Tag Archives: Cedar Falls Community Main Street

Cedar Valley Honored at Iowa Tourism Conference

The following was submitted by our Affiliate agencies, the Waterloo Convention and Visitors Bureau and Cedar Falls Tourism. These organizations in collaboration as Cedar Valley Tourism, and with the Alliance & Chamber to promote and maintain high-quality amenities that benefit visitors and residents alike.

Representatives from the Grout Museum District and Cedar Falls Community Main Street were honored at the Iowa Tourism Conference, held in Davenport.

Downtown Cedar Falls was honored as the state’s Outstanding Retail Experience and the Grout Museum’s Iowa Veterans Museum was honored as Iowa’s Outstanding Attraction and for Outstanding Marketing Collaboration.

Distinct features leading to the Main Street award include friendly store owners serving up memorable experiences from 30+ unique shops and boutiques and 20+ bars, cafes and restaurants. The charm of the area, endless events and creative strategies employed the Community Main Street to position the district as a great get away destination were also noted.

The Grout Museum District’s 365 & Counting: Iowans in the Vietnam War exhibit enabled the Grout to capture the Attraction of the Year Award for the second time in five years. The Outstanding Marketing Collaboration was awarded for the partnership that was developed between the Grout and the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier for their Vietnam Veteran’s Profile features. The Grout provided content to reporters from the Voices of Iowa interview collection and the Courier featured 50 area Vietnam veterans, one each day, during the fall of 2015, within the duration of the 365 & Counting: Iowans in the Vietnam War exhibit. The features helped shine a light on the stories of the men and women who proudly served our county during one of the most controversial wars in history and also helped spread awareness about a powerful exhibit that educated the public and helped heal those who lived through it 50 years ago.

Tourism is an $8 billion industry in Iowa, employing 67,400 people statewide and generating more than $466.7 million in state taxes. In Black Hawk County alone, visitors spent $351.7 million dollars.

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Keith Rahe, Travel Federation of Iowa; Carol Lilly, and Jessica Palmer, Cedar Falls Main Street; Kim Manning, Cedar Falls Tourism and Visitors Bureau; Shawna Lode, Iowa Tourism Office.

Cedar Falls Community Main Street Receives 2014 National Main Street Accreditation

Cedar Falls, Iowa (June 27, 2014 – Community Main Street has been designated as an accredited National Main Street Program for meeting the commercial district revitalization performance standards set by the National Main Street Center®, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Each year, the National Main Street Center and its partners announce the list of accredited Main Street® programs in recognition of their exemplary commitment to historic preservation and community revitalization through the Main Street Four Point Approach®.

“We congratulate this year’s nationally accredited Main Street programs for their outstanding accomplishment in meeting the National Main Street Center’s performance standards,” says Patrice Frey, President & CEO of the National Main Street Center. “Accredited Main Street programs create vibrant communities by using a comprehensive strategy to preserve their historic character and revitalize their commercial districts, which helps make these great places to work, live, play and visit.”

The organization’s performance is annually evaluated by Main Street Iowa, which works in partnership with the National Main Street Center to identify the local programs that meet ten performance standards. These standards set the benchmarks for measuring an individual Main Street program’s application of the Main Street Four Point Approach® to commercial district revitalization. Evaluation criteria determines the communities that are building comprehensive and sustainable revitalization efforts and include standards such as fostering strong public-private partnerships, securing an operating budget, tracking programmatic progress and actively preserving historic buildings.

Downtown Cedar Falls is a thriving district, as evidenced by the numbers. Reports show during the past year, $1,392,654 private dollars were invested in 35 rehabilitation projects and over $5,190,000 in new construction and property acquisition occurred in downtown Cedar Falls. Job growth continued for downtown businesses with the addition of 28 full time jobs and 21 part time positions during 2013. “Creating an environment where businesses want to locate is a strong point of Community Main Street. Our volunteers work diligently to strengthen not only the aesthetics of the district, but to maintain a climate which encourages a balance of retail, service, dining and entertainment options for community guests, residents and employees,” commented Carol Lilly, Director. In 2013, volunteers logged 6411 hours on downtown projects and events and if the current pace continues, 2014 will surpass last year’s total.

Established in 1987, Cedar Falls Community Main Street, Inc. is a volunteer, non-profit organization established to foster economic vitality while preserving and promoting the historic image and character of the downtown. By integrating business improvement, design, organization & development and promotion into a practical management strategy, the approach produces fundamental change in the downtown’s economic base.

