Macon Named Urban Main Street Project

Downtown Macon’s image is about to get a makeover.

Today, the city was officially named an Urban Main Street. This is a 30 year-old program known for turning around downtown areas.

Main Street will help preserve historic buildings, promote the area through special events, provide support to local businesses, and attract new business to downtown Macon.

“It gives us an opportunity to help promote our downtown, help promote businesses, give us more guidance with development, and bring people to town,” says Jan Beeland, President of Main Street Macon. “By having the designation it puts some emphasis on that we are really interested in what we’re doing in our downtown area, and bringing people to it to enjoy it.”

The Main Street program has been proven effective in more than 2,000 communties nationwide. Beeland tells us Greenville, South Carolina, a city that Mayor Reichert has often looked at as an example for his vision of Macon, has seen a lot of improvement through this program.