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Missouri Main Street Connection
SUMMER 2012 
In This Issue
2013 Conference
Downtown Revitalization Workshop
2012 PowerPoint Presentations
2012 Conference & Workshop Calendar
Welcome New Board & Advisory Board Members
Main Street Four-Point Approach®
Annual Conference Recap
Communities & Individuals Win Revitalization Awards
Three Missouri Cities Earn HP Grants
Community News
Retail Trends in 2012
Participating Communities
Thank You to our 2012 Sponsors
Mark Your Calendars
for the 2013 Conference!

The 5th Annual Missouri's Premier Revitalization Conference will be held
July 30 - August 1, 2013
in Kansas City, MO.

Mark your calendars and check getpluggedindowntown.org
for updated information on this dynamic state conference.
WorkshopDowntown Revitalization Workshop

"Social Immersion"

social media icons

November 7

in Excelsior Springs, MO

10:00 am - 5:30 pm

 

Location:

The Elms Hotel & Spa

401 Regent

Excelsior Springs

 

Who should attend?

Business Owners/Managers & Main Street Communities at every stage of revitalization!

 

This one-day seminar will show you the value of using the internet and social media to promote your organization or business.  It will introduce several programs and teach you the basics of their use.  More importantly it will show you how dedicating time to the internet and social media will increase your visibility and foot traffic.

 

Topics covered include:

-  Business listings on Google,

   Yahoo and Bing

-  Social Media Sites including

   Facebook, Twitter,

   LinkedIn, Four Square,

   Pinterest and YouTube

 

You will walk away with a basic understanding of how these sites work together, which ones are best for you to use, and have a plan to implement your goals.

 

Featured Speakers:

The Staff of

Downtown Washington, Inc.

A 2012 Great American Main Street Award� winner!

 

Bridgette Epple, Aimee Frey and Aaron Holdmeyer have a combined 20 years' experience in downtown revitalization and have been teaching local business owners and nonprofits the ins and outs of social media.

 

Workshop Fee:

$75 per person for MMSC members

 

$125 per person for nonmembers

 

Deadline for Early Registration:

November 1, 2012

(after deadline $25 fee increase)

 

To register online, go to www.momainstreet.org

 

CLICK HERE for a downloadable registration form.

 

For questions, call the MMSC office at

417-334-3014.

 

Lodging Information:

The Elms Hotel & Spa

The Elms
*Room Block information coming soon.

Networking Dinner

with MMSC staff

Tuesday, Nov. 6 at 7 pm

for all workshop attendees,

"Dutch Treat" at

Ventana Gourmet Grill

117 W. Broadway.

 

Explore Excelsior Springs!

After lunch Wednesday, take a guided tour of downtown Excelsior Springs and see how things are evolving and changing.  The tour will start at the Hall of Waters, will include several recently restored properties in downtown, will then move to a new housing development of new homes and historic renovation, and will end at The Elms Hotel and Spa, which just completed a multi-million-dollar renovation and restoration.

2012 PowerPoint Presentations
Get Plugged In Logo
PowerPoint presentations presented at the conference are now available as PDFs at
getpluggedindowntown.org, listed alphabetically by session title.  These files may be downloaded for FREE. 

Please Note:  We may not have been able to capture all of the presentations that were given on-site at the conference, and not all speakers are permitted to post their presentations.
2012 Conference & Workshop Calendar

October 21-22

Missouri Community Betterment Conference

Country Club Hotel, Lake of the Ozarks, MO

For more information, visit the MCB website: CLICK HERE

 

October 24-26

Missouri Preservation Conference

Center of Creative Arts (COCA), University City, MO

Visit the Missouri Preservation website for additional details: CLICK HERE

 

October 31-Nov 3

National Preservation Conference

Spokane, WA 

Hosted by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

More details can be found on the NTHP website: CLICK HERE

 

November 7

Quarterly Workshop

Excelsior Springs, MO

"Social Immersion: How to Make the Best Use of Social Networking to Promote Your Main Street Program"

CLICK HERE for detailed workshop information. 

