Art and Jazz Festival in May. Movies at Monteith, the outdoor movie series, showcased downtown restaurants vending signature food paired with youth orga-nizations offering beverages and ice cream. The holiday sea-son kicked off with, Downtown Unwrapped open house and Small Business Saturday Downtown, and wrapped up with the Downtown Twice Around Parade and Community Tree lighting. The popular Parklets were back delighting visitors and residents of all ages many of whom played checkers into the evening hours. And two nominees received Excellence in Downtown Revitalization Awards – The Albany Pix The-atre received top honors as Business Of The Year, and The Historic Carousel & Museum received a Special Projects award recognizing the efforts made over the past 15 years to make this beautiful project a reality. 2018 will be a turning point for Downtown Albany as the Streetscape Project is completed and we welcome many new businesses.

Alberta Main Street (AMS): 2017 was a very exciting and very busy year! Development of a new four story mixed use building broke ground on a long vacant lot in the heart of the district, and two extensive renovations were completed on buildings with significant deferred maintenance. These improvements significantly increase the walkability and continuity within the district. Additionally, AMS awarded over $7,000 in matching mini-grants to support smaller physical improvements to businesses and buildings. AMS received a $100,000 Oregon Main Street Revitalization grant to fund improvements for a two-story streetcar era build-ing with ground floor commercial and upper level afford-able housing, and a $20,000 Community Livability Grant from Prosper Portland to support installation of permanent cultural and historical markers to honor the area’s African American history and community. AMS promotions and events brought over 35,000 people to the district throughout the year, the largest being the 20th Annual Alberta Street Fair. As the year drew to a close, AMS engaged nearly 100 stakeholders via focus groups, individual interviews, and an online survey to help the AMS Board of Directors define the

direction and action plans for the organization moving for-ward. To get things done, AMS engaged 175 volunteers who collectively contributed over 1500 hours to their revitaliza-tion efforts.

Astoria Downtown Historic District Association (AD-HDA): Downtown Astoria’s renaissance continues, and is picking up speed. Over the last five years nine buildings have been repainted, eleven have been renovated, and cur-rently ten are being renovated with two more planned in the coming year. We were honored to be awarded two Main Street Building Revitalization Grants. The Riviera Build-ing, which houses the beloved institutions of the Voodoo Room and the Columbian Café was able to complete a full façade renovation, including the important work of weather proofing several large historic windows. Along with several building projects, ADHDA has seen increased interest in downtown landscaping and our upcoming mural project.

Downtown Corvallis Association (DCA): The new down-town Corvallis Courtyard Marriott is completed. And, the Benton County Historical Society will break ground on the lot directly across from the Courtyard by Marriott to begin construction on the beautiful new, downtown Museum. The DCA is happily in the midst of re-forming action Commit-tees and it appears that composition of the Committees is spot-on with Members that will complement each other well.

La Grande Main Street Downtown (LGMSD): From tried-and-true Main Street-organized events such as the Eastern Oregon Beer Festival and Crazy Days, to brand new partnerships like Plaid Friday and a reinvigorated Hot Topics Tuesday, 2017 was a year for excitement and change. In addition to having our very own Tyson Brooks named Volunteer of the Year, a new Executive Director was brought on board and immediately jumped into the wild, fun world of Main Street. Earlier in the year, La Grande Main Street Downtown was proud to assist in helping a local landmark building be rehabilitated and brought up to Historical Dis-trict standards after nearly a decade of vacancy and disuse,

Network Community Profiles


while the project itself promises to offer many opportunities to local entrepreneurs and citizens.

McMinnville Downtown Association (MDA): 2017 was an incredible year for downtown McMinnville. Highlights in-clude the successful application for the Oregon Main Street Revitalization Grant of $100,000 awarded to Allegory Brew-ing. The MDA also unveiled a new logo last spring and launched a new website in August. The new website is set up to be a great resource for members and the community, and also allows us to take payments online for membership fees, events, and donations. We celebrated a highly success-ful event season, with record-breaking crowds at the UFO Festival, Trick-or-Treat on 3rd Street, and Santa’s Twilight Parade and Tree Lighting Ceremony, as well as support and praise for our Farmers Market. We have truly benefitted from our internship program in its third year, and have retained one intern as a full-time employee, and two more interns as regular volunteers. Finally, to put a cherry on top of a great year, we partnered up with McMinnville Water & Light and the City of McMinnville to install year-round Twinkle Lights along 3rd Street. We look forward to dis-covering what 2018 brings!

