The North Carolina Main Street & Rural Planning Center has selected Mebane and Zebulon as the latest “North Carolina Main Street Communities”, while Thomasville has been selected to participate in the Downtown Associate Community (DAC) program. The Main Street designation for Mebane and Zebulon became effective July 1, 2023, and Thomasville’s Downtown Associate designation becomes effective in August 2023.
“I welcome all three of these communities, Mebane, Zebulon and Thomasville, to the North Carolina Main Street and Downtown Associate Community programs,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders. “The leadership of these communities has worked diligently to improve the economic well-being of their downtown districts and serve as inspiration for other cities and towns that are contemplating downtown revitalization.”
After meeting rigorous national downtown development requirements, Mebane and Zebulon earned their designation as a Main Street community. Mebane and Zebulon previously received three years of service through the Main Street DAC program, which supports sustainable economic revitalization through strategic planning and organizational development. These communities now have the tools to successfully implement a comprehensive Main Street program.
As with Main Street programming offered by the NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center, the DAC program is based on the creation of economic development strategies that will transform downtown through an implementation plan organized around the Four-Point Approach® methodology, a comprehensive downtown revitalization process focused on economic vitality, design, promotion, and organization, that was developed by the National Main Street Center®.
Joining the ranks as a DAC, Thomasville will receive two years of downtown technical assistance valued at $30,000 in services. Upon successful completion and demonstration that it has met the requirements within the two-year time frame, Thomasville may have the opportunity to move up to an official Main Street designation.
“We look forward to working with Thomasville and helping them strengthen their downtown revitalization efforts through the Downtown Associate Community program,” said Liz Parham, director of the N.C. Main Street & Rural Planning Center. “Mebane and Zebulon have unique assets that they will expand through the Main Street program, for economic growth and development in downtown, and we are excited to see the successful projects that they will implement.”
The DAC program, launched in May 2015, provides communities interested in downtown revitalization with the tools to build a sustainable organizational foundation that will strengthen their revitalization efforts. The program is the path that North Carolina communities must take to become a designated NC Main Street community. The next opportunity for selection is in the spring of 2025.
Since 1980, N.C. Main Street communities have leveraged more than $4.5 billion in public and private investment in their downtown districts, creating more than 32,000 net new jobs and rehabilitating 7,500 buildings. With the addition of Mebane and Zebulon, there are now 72 designated Main Street communities in North Carolina.
The N.C. Main Street & Rural Planning Center at the Department of Commerce is North Carolina's state coordinating program for Main Street America. Main Street America has been helping revitalize older and historic commercial districts for more than 43 years. It is the leading voice for preservation-based economic development and community revitalization across the country. Made up of small towns, mid-sized communities, and urban commercial districts, Main Street America represents the broad diversity that makes this country so unique. Working together, the programs that make up the Main Street America network help to breathe new life into the places people call home.
The N.C. Main Street & Rural Planning Center works in regions, counties, cities, towns, downtown districts and in designated N.C. Main Street communities to inspire placemaking through asset-based economic development strategies that achieve measurable results such as investment, business growth and jobs.
For more information, visit the N.C. Main Street page or contact Liz Parham at 919-814-4658.