Business owners in downtown Tallassee are looking to make the area vibrant again.
They are investigating Main Street to see how the organization can help revitalize the area. Main Street Alabama has helped communities such as Wetumpka, Opelika, LaFayette and Alexander City.
“The businesses of downtown came together and decided we need to form our own entity so we can start promoting downtown Tallassee,” Grove Station owner Corrie Sid said. “ We need all the help we can get to attract businesses. We are struggling. Through that discussion we were like, ‘That is kind of what Main Street does.’”
Sid and others including the Tallassee Redevelopment Authority looked at organizations including Main Street Alabama.
“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” Sid said.
The authority was formed two decades ago to help businesses within a two-mile radius of downtown on both sides of the river. It holds property on the river such as the west side mill, the old bridge across the river and the Armory in hopes of redevelopment.
A Main Street effort would concentrate on just the few blocks of downtown in Elmore County. But it would work with the authority.
“The TRA can do a lot to help get businesses started,” Sid said. “The TRA is our connection to the city.”
In the case of Tallassee, Sid and Dr. Steve Burak of the TRA hope the TRA will be the connection to Main Street Alabama.
“The redevelopment authority has been used in other cities for Main Street,” Burak said. “We are willing to help as it fits in the mission of the TRA and the footprint we can work in.”
Sid and others have already contacted Main Street Alabama. Conversations have already started. The TRA will likely pay the $600 to become a network member of Main Street Alabama, which would open the door to new resources.
“It gets Main Street to help,” Sid said. “They start assessing what the assets of downtown are and what you want to promote.”
A Main Street representative is assigned to conduct on-site visits. A network level Main Street designation also gains access to training and conventions with Main Street Alabama.
“If you are a community just starting a downtown revitalization program, our network is for you,” the Main Street Alabama website states. “This is a great opportunity for those looking to network and attend training on the downtown redevelopment process, but yet seeking in-depth services.”
Sid said Main Street has made a tremendous impact in downtown Wetumpka.
“A lot of the things Wetumpka is doing, the celebratory things on the weekends and small events during the week are coming out of Main Street,” Sid said. “It is just one thing they do. They can help facilitate deals too.”
The efforts of promoting events and foot traffic would go along with those of the Tallassee Chamber of Commerce.
“In this case, the TRA and Main Street would focus solely on downtown,” Sid said. “It will take a lot. You have to have people willing to work. It is not an easy task by just signing up for the network level. It is an effort to attract businesses to come through activity. Main Street is a way to create activity.”