Downtown Oregon City Association (DOCA): In addi-tion to bringing back favorite events such as the Oregon Trail® Game 5k (with a new added 8k), Oregon Trail Brew Fest, First City Celebration, Car Show, and more – DOCA tackled the first ever Best of Oregon City People’s Choice Awards and hosted the Oregon Main Street Conference. Oregon City was fortunate to be awarded an Oregon Main Street Revitalization Grant which helped complete a key building rehabilitation for Black Ink Coffee and White Rabbit Gifts, one of the 12 new businesses that opened in 2017. The “tallest” addition to DOCA’s program is the staff-ing contract for the Oregon City Municipal Elevator. The elevator is now at the center of a tourism program that is expected to be launched Summer 2018. The DOCA team now includes an Elevator Manager and part-time guides as well as a new Community & Volunteer Coordinator, Events & Marketing Manager, and Office Administrator. DOCA also formalized a partnership with Rediscover the Falls, the friend and fundraising arm of the Willamette Falls Legacy

Project. DOCA’s biggest accolade was being named one of ten Semi-Finalists for the 2018 Great American Main Street Award. If awarded, Oregon City will be the first GAMSA winner on the west coast in 8 years and the first ever in Oregon.

Downtown Roseburg Association (DRA): DRA’s Execu-tive Team has recorded over 7,000 volunteer hours in 2017, from our committees, volunteer board, and community. The value of our volunteers is $169,050 put into the community. DRA has improved our presence online via our website and social media. In May, our website was revamped and relaunched and has accrued over 11,000 page views. Our Social Media presence on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google Business has a 300% improved follow-ing and contributed to the awareness of events and busi-ness in the Heart of Roseburg. Two Annual Sip & Shops, Neewollah, Small Business Saturday, Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony, and Santa’s Castle brings locals and visitors to the Heart of Roseburg throughout the year. In 2017, ap-proximately 7,500 individuals came downtown due to DRA Events. Over 20 businesses have registered in the Heart of Roseburg and the DRA assisted over 5 businesses in finding a home Downtown. A Facebook communication tool, The Downtown Roseburg Business Forum, has over 200 down-town business owners and employees communicating rap-idly over any type of incident in the Downtown area. DRA works closely with property owners and the City of Rose-burg to remove graffiti, conduct cleanups, and DRA is also to credit for coordinating the Light Up Downtown Initiative with over 50,000 lights in the 2017 Holiday Season.

The Dalles Main Street (TDMS): After receiving feedback from business and property owners in the downtown that their number one prioritized desire was to see a more physi-cally attractive downtown, The Dalles Main Street got to work. By consulting with property owners and facilitating applications for Urban Renewal dollars, The Dalles Main Street saw the complete revitalization to the exterior of the Granada Theater in the downtown. What was once a blight-ed property is now a spectacle to witness right in the core of downtown. Along with a handful of other facade restora-


tion projects, The Granada Theater is a shining example of the beautiful revitalization that is to follow. The vibrancy of downtown The Dalles continues to flourish as once vacant storefronts house new and exciting businesses that only help to create a customer shopping habit in The Dalles’ down-town corridor. Exterior revitalizations and fresh, ongoing downtown activities are they key to growing and sustain The Dalles’ vitality.

Transforming DowntownGreater Bandon Association (GBA): Greater Bandon As-sociation inaugural Gorse Blossom Festival was awarded the Best Downtown Special Event in 2017. With over 800 attendees and 40 vendors, the 3-day festival brought major dollars to Bandon’s businesses and lodging industry in the offseason. Alive After Five, a monthly wine walk through Old Town Bandon, easily surpassed glass sales from the preceding three years. The festive Night of 10,000 Lights brought more visitors than ever on Small Business Saturday and the number of entries in the Lighted Christmas Parade held two weeks later tripled over last year. Not only was Bandon’s Bicycle Rest and Repair Station, a previous Excel-lence in Downtown Revitalization award winner, relocated but lockers complete with USB ports for device charging, a water refill dispenser, more bike racks and a major informa-tion display were all added. In this coming year, GBA will oversee the repair and repainting of the Masonic Building which is on the National Register of Historic Places through a Main Street Revitalization grant. GBA also hopes to com-plete a sustainable funding plan and Main Street Refresh to enable Bandon to move from a Transforming to Performing Main Street community. GBA will continue to champion and be an active partner in Bandon’s economic revitaliza-tion through these efforts.

