We’re thrilled to hear that Hayesville, of Clay County, NC has been chosen to participate in The Office of Urban Development’s Small Town Main Street Program (STMS). The N.C. Department of Commerce announced on Aug. 12 that six new communities have been chosen to participate in the program. Belhaven, Marshville, Mayodan, Robersonville Valdese and our very own Hayesville were selected through a competitive application process that included 18 communities from across the state.
The Small Town Main Street program addresses the growing number of small, rural towns that need downtown development assistance through a Four-Point Approach that incorporates organization, design, promotion, and economic restructuring in it’s comprehensive process for downtown revitalization. These towns are given two-years of concentrated monthly on-site and any time on-call technical services by the STMS staff, following the four-point approach. Participants may remain in the program indefinitely; however, the level of service provided by the program staff is reduced to “as necessary” assistance and visits after year two.
Services available in the community’s first two years include:
- STMS staff will commit to coordinating and facilitating monthly STMS committee meetings;
- Will help community create shared community visions for their future;
- Will prepare a Business and Market Development report based on data gathered by committee;
- Offer design assistance to property and business owners;
- Assist in creating functional committees with leadership skills;
- Assist the town in becoming more engaged in deciding their destiny as small towns;
- Will coordinate/facilitate regional workshops/round tables;
- Work toward assisting the community in increasing levels of reinvestment in their downtowns and;
- Helping the community to renew civic involvement by identifying partners and engaging these partners in the process.
We can’t wait to see the impact this program has on the Hayesville community! To learn more about the Small Town Main Street Program, check out the Office of Urban Development’s website.