Maryland Designates Sykesville a 'Main Street Community'

It's been around for more than 200 years, but as of Monday, Sykesville is officially a "Main Street Community" under the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development's Main Street Maryland Program. 

On Monday, three additional towns and streets, Centreville, Ocean City, and Sykesville, were added to the list of 23 Main Streets across Maryland  recognized as official "Main Street communities." 

The Main Street Sykesville Designation has been a long time coming, according to Main Street manager Ivy Wells. 

"This is something that I've been working on for the last three years. I completed the application for us to become a Maryland Main Street back in October," said Wells. "We've just been trying to wait to see if we were chosen, and we were chosen."

Mayor Mike Miller said it's the Main Street staff that made this dream a reality. 

"This designation could mean that grants and other funding opportunities could be made available to the town to improve Main Street," said Miller. "The town staff has worked very hard to make this happen, so I give them the credit."

"Strong main streets with thriving business districts and neighborhoods are the foundation for healthy, sustainable communities," said Gov. Martin O'Malley in a Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development press release. "These three towns will be great additions to the Main Street Maryland program due to their strong commitment to downtown revitalization, and they will surely serve as great examples of Smart, Green & Growing communities."

Created in 1998, Main Street Maryland is a comprehensive downtown revitalization program that is recognized nationally as a model for Smart Growth, according to the press release. 

Using a competitive process, Main Street Maryland selects communities that have made a commitment to revitalization, and helps them increase private-sector small business investment, and improve the appearance and image of their core business districts.

Before the additions of the recently announced communities, the program had designated 23 communities in 16 counties, resulting in the opening of 1,392 new businesses and the creation of 5,574 new jobs.  

Maryland communities must meet the following criteria to apply for participation in the Main Street Maryland program:

• A minimum population of 1,000 based on the most recent U.S. Census survey
• Commitment to employ a program manager for a minimum of three years
• Commitment to organize and maintain a volunteer board of directors and committees made up of public and private sector individuals
• Commitment to provide a program budget for a minimum of three years
• Must be a Designated Neighborhood approved by the State of Maryland
• Must have a defined central business district with a significant number of historic commercial buildings.

The Main Street Maryland Program uses the Main Street Four-Point Approach for commercial revitalization, developed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation's National Main Street Center.

Main Street Maryland also incorporated a Fifth Point, "Clean, Safe, and Green" which stresses the sustainable principles of O'Malley's Smart, Green and Growing initiative.

The Five Points are:

• Design which enhances the physical appearance of the commercial district by rehabilitating historic buildings, encouraging supportive new construction, developing sensitive design management systems, and long-term planning.
• Organization which seeks to build consensus and cooperation among the many groups and individuals who have a role in the revitalization process.
• Promotion which supports marketing the traditional commercial district's assets to customers, potential investors, new businesses, local citizens and visitors. 
• Economic restructuring to strengthen the district's existing economic base while finding ways to expand it to meet new opportunities and challenges from outlying development. 
• Clean, Safe, and Green through which community leaders form "green teams" to promote beautification, water and energy conservation, and other sustainable development practices.

"I'm happy to welcome Centreville, Ocean City and Sykesville to the Main Street Maryland program," said Secretary Raymond A. Skinner.

"With public and private investment in our traditional commercial districts, we can enable entrepreneurship and job creation in these communities. The Main Street Maryland program has a proven track record of using precious state resources to support local strategies and expertise as well as leveraging community resources to create a better future for our cities and towns," Skinner said.

Main Street Maryland is partnering with Baltimore Main Streets to host the National Main Streets Conference in Baltimore April 1-4, 2012.  

The four-day conference is the only commercial district revitalization, educational and networking event that blends economic development, community revitalization and historic preservation, according to the release.

Smart, Green & Growing is a multi-agency, statewide initiative launched by  O'Malley to help Maryland achieve a more sustainable future by linking community revitalization, transportation improvements, economic development, smart growth and environmental restoration efforts.

For more information about Smart, Green and Growing, visit the state's website here.