Beaverton Downtown Association (BDA): This year the BDA found success in securing funding from the City of Beaverton to hire it’s first full-time Executive Director and then spent much of the year building new relation-ships and re-energizing the community for future projects. BDA worked with the City of Beaverton to host the second Broadway Street Festival in June, and after the first year’s

pouring rain, this second year was unlucky again with 103-degree temperatures. But those “unstoppable” Bea-vertonians came out enforce and in addition to throwing a great block party, the BDA was successful in recruiting two passionate and highly skilled board members at the event. Beaverton is in a transition phase from suburban com-munity to vibrant city in its own right. There were 150 new market rate apartments built in 2017 with 250 to come in 2018, 7 new restaurants, and many more on the way. With new projects and new partnerships in the works, the BDA continues to be a force for positive change in our commu-nity.

Canby Main Street (CMS): Canby’s Main Street program continued to prosper in 2017. The Independence Day Cel-ebration brought approximately 10,000 people to down-town Canby with its street fair, parade, car show, children’s activities, and more. The Independence Day Celebration has turned into one of the city’s most successful events due to the support from citizens, community organizations, and local business. The Main Street program – with the help of the Heritage and Landmark Commission – has applied and received several grants from Mt. Hood Territories and the State Historic Preservation Office which lead to the devel-opment and implementation of heritage preservation efforts in Canby. The installation of a new 45’ X 15 artistic mural on the side of the new library and civic center brought beauty and wonder to downtown Canby. Finally, the former city buildings were sold to two developers who are actively working to enhance the opportunities for businesses and residents in downtown Canby. As Canby looks towards its future, it continues to honor its history, businesses, and the people who have been the building blocks for the commu-nity.

Carlton Business Association/Carlton Main Street (CBA): 2017 has shown to be another productive year for “Our Great Little Town”! Carlton Crush is expanding into our largest event of the year and was able to give $4700 back to into the community. Ladies Night has gained momentum in its 2nd year, tripling in attendance over the year, a fun night of women strolling up and down Main Street, sipping


and shopping along the way. Our new event, the St. Paddy’s Day Pub Crawl, was off the charts for 2017, with bagpipers leading the way down Main Street. Our two new events, Carlton Spotlight, spotlighting a business each month, and the Santa Dash 5k, are off to a great start. Our biggest ac-complishment of the year, was receiving an Oregon Main Street Revitalization Grant of $95,000, for the Carlton & Coast Tavern Project. The grant funded the rehabilitation of a dilapidated building. A full front façade remodel with wood & glass, period lighting and handed painted signage has greatly enhanced our main street.

Coos Bay Downtown Association (CBDA): 2017 was a year to shop, eat, mingle, and explore Downtown Coos Bay. We have accomplished some amazing things. We experi-enced growth of the downtown Coos Bay Farmers Market, Blackberry Arts Festival, and the Bay Area Fun Festival. We promoted the Festival of Sail and had a unique scavenger hunt. We hosted the 3A Basketball tournament. We proudly displayed the Coos Bay Flower baskets in downtown. We partnered with the CBDA members to organize and pro-mote a Holiday Open House and Shop Small Saturday. We brought over 800 kids to downtown for a fun and safe afternoon of Trick-or-Treating. We brought Santa on a tug boat to Coos Bay to light the Christmas tree and visit with children. During the Christmas event we also offered two free showings of Elf at the Egyptian Theatre. During the snowball scene of the movie over 3,000 pairs of socks were thrown in a snowball fight. The socks were then collected by a local scout troop and delivered to homeless shelters. We look forward to a bright and successful 2018.

