What is Main Street South Carolina?
Main Street South Carolina is a technical assistance program that empowers communities as they revitalize their historic downtowns, encouraging economic development and historic preservation.
Since 1983, Main Street South Carolina has helped communities build up the business and image of their downtown commercial districts by using the successful Main Street Four-Point Approach®. This comprehensive, incremental approach to revitalization focuses on a community’s unique heritage and existing assets as well as coordinating efforts. Local resources and local initiative drive revitalization efforts while the state program helps the communities develop their own strategies for stimulating long-term downtown economic growth. The time-tested approach reminds stakeholders that a healthy downtown is a key part of sustainable economic development.
Main Street South Carolina is Main Street America™Coordinating Program. Main Street America helps to lead a powerful, grassroots network consisting of more than 40 Coordinating Programs and 1,200 neighborhoods and communities across the country committed to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. In South Carolina, cities like Beaufort, Dillon and Laurens have discovered that — with the help of Main Street South Carolina — downtowns can thrive as centers of commerce and community again.
Why Main Street?
- It creates jobs – A revitalized district attracts new industry and strengthens service and retail job markets.
- It saves tax dollars – Revitalization stabilizes and improves a downtown’s tax base while also protecting existing investments.
- It preserves a community’s historic resources – In an economically healthy downtown, property owners maintain their historic buildings and preserve an important part of their community’s heritage and identity.
- It builds community pride – Main Street provides a public space for community members to come together, create new partnerships and celebrate their downtown.
Four Point Approach
The Main Street Four-Point Approach® leverages local assets: historic, cultural and architectural resources as well as local enterprises and community pride. It is a comprehensive strategy to address the many issues that challenge historic commercial districts. These points are the keys to a successful strategy:
Organization involves building a Main Street framework that is well represented by businesses and property owners, bankers, citizens, historic preservationists, entrepreneurs, public officials, chambers of commerce, and other local economic development organizations. Everyone must work together to renew downtown. A strong organization provides the structure and stability to build and maintain a long-term effort.
Promotion creates excitement and vibrancy downtown. Street festivals, parades, retail events and image development campaigns are some of the ways Main Street educates a community on what can be downtown and encourages customer traffic. Promotion presents an inviting image to shoppers, investors and visitors.
Design enhances the look and feel of the commercial district. Historic building rehabilitation, street and alley cleanup, landscaping, street furniture, signage, visual merchandising and lighting all improve the physical image of a downtown as a desirable place to shop, work, walk, live and invest in development. Design improvements create a reinvestment of both public and private dollars downtown.
Economic Vitality involves analyzing current market forces to develop long-term solutions. Recruiting new businesses, creatively converting unused space for new uses, and sharpening the competitiveness of Main Street’s traditional merchants are examples.
VISION
Our goal is to maximize the vitality of downtown Kingstree so that new businesses will be encouraged to come and existing businesses will see increased revenue while enhancing the experience of a small historic southern town.
MISSION
Main Street Kingstree’s mission is to take a lead role in revitalization efforts in the downtown area in order to enhance and develop economic opportunities in Kingstree. The organization spearheads streetscape beautification, building rehabilitation and community events to increase property value and decrease commercial vacancy to bring vitality and strength to Kingstree while preserving history and traditions that make this town a special place to play, work and live.
