Here is the statement I presented at the city council meeting June 9th, 2014 regarding the current city budget proposal that eliminates the Main Street Manager position. Thanks to Andrea Harris, Tom Church and Stuart Litvin for speaking in favor of keeping the position as well, and thanks to our board members who came and let me speak on their behalf. John Barnes, Marcus Barrow, David Carroll, Daniel Hendley (and family), Curtis White, Lois Williams. If I missed anyone please let me know.
Good evening, my name is Phil Hart, Chair of the Henderson Vance Downtown Development Commission. I am here speaking on behalf of the DDC. We have several members of our board here tonight, and we won’t have them all speak but if you would please raise your hands to show your attendance.
Our group consists of a board of directors who propose policy, guidelines, direction, and improvements for the downtown area. We have a great board who meet monthly on regular meetings, and within the month for committee meetings. We recommend the direction for the Main Street Manager to carry out duties. Our board consists of members that due to their job have a limited amount of hours to dedicate to the DDC. We rely on the Main Street Manager to carry out the vast majority of work our board is purposed for.
The additional duties of the Main Street Manger includes providing a one stop shop for any information regarding downtown. If a person wants to open a business in downtown, they see the Main Street Manager who can then direct them to available locations, where to apply for permits, information on zoning, who to call and visit in a step by step process.
There are constant calls and walk ins to City Hall from people in all stages of being in downtown. A business that wants guidance on opening, or existing business that wants to expand, offer special promotions or hold a special event, or have a coordinated sale like a sidewalk sale during another downtown event. Businesses looking for additional funding or an individual or group wants to hold a fundraiser. These things are just a portion of the full scope we’d like the DDC to be.
For example, last year, the Main Street Manager helped coordinate the replacement of light poles, organized the merchant meetings, and oversee all the problems that arose during the process. This replacement started with the help of the DDC and finally came to a successful completion.
The Main Street Manager is the sole staff member for events like Downtown Trick or Treating which grew from 28 participating businesses in 2012 to 48 in 2013, and the Christmas Parade which grew from 78 entries in 2012 to 98 in 2013. We also coordinated a great discount bulk buying program for downtown businesses for last years trick of treating. These very successful events would not be if there were not countless hours of preparation before, and work during the events.
The Main Street Manager has worked for over a year to bring back the Main Street designation to Henderson. Liz Parham, Director of NC Dept of Commerce Main Street Center commented she has seen more activity from our DDC in the last 12 months than she has in years. In November 2013 Mrs. Parham held a special training session with our board here in downtown on the programs opportunities and helped us start a new strategic plan. Earlier this year, our board completed a training program in New Bern, NC that now allows us to apply for grants. Then our board hosted its own strategic plan session and the foundation has been set leading to a new vision and mission statement and rebranding strategy for our board and downtown. *** (Strengths: Contacts, successful events, diversity of board, attractive downtown. Opportunities: Rebrand Henderson, more downtown events, performing arts center, grants. Weaknesses: Negative image, funding, volunteers, fund raising. Threats: Public perception, gangs/crime, lack of unified vision for downtown, abandoned structures.)
Now that we’ve attended the strategic planning and training sessions this year, we have the ability to apply for many grants, with the biggest opportunity being the MainStreet Solutions grant that is only available to a tier 1 county if they participate in the Main Street Program. ** *Other grants include CDBG, NC Catalyst, Economic Development, Infrastructure, Scattered Site Housing, Small Business Entrepreneurial Assistance, Talent Enhancement Capacity Building Grant, and Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grants.
Contrary to popular belief, the Zene Street project is far from over. Sure, the grants committed to it in previous years have been lost. But our board has taken the responsibility to continue the project including finding a new use for the building that will benefit the community in the same spirit as the previous proposals. The majority of our board time is continuing to work on Zene Street related issues. We are still pushing for the continuation of the project and sincerely hope it will be a benefit to the surrounding community and downtown.
We do receive funding from the City and County which is enormously appreciated and put to good use as bare bones operating expenses like the downtown holiday decorations, insurance for our board and CPA tax returns. However, other expenses, like Zene Street insurance, utilities and legal expenses are bleeding money from our coffers.
We would of course love to hold more events in downtown. However, we have no additional funding, no seed money to start with. So we try to find ways to help with events with little or no cost to the DDC. We partner with other organizations that are holding events. Responsibilities include coordinating with the downtown businesses for related promotions and sidewalk sales, assisting with street closures, and vendor booths. Even though you see events in downtown that are not directly related to our group, that doesn’t mean we didn’t spend many hours in their support.
