MEBANE, N.C. — A national program helping to boost economic vitality in historical towns is having an impact on North Carolina's city of Mebane.
N.C. Main Street is operated through the North Carolina Department of Commerce and is part of the Main Street America program.
What You Need To Know
- Mebane is the 71st city to join the Main Street program in N.C.
- The national program is to help boost historical downtown's economic vitality, character and more
- Mebane's motto for the Main Street program is "little surprises big charm"
The Main Street program was founded in 1980 as a part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation program, which was crafted to help solve issues affecting historic downtowns, according to the Main Street America website.
The city of Mebane sits between Raleigh and Greensboro, and is the newest city to join the N.C. Main Street Program.
The program, established in over 1,000 cites, says it uses a four-point model that examines revitalization events for design, organization, economic vitality and promotion, according to a document provided by a Mebane city council member.
Mebane’s addition brings the total of North Carolina cities in the Main Street program to 71, after its designation on July 1.
City Council Member and ex officio Katie Burkholder has lived in Mebane for 15 years and wanted to join her local city government to give her kids a better life.
“We really want to have a place where we recreate, you know, kind of that you have your live work, play, and when folks are not at work, they really want to be here. And so we wanted to preserve that for our kids too and making sure that they see the benefits of having the community that we have and, and then also doing what we can to make it better,” Burkholder said.
Her newest endeavor is helping add Mebane to the N.C. Main Street Program, in hopes of boosting Mebane’s profile within the state.
“We're happy to to have the outlets here, and that's on the interstate. But we also want people to know that there is definitely more than just an interstate stop right. We have retail, we have gift shops or places where you can find unique gift items,” Burkholder said.
Besides the general hope of bringing in traffic into Mebane’s downtown, Burkholder hopes the N.C. Main Street program will boost overall commerce downtown.
“First and foremost, you know, the obvious one is economic vitality, right? We want and that is a crux of of the Main Street. One of the one of the goals that we work towards is economic vitality for downtown,” Burkholder said.
Mebane has committed to providing $100,000 annually in funding for Mebane’s Main Street program. Some of the projects include creating a cohesive downtown marketing plan, adding more outdoor seating, history pop-ups enhancing pedestrian travels, public art projects, music festivals, working through issues smaller business owners may face and more.
“What's so important, I think, about Main Street, the organization as a whole, and why it is as important as it is on a national level, is making sure that these main streets throughout our country, they're all a little bit different, and they all have their own character and charm and making sure that we capitalize on that,” Burkholder said.
Burkholder wants to make sure that Mebane’s character does not go unnoticed by visitors or members of the community.
“I also want everyone that lives in Mebane to understand what a treasure we have, I don't want folks who especially live here to not not know what we have,” Burkholder said.
Mebane is filled with boutiques, restaurants, ice cream shops and more, making its motto for the N.C. Main Street Program "little surprises big charm" fitting for the quaint town.
The city is also planning on additional renovations outside of the Main Street program, including electric vehicle charging stations, new lofts in downtown in old factory buildings and more amenities for residents.