New Board Members & Advisory Board Members Will Share Their Expertise with Main Street®

In July the Missouri Main Street Connection Board of Directors voted in several new members and also welcomed several new members to the Advisory Board.  

 

New Board members:

 

Robert Lewis is a principal/owner of Development Strategies, Inc., a St. Louis firm specializing in economic planning and market analysis.   

 

Nathan Potter is Director of the Finance Development Team for the Missouri Department of Economic Development. 

 

Dan Ross is Executive Director of the Missouri Municipal League. 

 

Russ Vomert is Director of Planning for Arcturis, Inc., a St. Louis-based architectural firm.  

 

New Advisory Board members:

 

Sallie Hemenway is Coordinator of Community Development for the Missouri Department of Economic Development.  

 

State Representative Ryan Silvey represents District 38, covering part of Clay County in the Kansas City area.  He is chairman of the House Budget Committee.  

 

State Senator Eric Schmitt represents the 15th District, which includes several communities in St. Louis County.  He is a partner in the law firm of Lathrop & Gage, LLP. 

The Main Street Four-Point Approach® to Revitalization

Design - implementation of public improvements, public spaces, facade improvements that maintain the historic character and design of the buildings; appropriate signage, parking, and pedestrian-friendly streetscapes.

 

Promotion - special events, retail promotions, brochures, image development. 

 

Organization - public relations, fundraising, leadership training to develop the structure for a successful, long-term organization, and comprehensive work planning. 

 

Economic Restructuring - developing a competitive direction for the downtown area, market surveys, business recruitment and business retention activities. 

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Missouri Main Street Connection Hosted State-wide Downtown Revitalization Conference

Missouri Main Street Connection hosted the "Get Plugged In...Downtown" conference July 24-26 in St. Louis, MO. 

 

This conference is conducted annually by MMSC, a state-wide not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping communities in Missouri with preservation-based economic development.  The training and self-help tools provided by the Main Street Program are the foundation of success for Downtown Revitalization.  

Get Plugged In Logo

Besides the preservation component of revitalization, the Main Street method develops sustainability, smart growth, local fiscal investment, and job growth; fosters small, independent and innovative businesses; embraces diversity; and utilizes social media, among other topics presented in the conference's 24 workshops and six educational tours that highlighted examples of successful and ongoing revitalization efforts in the St. Louis area.  

 

During this conference, Basic Training sessions were offered covering the Main Street Four-Point Approach� to Revitalization, as developed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Main Street Program.  Attendees who participated in all four sessions and completed essays for all four points received a certificate of graduation for completion of the Basic Training.  

 

Conference attendees had opportunities to network with over 200 individuals representing 47 communities in Missouri.

Missouri Communities Win Downtown Revitalization Awards

Missouri Main Street Connection presented awards in 12 categories for excellence in revitalization during its state-wide conference July 24-26 in St. Louis, MO.  Awards went to Sedalia, Cape Girardeau, Liberty, Clinton, Chillicothe, Excelsior Springs, Lee's Summit, Warrensburg, Washington, and Main Street Corridor District in Kansas City. 

 

"With these awards, we are proud to honor the dedication and investment that communities across Missouri are putting into their downtown revitalization programs," said Steven Hoffman, professor of history at Southeast Missouri State University and President of Missouri Main Street Connection.  "Their efforts reveal the most cherished values of citizens who choose to preserve their downtowns and improve the quality of life for everyone in their communities."

 

Sedalia won the Award for Best Adaptive Re-use for the rehabilitation and transformation of the historic Missouri Pacific Railroad Depot (ca 1886), which now has an improved AMTRAK terminal, is home to the regional OATS Transportation office, and provides space for the Sedalia Downtown Development Inc. offices.  

 

Cape Girardeau won the Award for Best Economic Restructuring Project with the Operation Main Street Program, a project designed to provide strategic training for downtown businesses including financial counseling, mystery shopping and action plan competition.   

