Downtown Little Rock program joins state network

Main Street Arkansas to aid revitalization, director says

A man who gave his name only as Braden R. stands Wednesday in front of a mural in the Little Rock district known as SoMa on South Main Street.
A man who gave his name only as Braden R. stands Wednesday in front of a mural in the Little Rock district known as SoMa on South Main Street.

The Downtown Little Rock Partnership was added to the Main Street Arkansas downtown revitalization network Wednesday, a move that is intended to provide counsel and design help to further dress up an area already on the rise.

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A pedestrian in Little Rock crosses Main Street on Wednesday. Stretches of the street are now included in the Main Street Arkansas revitalization network.

The affected area stretches along Main Street and its adjacent blocks from Interstate 630 north to the Arkansas River, said Gabe Holmstrom, executive director of the Downtown Little Rock Partnership. South Main Street, known as SoMa, was designated a Main Street community in 2008. The area stretches south from I-630 to Roosevelt Road.

"We look forward to working with [the Downtown Little Rock Partnership] and our partners at SoMa to achieve a complete rebirth of this important corridor in the capital city," Stacy Hurst, director of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, said in a release Wednesday.

Main Street Arkansas falls under the umbrella of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, an arm of the Department of Arkansas Heritage. Main Street Arkansas' services are free to the cities. Membership is by application only.

Working Little Rock into the Main Street Arkansas fold was a long time coming. Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola said that at one time Main Street Arkansas was focused on smaller communities. Pilot programs were set up in Helena, Osceola, Harrison, Batesville and Rogers.

"Large cities were really not eligible," Stodola said. "They've changed it up a little bit so that little subsets of the city can now be a part of Main Street Arkansas."

SoMa, governed by the nonprofit Southside Main Street Project, recently linked with the Downtown Little Rock Partnership to share the partnership's infrastructure and personnel. Without it, SoMa could have fallen out of the Main Street program, said Southside Main Street Project board member Hillis Schild.

The Main Street program emphasizes organization, promotion, design and economic restructuring.

"The Main Street program really works if you just follow their four-point approach, but when you're running it with volunteers, it's a little more difficult because of the time issues that come up," Schild said. "You have to have full-time staff."

Conway also was made a Main Street Arkansas community this week after its membership being on hiatus since about 1999, said Main Street Arkansas Director Greg Phillips. Conway had been in the Main Street network since 1987.

Phillips said communities leave the program for a variety of reasons, including a lack of volunteers or funding.

Phillips explained that it takes everyone in a downtown area working together to renew it. A strong organization provides the structure and stability to build and maintain a long-term effort, he said.

As far as promotion, Phillips pointed to the Main Street Food Truck Festival as a means by which the partnership is creating excitement and vibrancy downtown. The festival and more events like it will help educate residents on what is available downtown and encourage customer traffic for local businesses, he said. Promotion involves marketing an enticing image to shoppers, investors and visitors, according to the Main Street Arkansas website.

Main Street Arkansas also seeks to provide advice from an in-house interior designer and a separate preservation specialist.

In addition, Main Street Arkansas counsels communities on how to recruit new businesses, creatively convert unused space for new uses and sharpen the competitiveness of traditional merchants.

State Desk on 02/04/2016

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