An example is we’re working with a group who in August plan to hold a seafood festival in downtown. We’re assisting with street closures, business coordination and vendor booths. We hope we’ll be working soon in September with a fundraiser for Smart Start Partnership for Children. And by then it will be time to coordinate our own Halloween, and Christmas events.
Since the Main Street Manager began full time in 2012, All of the businesses that have applied for permits and opened are still open to this day. That’s 13 new or added on to businesses from when the position started in 2012 to June 2013, and 9 new or added on to businesses from July 2013 to June 2014. In addition, there have been 2 businesses that have moved out or within downtown. Again, we have no businesses that applied for permits and opened since that time that have closed.
We’ve been fortunate in that case, but of course, the Main Street Manager, nor the DDC can sustain a business on our own. Even if we did have closed businesses, that’s not a fault solely of our group. We certainly can’t guarantee any business they will find success, but we can provide them with guidance and support and help bring people to their doorstep.
We see a huge opportunity with the new performing arts hall coming to downtown, there needs to be a huge coordinated effort with our merchants to help with promotions, encourage extended hours during performance nights, and help welcome these new patrons of downtown to our city.
The work of a full time person is needed to oversee and carry out these things. If there is no Main Street Manager that is the expert on downtown, where will that work that is taking up a full time position go? As much as the DDC would like to help, our all volunteer board does not have the resources to handle that.
In eliminating the Main Street Manager, I hope you have considered the consequences. The tremendous momentum in downtown in the relationships being generated will be lost. The staff member that organizes and runs DDC events like Trick or Treating and Christmas Parade will be lost. The staff member at City Hall the public comes to every day will be lost. The staff member that helps all the downtown businesses and events in organization and promotion will be lost. The staff member who carries out the policy and direction of the DDC will be lost.
Like some of you when you were members of the DDC, many of our board members are business owners who in this tough economy have buckled down to focus on their own business. Consensus is our current board members do not have more time to devote to the DDC. Without fulfilling the time needed by our activities, there’s no way for our organization to go forward.
We are counting on the Main Street Manager to stay. But regardless if the position stays or not, where would you like the DDC to focus our energy if our group moves forward? Would you or your colleagues be interested in joining our board or committees?
If you vote to not fund Main Street Position, Mrs. Liz Parham needs a letter from the Mayor or City Manager that the city is going inactive. If the DDC can not effectively fullfill it’s duties using volunteers and disbands, who will close out the commission? What happens to Zene Street? What happens to the remaining funds of the DDC? We have a USDA grant for downtown business improvements. These funds are authorized to be used for downtown business improvements for qualified business applicants only. Will those remaining funds have to be turned back into the USDA? That will be negative publicity from yet another lot of grant money that had to be returned.
If the Main Street Manager leaves, all of the work they have done, and all the volunteer time given by our board to bring the DDC and downtown up to it’s current state will quickly deteriorate and will have been in vain.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
New business permits:
2013 – BeDazzlers – Still OPEN
2013 – Taylor Insurance – Still OPEN
2013 – Pelican Snowballs – Still OPEN
2013 – The Village Café – Still OPEN
2013 – 4 Point O: Student Learning – Still OPEN
2013 – Kerr Lake Cornhole – Still OPEN
2013 – Betty B’s Flowers and Gifts (purchase florist) – Still OPEN
2013 – Tastee Creations Bakery – NEVER OPENED
2013 – Buttercreams – Still OPEN
2013 – Inomancy Health Care, Inc – Still OPEN
2013 – Upper Kutz Barber and Beauty – Still OPEN
2013 – Hair Express – Still OPEN
2013 – Higher Heights Child Dev – Still OPEN
2014 – Dala Marie’s Salon and Spa – Still OPEN
2014 – Exquizid Cutz – Still OPEN
2014 – Remonda’s Child Care Center – Still OPEN
2014 – Betty B’s Gifts and Florist (purchased additional florist) – Still OPEN
2014 – Station Mart – Still OPEN
2014 – KO’s Sports Bar – Still OPEN
2014 – People’s Caring Heart – Still OPEN
2014 – Studio 229 (addition) – Still OPEN
2014 – Sheila’s Accufile Tax Services – Still OPEN
Moved in or out of downtown locations:
2014 – Coffey Bails bond – Still OPEN
2014 – Bella Chavez – Still OPEN