Cottage Grove Main Street (CGMS): One of the high-lights in 2017 was the National Main Street Center’s Busi-ness Leadership Award received by Buster’s Main Street Café right in downtown Cottage Grove. Owner Paul was on hand at the Main Street Now Conference in Pittsburgh, PA, to receive the award. Other year highlights include the Christmas in Cottage Grove celebration including holiday decorations downtown and at All America Square, arrival of Santa, and parade; monthly Art Walks; Main Street Hallow-een Howl; and the signature hanging flower basket program in partnership with EBID as well as support from a small business in Eugene who donated all soil, plants, and labor to refurbish 14 of the large decorative concrete containers downtown; and recruited Volunteers for the Tidy the Town through the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act.

Dayton Community Development Association (DCDA): 2017 has been a somewhat quiet year for Downtown Dayton. We have been working on our strategic plan and toward hiring our first Executive Director. Dayton Friday Nights, the fourth year of this summer series, continues to build and has become very popular with our community members who use the time to socialize with their neighbors.

Because of the authentic community feeling to this event, we draw visitors who truly enjoy this sense of community that is sometimes lost in larger cities. Other events includ-ed: The 2nd annual Chocolate Crawl, Our Artscape event, and a large vintage car show. Our area continues to grow as a tourist destination and we are creating our strategy to grow with it. Over the next few years there will be further renovation of 2 historic buildings as well as new businesses to populate them. The DCDA will work with the developer/property owner in every way we can to make these projects successful.

Estacada Development Association (EDA): Estacada has emerged from being a down-on-its-luck former mill town to buzzing with energy and anticipation. One of the keys to the transformation was the Streetscape Renovation of Broadway Street completed in 2015. Downtown is now Es-tacada’s living room, a dream realized. Much of the change in perception of downtown has been engendered by the Es-tacada Development Association’s focus on the Main Street Four-Point Approach to revitalization. Events and festivals bring in greater numbers each year. Estacada Uncorked was a big success by making local food and beverage entrepre-neurs a highlight of the event. The innovative Stone Circle Cidery launched their business at Uncorked and Truth Serum hot sauce grew its strong following even larger. In the fall, the overarching goal of the Harvest Festival was to bring families and youth into downtown. The cooperation of the school district in informing kids and parents made all the difference to bringing kids to enjoy the pumpkin paint-


ing, dunk tank, and pie eating contest. Big crowd, big fun, big memories! Today we put the same energy into growing businesses, both existing and new. Estacada is both a great place to visit and a wonderful place for commerce. Just ask Dollar General whose new store in downtown Estacada already is the second highest performing DG store in the district.

Hillsboro Downtown Partnership (HDP): We believe Downtown Hillsboro is soon to rival the best-known neigh-borhoods in the Portland metro area. Downtown Hillsboro is becoming a destination – for our residents and for those who work in or near our district; for those who might be driving through and “just need to grab a cup of coffee” but then find themselves wandering through our streets and into our stores; and, for the wanderers, explorers, and curiosity seekers who are looking for the next thing. We want to be that thing —and then keep them coming back for more.

Klamath Falls Downtown Association (KFDA): 2017 was a whirlwind of a year for the Klamath Falls Down-town Association. In March, the KFDA brought on the first full-time, paid Executive Director. In May, the Budget Committee of the City made a recommendation that the KFDA receive a budget allocation to continue services and City Council approved the allocation in June. The KFDA also brought back 3rd Thursday programming and incor-porated new themes and a new layout and schematic. The events were extremely successful and through surveys we are able to focus on making the event even better in 2018. The KFDA has changed its partnership structure and looks forward to finding new value adds to support businesses in the district. Onward!

Lebanon Downtown Association (LDA): Lebanon Down-town Association had a prosperous year in 2017. Several new businesses opened downtown including Barsideous Brewing to Big Foot Bites restaurant who relocated from Albany to Lebanon. Lebanon Downtown Association part-nered with the City of Lebanon to hold the Mayors on Main Street which had 80 Mayors in our town from throughout Oregon. The event included our first Art and Wine Walks, music, a car show, and vendors. Lebanon Concerts in the Park rocked it again with eight weeks of fun and music in the park with an attendance record set this year. Lebanon was nominated and won Oregon Main Street’s Best Down-town Public Improvement Award for Strawberry Plaza in downtown Lebanon. With a new Main Street Manager on board, the LDA looks forward to a prosperous 2018.

