Public Art, Community creative endeavors, Historic Architecture in downtown districts, Stories of the individuals who have made an impact on their communities, past, present and visions for the future. Ties to the natural environment enriching our daily lives within the city we call home, whether it is public parks, gardens, rivers, alleyways, outdoor seating, trees and flowers. These are all impressions I soaked in from my experience especially during the Wyoming Best Practices part of the conference. I was so amazed by the strength and enthusiasm of our fellow Wyoming main “streeters”. What a treasure the state of Wyoming has in these citizens who give so much of themselves to their communities. I pondered if the Governor of our state realizes what an asset they are for the state. “People are our greatest asset”-(quote from the storytelling workshop). I learned from the visited Virginian communities that they had state financial support and funding for business pitch contests that help diversify their city’s economic base. How wonderful that would be for our Wyoming towns. I plan to write a letter or maybe several to our Governor, it would be great if we could try a letter writing campaign across the state. Wyoming Main Street organizations are already working to build their communities in so many ways. If the state would use its resources to give us more capabilities for expanding and fulfilling our missions, what amazing work could be done.
During the National Main Street conference a favorite workshop was “Storytelling on Main Street”, I could see how Hopewell was using this with their public art and billboard project. Their message of immigration, diversity, the vision of hope for enriching and building a strong community was powerful. I learned storytelling techniques that could be used next year for the International Flavor Festival to enrich the experience. Human faces, human stories, “people are our greatest assets”. This makes me think of an article I was just reading about how jumpy the public is right now, how we as a public have a lack of trust in government, in public safety, in each other. How can we help build back trust in our fellow man? Personal connection through storytelling, connection to our community and emotional connection to place would be a good place to start. The workshop gave useful step by step instructions on how best to interview someone to create a good story, how best to use social media, photos, questions, techniques and the app-Otter for recording the interview. (I need to practice now!)
Another favorite workshop was “Activating the Main Street Approach through Placemaking”. This workshop emphasized not to “overthink” but the need for more action. I liked their idea of the “power of 10”, multiple uses=10=successful space.
Creating the space and teaching the public ways to use it. How do we engage the community-creating opportunity to interact, look at the project holistically, create the unexpected, build a love for place-a space people want to be and come back to. There was an emphasis on creating a great relationship with city officials and building partnerships. Small changes can make big impacts, and then there are bigger catalyst projects. (Creating grants, obtaining grants)
The Main Idea presentation on “Championing Commercial District Housing Development” was extremely relevant for communities large and small across the nation. Again the word, “Grant” came up, should we have a professional grant writer on staff? At home on Main Street-the more eyes on the street the safer they are. How can we activate existing vacant buildings, upper floors and attract property development entrepreneurs? How can we support developers? Incentives from the state? Is there money from the State department of Commerce for housing development? Has Laramie lost businesses wanting to locate here because of the lack of available housing for employees? Why wouldn’t the state want to help encourage housing development in downtown districts to contribute to diversifying our state economy and deal with the housing shortage? What can we do as a Main Street organization to encourage and support 2nd story developments? (Live-Work-Walk). Walkability is an attractive amenity for seniors as well as young professionals. No commute=Live more life. (Life you gain back). Residents who live downtown spend more money downtown. Should we have a real estate agent on our EV committee or do we all ready? I am very proud LMSA is currently working on the development of 2nd story residences downtown.
Codes and Ordinances-code enforcement=run down buildings (deferred maintenance). I am sure this is a hot button issue in our town, how can we approach this? How is the city government dealing with this issue?
The conference was so rich with experiences, information and networking opportunities. I would love to get to know our Wyoming Main Street people better, sharing our experiences in our state and with our state government. I look forward to working within our LMSA organization to bring forward new ideas, enriching experiences for our community, support downtown businesses and life downtown. I came away from the conference inspired and have a deeper connection to the Main Street program.
Thank you to Wyoming Main Street! Thank you Blue Federal Credit union and thank you Laramie Main Street for the opportunity to attend this incredible conference.