 

Liberty won the Award for the Best Large-Scale Project, which went to Tim Harris - Star Development for its adaptive reuse of the Bedinger Furniture Warehouse (ca 1890), a preservation and redevelopment project with a total cost of $775,000 - all without government incentives. 

 

Excelsior Springs won the Award for Business Excellence, which went to Willow Springs Mercantile.  Owners, Jim and Daphne Bowman, used a strategic plan for enhancing their business, which resulted in a growth of 94% since opening in 2005.  Excelsior Springs also shared the Award for Facade Rehabilitation under $10,000 for the Blue Raddish Artist Co-op, a 10-foot wide faux building - a roof with end caps nestled between two buildings (ca 1900) - which was once an eyesore and vacant for many years but is now a functional and attractive space. 

 

Jet Pabst, owner of A Thyme for Everything in Lee's Summit, shared the top Award for Business Excellence.  After six years in downtown, Jet expanded her kitchen, dining and entertainment goods store  to accommodate culinary classes, which are often sold out and offered in the evenings, adding to the vibrancy of downtown. 

 

Warrensburg Main Street won the Award for Outstanding Special Project, which went to "Fashion Becomes Art," a one-night transformation of the Impulse Boutique into a high-fashion, New York-style event venue. 

 

Main Street Corridor, Kansas City, won the Award for Streetscape and Public Improvements, for completion of the first phase of a three-phase project to increase aesthetics and safety of the area and to improve public perception. 

 

Chillicothe won the Award for Facade Rehabilitation under $10,000 for Lauhoff Jewelry, a family business in operation since the 1970s now owned by Darren and Angie Lauhoff, who have preserved the unique architectural characteristics and applied a new historic color scheme to compliment the facade elements.  

 

Washington won the Award for Facade Rehabilitation over $10,000 for the Washington Public Library, a two-year rehabilitation project that exemplifies the stabilization and renovation of a specialized government building that serves the public. 

 

Clinton won the Award for Special Promotional Event for "Olde Glory Days, Happy Birthday Clinton, 175 Years Strong," a four-day annual celebration of America's birthday and free to the public, which coincided in 2011 with the sesquicentennial for Clinton.  As many as 10,000 people are in town during the celebration, which creates a large economic impact for the community. 

 

Individuals were also recognized and awarded:

The winner of the Outstanding Public Official Award was John Simmons, Community Development Director for the City of Sedalia, nominated by Sedalia Downtown Development, Inc., for his invaluable role and tireless dedication to SDDI.  

 

Brandy Sensenich, a downtown business owner in Chillicothe, received the Stick Out Your Neck Award, recognizing her enthusiasm, leadership skills, and self-initiated education about the Main Street Four-Point Approach�.  

 

The Stick Out Your Neck Award was also awarded to Rick Hopp of Washington, recognizing his dedication to renovate, restore and re-open the downtown post office, and he continues to provide cleaning, repairs and maintenance of the building gratis. 

 

Claire Bruce of Old Town Cape, a downtown business owner and resident, received Volunteer of the Year Award for her proactive volunteerism and knowledgeable contribution to the Economic Restructuring Committee.

 

Andrew "Andy" Unerstall of Washington was also awarded the Volunteer of the Year Award for his dedication to preservation, to learning the Four-point Approach� process and to Downtown Washington, Inc.

Three Missouri Cities Earn Historic Preservation Grants

Three Missouri communities will receive federal grants totaling more than $62,000 for historic preservation projects.  Excelsior Springs will put its $35,000 to work on an archaeology training program to cover artifact collection and field surveys.  Jefferson City plans to use its grant of nearly $11,000 to nominate one of its neighborhoods for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.  Poplar Bluff is receiving about $16,000 to complete a survey of land use and building conditions in its downtown area.

Community News & Happenings

Monett Hispanic Outreach

Monett, one of Missouri Main Street Connection's Affiliate Grant Communities, is taking a proactive approach with Hispanic Outreach within their downtown.  With a statewide average Hispanic population of 3 percent, Monett has 19 percent, representing about 30 percent of the downtown merchants. 