Milton-Freewater Downtown Alliance (MFDA): Milton-Freewater saw some big changes start in 2017, most notably a major school construction project that will put a brand new school building within a block of South Main Street. The Milton-Freewater Downtown Alliance worked in

cooperation with the school district on this project, includ-ing working on building a community space next to the local High School with a massive volunteer work effort. In addition we’ve seen some new businesses developing in our main streets (we have two) and have had good suc-cess with our Impact Day work crews. The MFDA has also hired a new Executive Director and an Assistant, and has started work on a new strategic plan that is shaping up 2018 very nicely. Some of our upcoming work covers downtown beautification, community branding strategies, and the re-development of a local community festival designed to connect to a wider audience.

Newberg Downtown Coalition (NDC): With the opening of the Newberg Dundee bypass, the Newberg Downtown Coalition has momentum to move forward on plans to reshape Downtown in the years to come. What was once a noisy, congested thruway has become an idyllic and quiet main street. This is having a huge positive effect on local businesses. Downtown Newberg has seen 4 new businesses open such as Luminous Spa & Boutique, a new tap-house and bar, and a bicycle shop. The NDC continued to host a successful Farmer’s Market and Holiday Market, as well as two Downtown cleanups that saw the turnout of over 100 volunteers. Downtown also drew in thousands of visitors and locals alike with events, such as the Camellia Festival, the Old Fashioned Festival, the Lavender Festival, Brews and Barbecue, Trick or Treat Street, summer’s Tunes on Tuesday concerts, and our monthly First Friday. We also successfully restored the facade of Chapter’s Books & Cof-fee, the oldest commercial building in downtown, with the aid of the Oregon Main Street Revitalization Grant.

Pendleton Downtown Association (PDA): The Pendleton Downtown Association has had a productive and positive year out in Eastern Oregon. Membership has over doubled, occupancy rates are over 90%, and morale is higher than ever! New events such as the Holiday Hangover Pub Crawl, Downtown Comes Alive, and the Lucky Leprechaun Treasure Hunt are inviting more and more of the commu-nity to our vibrant core while increasing tourism. Through beautification projects such as flower baskets, street trees,

Image courtesy of Jill Schulze.


and attractive safety fencing, the Pendleton Downtown Association has invested roughly $50,000 to increase the walkability of the community. The P.D.A. has also brought over $115,000 in beatification projects to our district and is projecting even higher figures for next year.

Port Orford Main Street Revitalization Association (POMSRA): Port Orford (population 1,200) situated on the Southern Oregon Coast lies between the ocean and the coastal mountains. Main Street is costal highway 101and is home to most businesses. The Port Orford Main Street Revitalization (POMSRA) continues the effort to make Main Street a “place people want to be.” A highlight of 2017 is rehabbing a derelict property in the heart of our traditional Main Street – making the frontage have curb appeal and making the existing building suitable for retail. Benches with attached planters were added with the help of an AARP grant and an inmate crew from Sutter Creek Cor-rectional Institution. POMSRA bought a trailer which was decorated and now used to water plants, continued to do dining and gallery guides, and continued to work with the Jubilee Committee, the Arts Council, and the Chamber to enrich the Main Street in our quirky little town.

Sherwood Main Street (SMS): Sherwood Main Street upgraded the look of our website which now includes a complete business listing with printable map, a Coming

Events page, a listing of our General meetings, minutes, and more. SMS sponsors an Old Engine Show at our Center for the Arts during opening day of our Saturday Market for an exciting and educational experience. SMS partners with the Center for the Arts to host quarterly Art Walks draw-ing hundreds of visitors into local shops while highlighting local artists. The businesses help provide a prize basket for those who get visit all of the locations using the Art Walk Passport. SMS printed and distributed over 2000 Old Town maps which have been a great resource for visitors and local residents. We improved our Halloween Treat or Treating event by closing several streets to host 2000 people of all ages. Kids go from business to business collecting candy while enjoying themed music, game booths in the park, and photo booths, as well as a pet photo contest for the best pet costume. SMS continues to hold monthly General Meetings where city officials, local partners, business leaders, and citi-zens get together to discuss upcoming events, opportunities, and city project updates. This meeting has proven to build relationships among the downtown partners while provid-ing valuable information to local businesses and citizens.

