Red Wing Downtown Main Street has been designated as a 2026 Main Street America Accredited program. This continues a streak of 10 straight years earning the designation.
According to their mission statement, Main Street America “leads an inclusive, impact-driven movement dedicated to reenergizing and strengthening older and historic downtowns…through place-based economic development and community preservation.”
Downtown Main Street is one of 838 organizations recognized by Main Street America and will now have access to the many programs and tools offered by the national organization.
To qualify as an Accredited program, a community organization must demonstrate that it has already been successful in bolstering its small-town community. Main Street America measures this success through a variety of metrics, including the four pillars of its Main Street Approach: Economic Vitality, Design, Promotion, and Organization.
Downtown Main Street has been successful in all of these areas. In terms of economic vitality, $14.4 million of private money and $13.7 million in public investment have been injected into downtown Red Wing since 2010. Downtown Main Street has not been alone in raising these funds. The Downtown Philanthropic Collaborative and Port Authority have also played a large role in funding downtown projects.
Likewise, recent efforts to update downtown Red Wing’s logo have brought more cohesion to the district, and efforts by Downtown Main Street, the business development committee, and others have ensured greater communication between business owners and other stakeholders across downtown.
Main Street America also seeks out communities that succeed in six other performance areas. One of those is preservation-based economic development. Thanks to the long-running efforts of Red Wing’s city government and community organizations to maintain the beauty of its buildings, and a more recent emphasis on mixed-use redevelopment in those buildings, Red Wing was able to stand out in this area.
As an Accredited program, Downtown Main Street will have easier access to many of the benefits offered by Main Street America. General Motors, T-Mobile, and American Express, among many other corporations and government agencies, offer grants through Main Street America. Accredited programs have a leg up in receiving these grants.
Additionally, Main Street America has a Government Relations team that lobbies in Washington, D.C., for laws that benefit small-town economies. On a smaller level, they provide guidance on how organizations like Downtown Main Street can communicate with local governments on how to best help local businesses.
Red Wing Downtown Main Street is a leader in this community and appreciates Main Street America recognizing its efforts with this national accreditation.
This story originally appeared in the Red Wing Republican Eagle.