 
In an effort to better understand the cultural differences and to open the lines of communication, Monett community leaders recently invited Norma Ramirez de 

Monett Hispanic outreach

Miess, Senior Program Officer of the National Trust Main Street Center, and Jeanine Rann, State Community Development Coordinator for MMSC, to visit Monett to see how integration of cultures is working.  Ramirez de Miess facilitated a bilingual public meeting to outreach to the Hispanic population and encourage their involvement in the revitalization effort.  

 

Hispanic community members discussed issues relating to the mixing of the cultures and effective communication with non-Hispanic business customers.  Monett now distributes a monthly newsletter written in Spanish and English citywide and is currently developing a communications strategy to expand their efforts.

*******

Blue Springs Making Great Strides

A key component to the success of Blue Springs' downtown revitalization program, "Downtown Alive," is following MMSC's Best Practices and recommended funding sources guidelines. Blue Springs meeting  Using that structure, Downtown Alive has formed their Board and Committees, filed for their 501c3 Non-profit status, adopted a Conflict of Interest Policy, developed a "Friends of" campaign and recently received a favorable vote from their City Council for the commitment of funding for the next two years in addition to substantial Community Development Block Grant funds earmarked for facade improvements.  

 

Cindy Miller, President of Downtown Alive, reflected on the progress made in the past twelve months.  "In looking back, this is amazing progress in my opinion, especially when you consider the fact that we were awarded the Affiliate Grant by MMSC only one year ago.  Our first anniversary date was in July!  Over the past 13 years that I have worked in our downtown district, there have been several groups that tried to revitalize, change, improve downtown and these groups were never successful.  Despite their efforts, the formula for success just wasn't there.  The formula provided by MMSC is structured, which is one of the most positive aspects about MMSC.  Their approach provides the structure that enables a group of people to work together.  Structure is the key to the success of any project and MMSC has the program that provides just that." 

******* 

Appleton City Seeing Steady Progress

Appleton City Main Street Vision (ACMSV) has been an Affiliate Grant Community with Missouri Main Street Connection for less than a year, but this small community of just over 1,000 people has already seen steady progress under the Main Street Four-point Approach�.  

 

Appleton City bike ride
Under ACMSV's coordinating efforts, a wide variety of groups, organizations and citizens came together to pull off a fun, FREE event for all ages - a citywide Bike Ride.  On a Saturday morning, bikers rode five miles of marked streets throughout the community then enjoyed prizes, watermelon and information at a local park at the end of the ride.  A drawing was held for a boy and girl bike given away free!

 

ACMSV also started a Farmers Market in May 2012 and over a dozen farmers have participated over the summer.  Most recently, a farmer brought in edamame and introduced it to several adventurous locals.  In an effort to inspire more participation from the community, ACMSV provided edamame to the elementary students, who enjoyed popping the soybean pods to get the plump little beans inside.  What a fun way to eat veggies!  Each child was given a 50-cents-off coupon to take home for any produce bought at the market.  The coupons will be funded by ACMSV to reimburse the vendors in this effort to spread the word about healthier eating...and by the way, the vast majority of the kids asked for seconds!

Retail Trends in 2012

Tips for Retailers from Business Strategist Barbara Wold

 

1.  Weekday Convenience and Weekend Experience.  The consumer will expect you to provide convenience during the week, which may mean you will need to offer different services and possibly longer hours.  During the weekend consumers want your store to WOW them, and therefore, more theatrical events will need to be organized on weekends to catch their attention. 

2.  Avoid the BIG Ticket Items.  If you haven't already noticed, consumers are practicing frugality more often.  This reduction in spending will not affect all retailers.  In fact, retailers in the food and garden sector could see an increase in sales as families stay home, and cooking and gardening become more of a pastime.  But, it will be the small ticket items that will prosper.  The big ticket items are the ones you will find difficult to sell.  Furniture and carpet retailers, etc., will especially find it more difficult to survive, while food and garden retailers weather the storm. 