Tillamook Main Street (TMS): The Tillamook Main Street Program continues to thrive and provide some unique services as downtown Tillamook undergoes a massive facelift. A $38 million ODOT project is restructuring the intersections, adjusting road widths, and redesigning the streetscapes through ninety percent of the Main Street District. Tillamook Main Street staff has worked with the City of Tillamook to develop temporary parking plans to offset parking loss during construction, launched a massive outreach effort to keep the community apprised of all the great progress and change that the project is bringing, and worked with business owners to create a cohesive promo-tions strategy to encourage retail activity downtown despite challenging access in the midst of construction. Construc-tion is on schedule to wrap up Fall 2018. Tillamook Main Street is excited to be working with community partners to continue the revitalization momentum!

AmityAthenaBaker CityBrookingsBurnsDallasEnterpriseFlorenceGold Beach

HermistonIndependenceLakeviewLincoln CityMerrillMonroeMyrtle CreekMyrtle PointOakridge

OntarioReedsportSt. HelensSalemSheridanStaytonSutherlinTigardWest Linn

AumsvilleAuroraBanksBendBonanzaCoburgDonaldDunes CityIrrigonJeffersonJohn Day

Malin MilwaukieMosierNorth PlainsNyssaOak GroveRedmondSandySherman CountySilverton

StanfieldTurnerUmatilla CountyVenetaWallowaWeston

Portland Dis-trict:St. Johns

Exploring Downtown Associate


Associate

Main Street Hero Mary Oberst & Barbara Sidway

Best Façade Under $7500 Astoria Vintage Hardware

Best Façade Over $7500Deidrich Building, Stayton

Outstanding Interior RenovationInsomnia Coffee Company, Hillsboro

Outstanding Upper Floor RenovationThe Mann Block, Baker City

Best Placemaking ProjectThe Birdcage, Baker City

Best DT Public ImprovementStrawberry Plaza Revitalization Project, Lebabon

Best Image CampaignBest of Oregon City

Honorable Mention Best Image CampaignWhimsical Fire Hydrants, Port Orford

Best Retail EventBeerFest Downtown Promotion, The Dalles

Best Downtown Special EventGorse Blossom Festival, Bandon

Outstanding Adaptive ReuseAstoria Station

Best New BusinessGrano Bakery & Market, Oregon City

Business of the YearThe Pix Theatre, Albany

Outstanding Special ProjectHistoric Albany Carousel

Outstanding FundraiserFirst City Celebration & Oregon Trail Brew Fest

Outstanding PartnershipBTI-Natural Resource, Baker City

Volunteer of the YearTyson Brooks with La Grande Main Street Downtown

2017 Excellence in Downtown Revitalization Awards


Main Street Manager of the Year: Mike Ragsdale with the Newberg Downtown CoalitionMike has spent much of his professional life in commercial real estate, served in the Oregon State legislature, was the presid-ing officer of the Metro Council, advocated for the Newberg-Dundee Bypass for two decades, serves on the boards of the Newberg Cultural Center and Chehalem Park and Recreation District, and is an active member of Newberg Rotary. These threads of experience have been invaluable to the Newberg Main Street program. Under his leadership, the Newberg Downtown Coalition:

• Reduced vacancies in downtown by improving how prospective tenants saw Newberg by creating partnerships for a wine barrel planter project, organizing cleanup days, encouraging tenants to tend the fronts of their buildings, and securing façade and building improvement grants.

• Acquired a Transportation Growth Management grant to engage the community in visioning the transformation that would take place in downtown Newberg when the bypass is completed.

• Secured annual sponsorships ranging from $5k to $25K as NDC works to build a reliable financial base for their Main Street program.

Albany Carousel Project


Performing Main StreetLise Grato, 541.928.2469 Albany DT Assn; pop 51,270126 Ferry Street SWAlbany, OR 97321Email: [email protected] albanydowntown.com

Sara Wittenberg, 503.683.3252Alberta Main Street 1722 NE Alberta StreetPortland, OR 97211Email: [email protected] albertamainst.org

Sarah Heath, 503.791.7940 Astoria DT Hist Dist Assn; pop 9,590No. 1-12th Street, Ste 114 Astoria, OR 97103Email: [email protected]

Joan Wessell, 541.754.6624 DT Corvallis Assn; pop 56,535460 SW Madison, Ste 9Corvallis, OR 97339Email: [email protected]