Established by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1980, the National Main Street Center helps communities of all sizes revitalize their older and historic commercial districts. Working in more than 2,200 downtowns and urban neighborhoods over the last 34 years, the Main Street program has leveraged more than $59.6 billion in new public and private investment. Participating communities have created 502,728 net new jobs and 115,381 net new businesses, and rehabilitated more than 246,158 buildings, leveraging an average of $33.28 in new investment for every dollar spent on their Main Street district revitalization efforts.

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Lisa Rivera Skubal among members of Cedar Falls Community Main Street Board of Directors

Community Main Street Announces 2013-2014 Board

CEDAR FALLS, IOWA, June 19, 2013 – Cedar Falls Community Main Street has announced new Board of Directors members and the Executive Committee for 2013-2014.

Dawn Wilson and Pam Taylor are new members to the Community Main Street Board of Directors. Wilson and Taylor will serve on the board beginning July 1. On the 2013-2014 Executive Committee Ann Remmert will serve as President, Pam Taylor as President-Elect, Dave Deaver as Treasurer, Brent Johnson as Secretary, and Gretchen Behm as Past-President.

Additional board members are: Dave Schachterle, Ty Kimble, Sheryl McGovern, Julie Brunscheon, Lisa Rivera Skubal, Lea Ann Saul, Jodi Landau, Gregg Humble, Brandon Gray, and Ron Gaines. Liaison members are: John Miller, Jeff Sitzmann, Patrick Gibbs, Jane Messingham, Kim Manning, and Karen Smith.

The Community Main Street Board of Directors has the ultimate responsibility for the Main Street program. Their responsibilities are to educate, build consensus, stimulate the downtown economy through action, focus activity on the downtown, and maximize volunteer participation in the revitalization process. The board serves as a private sector advocate of downtown revitalization by promoting community involvement, acceptance, and commitment to the revitalization effort.

About Cedar Falls Community Main Street

Cedar Falls Community Main Street, Inc. is a volunteer, non-profit organization established in 1987. It is established to foster economic vitality while preserving and promoting the historic image and character of downtown Cedar Falls. Through the integration of business improvement, design, organization and development, and promotion into a practical management strategy, it creates a change in the downtown’s economic base. For more information, visit www.communitymainstreet.org or call (319) 277-0213.

Cedar Falls Community Main Street Receives Award from Main Street Iowa

Cedar Falls Community Main Street received the award for best Image Promotion for their 25^th Anniversary Celebration at the 27^th annual Main Street Iowa Awards celebration, which was held on Friday, May 17^th at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center at Veteran’s Auditorium in downtown Des Moines. Melissa Barber and Cary Darrah, co-chairs of the 25^th Anniversary Celebration Committee, accepted the award on behalf of the 25^th Anniversary Planning Committee at the event, which was attended by approximately 400 individuals representing communities across the state. Competitive nominations were submitted for 105 projects; 26 were selected for awards and six received honorable mention.

Governor Terry Branstad, Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds, and Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) presented the honors. Main Street Volunteer of the Year awards were presented to 47 individuals or couples who were selected by their community for outstanding dedication and volunteer service benefiting the local Main Street program.

“I am proud to have been part of the effort to bring the Main Street program to Iowa in 1985 as an economic development tool,” stated Governor Branstad. “It is gratifying to see the successes Iowa communities have had because of our Main Street program. As a result of the hard work of countless local leaders, Iowa’s Main Street districts in communities large and small are flourishing.”

As one of the oldest Main Street programs in the state, Community Main Street is extremely proud of our history and the success with which Cedar Falls has been blessed. For 25 years, this organization has faced challenges, built partnerships and championed economic revitalization downtown.

To celebrate their 25^th Anniversary, Community Main Street, along with a dedicated committee of volunteers, turned 2012 into an epic celebration that added three special anniversary events to an already-packed downtown schedule. The year kicked off in January with an 80’s Party on Main: Don’t Stop Believing, as a nod to the 1987 beginnings of Community Main Street. In June, a free, family-friendly outside music celebration called Getaway to Gateway was held as a thank-you to the community for ongoing support. In October, a 25^th Anniversary Gala, featuring unique auction items and live music, was held as the grand finale to the year.

None of this would have been possible without the hard work and commitment of the 25^th Anniversary Planning Committee. Community Main Street would like to thank Melissa Barber, Cary Darrah, Kim Abbas, Janelle Darst, Jodi Landau, Karen Oltman, Mike Reyhons, Julie Shimek & Jamie Wilson for their dedication and support in planning this wonderful year-long celebration that has now received state-wide recognition as the Best Image Promotion of the Main Street Iowa Program during 2012.

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