3.  Social Media De-cluttering as a Marketing Tool.  Many social media gurus are predicting that business people will start analyzing which social media channels are really working for their businesses.  Discard some and focus on others.  Social media will be a major marketing tool.  Those retailers who do not join the social media marketing surge will quickly get left behind, but it will be a less cluttered social media world. 

4.  Video and Pictures Will Grow as Marketing Tools.  A picture is worth 1,000 words, so the saying goes.  Businesses will be putting more videos and pictures online to sell their story to customers.  This may be an important area to learn new skills. 

5.  Fewer Staff, but Better Staff.  Many retailers have forgotten how important their people are.  Some retailers have forgotten to train them how to be the best hosts in town.  In this area of common sense many businesses are failing badly.  Customer interaction will be a real key to success. 

6.  Networking With Other Retailers.  Independent businesses have a tough time surviving on their own.  Networking with other retailers within your community or networking in a group within their industry - perhaps both - is another key to success.  To be a truly independent retailer and not engage with other retailers could be a major mistake. 

7.  Your Local Community May Be the Key.  Customers will engage with retailers they feel support their community.  This is why farmers markets have been so successful in recent years.  The consumers want to know your values and appreciate your consistency in getting that message across. 

8.  Price Flexibility.  All the research shows that price is a driver, and that isn't likely to change in the immediate future.  Many retailers have been too inflexible in their pricing, and we will see a lot more price flexibility in the future.  This does not mean discounting.  There may be special offers, but at the same time other products may be increased in price. 

9.  Seasonality Will Reappear.  Retailers will need to celebrate all the seasons.  Re-embrace the seasons and use this as a marketing opportunity. 

Main Street Participating Communities
September 2012

Accredited Level  

Cape Girardeau * Chillicothe

Clinton * Lee's Summit * Liberty

Warrensburg * Washington

 

Associate Level  

Excelsior Springs * Sedalia

 

Affiliate Level  

Appleton City * Ash Grove * Belton

Blue Springs * Cabool * Cassville

Concordia * Fredericktown

Glasgow * Lamar * Monett

Peculiar * Raytown * Seymour

Sikeston * Ste. Genevieve

 

Aspiring Level  

Arcadia * Archie * Ashland * Atlanta * Aurora
Ballwin * 
Berkeley * Bethel * Bethany * Bolivar

Boonville * Branson * Branson West * Bridgeton

Brookfield * Brunswick * Buckner * Buffalo

California * Cameron * Campbell * Carl Junction

Carroll County Econ. Dev. * Carrollton * Carthage

Caruthersville * Chamois * Columbia * Cottleville

Creve Coeur * Crystal City * Cuba * Drexel * East Prairie

Eldon * El Dorado Springs * Elsberry * Fairgrove

Farmington * Fayette * Festus * Fulton * Greenwood

Hannibal * Hartville * Hermann * Holden * Holts Summit

Houston * Humansville * Imperial * Independence

Jackson * Jefferson City * Joplin

Kansas City 18th & Vine District * Kansas City MainCor

Kennett * Kirksville * Kirkwood * Lake Ozark * LaPlata

Lebanon * Lemay * Lexington * Louisiana * Macon

Malden * Manchester * Mansfield * Marble Hill

Marceline * Marthasville * Maryville * Marshall * Milan

Moberly * Monroe City * Mount Vernon * Neosho

New Haven * Normandy * Odessa * O'Fallon * Osceola

Overland * Ozark * Palmyra * Park Hills * Parkville

Perryville * Pilot Knob * Platt City * Pleasant Hill

Portageville * Poplar Bluff * Potosi * Puxico * Republic

Rock Port * Rolla * Russellville * Shelbyville * Smithville

Springfield Urban District Alliance * Strafford * St. Charles

St. Joseph * St. Louis Downtown Partnership

St. Louis South Grand Imp. District * St. Peters

Trenton * Union * University City * Velda Village Hills

Versailles * Warrenton * Warsaw * Webb City

Wentzville * West Plains * Windsor

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