April 30, 2014
One of the goals for promoting downtown is to hold events that bring people to the district. The easiest way to do this is through special events. Special events are traffic builders, a great way to showcase the variety of businesses and services downtown. There are many different types of…
April 26, 2014
May is celebrated annually nationwide and statewide as “Preservation Month.” This event offers MainStreet organizations an opportunity to reflect on local historic “assets,” unique and authentic places, traditions, heritage, and also “endangered places.” In 2012, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has suggested the theme of “Discover America’s Hidden Gems.”…
April 21, 2014
Budgets are tight. Volunteers are spread thin. And often, the MainStreet manager’s time is constrained. In the road ahead, we really need to build our capacity to perform higher levels of business development. Right now, staying focused on five priority activities will ensure that your local MainStreet program runs a…
February 24, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter February 2013 By Eduardo Martinez Most community-based organizations engage some type of planning process to identify annual priorities and tasks. Perhaps the most critical element of this process for MainStreet organizations is the annual board retreat. Often however, governance boards don’t have the opportunity to fully…
February 19, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter January 2013 By Robyne Beaubien At the NMMS Fall Quarterly Meeting in Carlsbad, we spent some time talking about place-branding and the MainStreet district. There is a growing sense of creating destination and community in our districts. Striving for a unique – and authentic – place…
February 4, 2014
Twenty-five years of data quantifying the power of state investment leveraging private sector reinvestment into our Main Street communities. No other state has the tradition of New Mexico. The merging of culture, history, and character into the fabric of daily life in New Mexico is unmatched anywhere. New Mexico MainStreet…
January 28, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter January 2012 By Stephanie Redman Except for religious organizations and private foundations, all charitable, tax exempt nonprofit organizations in New Mexico – including 501c3 MainStreet organizations – are required to do the following. The board of directors must ensure that these reporting requirements (and other aspects…
January 28, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter November 2011 Emails, texts, flyers, mixers, workshops, and phone calls are all great ways for the MainStreet organization to stay connected with the district’s business owners. But nothing beats old-fashioned, face-to-face, personal visits in owners’ shops. The problem is, we don’t do enough of them. Perhaps…
January 28, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter October 2011 When a program isn’t taken seriously unless it has its own acronym, we are adding to the alphabet soup and creating a new one for our NMMS communities: DRIFT. The three DRIFTs that are the subject of this article include: • BIDs (Business Improvement District)…
January 28, 2014
From the NMMS eNewsletter September 2011 By Stephanie Redman Volunteers are the backbone of MainStreet, but volunteerism has changed significantly. Thirty years ago, there were more stay-at-home parents who could volunteer regularly. People volunteered out of a sense of duty, and working by committee was the norm. The nonprofit sector…