Chris Hooper, 541-963-1223 La Grande MS DT; pop 13,510118 Depot St, PO Box 3321La Grande, OR 97850Email: [email protected]

Bradly James, 503-542-3605 McMinnville DT Assn; pop 32,705105 N.E. Third St.McMinnville, OR 97128Email: [email protected]

Jonathan Stone, 503-802-1640 DT Oregon City Assn; pop 33,760814 Main StreetOregon City, 97045Email: [email protected]

Alyssa McConnel, 541.673.3352 DT Roseburg Assn; pop 22,510753 SE Main St. Roseburg, OR 97470Email: [email protected]

Jeremiah Paulsen, 541.370.2849 The Dalles Main Street; pop 14,480710 E 2nd StreetThe Dalles, OR 97058Email: [email protected] thedallesmainstreet.org

Transforming DowntownHarv Schubothe, 541.297.2342 Greater Bandon Assn; 3,105390 1st St. SWBandon, OR 97411Email: [email protected]

Liz Hannum, 503-332-5419Beaverton Downtown Assn.; pop. 94,00012625 SW Broadway, Ste 300Beaverton, OR 97075Email: [email protected]

Jamie Stickel, 266.0772 Canby Main Street; pop 16,010222 NE 2ndCanby, OR 97013Email: [email protected] www.canbymainstreet.com

Carrie Simonson, 503-852-7010 Carlton Main Street; pop 2,070 PO Box 190Carlton, OR 97111Email: [email protected]

Holly Boardman, 541.266.9706 Coos Bay DT Assn; pop 16,315320 Central Ave, Suite 410Coos Bay, OR 97420 Email: [email protected] coosbaydowntown.org

Ruth Linoz, President, 541.767.4119 Cottage Grove MS; pop 9,840400 East Main StreetCottage Grove, OR 97424Email: [email protected]

Kelly Haverkate, c 971-241-2076 Dayton Comm Devel. Assn; pop 2,570PO Box 237Dayton, OR 97114Email: [email protected]

Nancy Hoffman, 503.630.8270 x207Downtwon Estacada Commission; pop 3,085Estacada, OR 97023Email: [email protected]

Tim Dalton, 503.640.6145 Hillsboro DT Partnership; pop 95,310 238 SE 2nd AvenueHillsboro, OR 97123Email: [email protected] hillsborodowntown.com

Vacant, 541.539.6212Klamath Falls DT Assn; pop 21,500PO Box 372Klamath Falls, OR 97601Email: [email protected] downtownklamathfalls.org

Alysia Rodgers, 541-990-9885Lebanon Downtown Association971 Park StreetLebanon, OR 97355Email [email protected]

Luke Hegdal, 541.969.4485 Milton-Freewater DT Alliance; pop 7,060109 NE 5thMilton-Freewater, OR 97862Email: [email protected]

Mike Ragsdale, 503.537.1010 Newberg DT Coalition; pop 22,765210 N Blaine St, Newberg, OR 97132Email: [email protected] newbergdowntown.org

Molly Turner, 541.304.3912Pendleton DT Assn; pop 16,612380 S Main St.Pendleton, OR 97801Email: [email protected]

Karen Auborn, 541.332.1307 Port Orford Revit Assn; pop 1,135PO Box 1272Port Orford, OR 97465Email: [email protected]

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Oregon Main Street Contact Information


Gregg Jacot, Pres. Sherwood Main Street; pop 18,95522552 SW Park St.Sherwood, OR 97140Email: [email protected] Sierra Lauder, MS Coord, 503.354.4400Tillamook Main Street; pop 4,880208 Main AveTillamook, OR 97141Email: [email protected] tillamookchamber.org

Oregon Main StreetSheri Stuart, Coordinator725 Summer St., Suite CSalem, Or 97301Phone: 503.986.0679Email: [email protected]

Katie Henry, Heritage Outreach Specialist725 Summer St., Suite CSalem, Or 97301Phone: 503.986.0671Email: [email protected]

OREGON MAIN STREET

Sheri Stuart, CoordinatorHeritage Programs/Oregon HeritageOregon Parks and Recreation Dept.

725 Summer Street NE, Suite CSalem, Oregon 97301

[email protected]

www.oregonheritage.org

y e a r s ! c e l e b r a t i - oregon.gov · the project will address the goal of downtown housing...

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