‘I still have pebbles in my eyes from walking down the street today.?
Truck traffic is one of the many issues facing downtown Oxford that Nicholas P. Kalogeresis, of the National Main Street Center, came to evaluate yesterday and today (April 12 and 13).
Kalogeresis is part of a four-person ‘needs assessment team? that visited downtown Oxford as part of its acceptance into the Main Street Oakland County (MSOC) program.
MSOC is an economic development program specifically targeted to provide technical assistance to the 30 traditional downtowns in the county with the goal of revitalizing them. The county program is partnered with the National Main Street Center (a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation) which has successfully helped revitalize more than 2,000 downtowns in 40 states since 1980 using its ‘Four Point Approach? ? Organization, Promotion, Design and Economic Restructuring.
Kalogeresis along with Robert Donohue, Russ Lewis and Joann Browning ? all from the MSOC program ? spent the last two days touring downtown Oxford and meeting with village officials, members of the Oxford Community Development Authority and its committees, residents and ‘stakeholders? (i.e. down town merchants, property owners, etc.).
‘We’re here to basically orient ourselves to Oxford,? Kalogeresis said. The needs assessment is the ‘first technical assistance? Oxford has received since its expectance in the Main Street program in September 2004.
Today, the team is expected to report its ‘preliminary findings? as to what the downtown development authority needs to do in the next few months to get its Main Street program ‘up and running and doing things right,? according to Kalogeresis. A final report will be delivered to Oxford within one month after the assessment.
As a Main Street community, Oxford will get no extra money, however, it will receive loads of free technical assistance designed to teach the community ‘the best practices for how to do downtown revitalization,? Kalogeresis said.
According to Donohue, Oakland County has budgeted $40,000 per year to pay for Oxford’s first three years of technical assistance from the National Main Street Center. After that, Oxford is scheduled to receive between $20,000 and $25,000 per year in ‘ongoing technical assistance,? plus regular aid from the county’s staff, he said.
Kalogeresis described the first year in the Main Street program as ‘fairly intense.?
‘We’re going to be here quite often in Oxford to deliver services,? he said. ‘They’re all meant to lay a good foundation for the program to succeed in the long run.?
Kalogeresis said Main Street representatives will be back sometime in the next few months to show the OCDA how to set up ‘work plans? for its committees, each representing a different facet of the Four Point Approach. The Main Street folks will be back again in late summer/fall for a ‘resource team visit,? in which a ‘team of outside downtown revitalization professionals? will visit the community for ‘a week or so and craft some more revitalization strategies and recommendations,? he said.
Donohue said the Main Street program is about taking downtowns to the ‘next level? and ‘maximizing your downtown’s potential.?
‘We’re always looking for solutions to issues,? he said. ‘We may seem quite critical as we help you find your solutions, but it is based on what we’ve seen over the course of the Main Street program in its 25 years.?
‘This is all about change,? Donohue said. ‘If you’re just going to do whatever the hell you’ve been doing for the last five, 10, 15 years, why do you want us here??
In order for Main Street to work there ‘has to be a coming together,? Donohue said. ‘The hell with whatever happened yesterday or four years ago, that’s over,? he said. ‘You have to start now and move forward. We can’t keep hearing about the stuff in the past. We will be aware of it . . . But then we don’t want to hear about it again. Quite frankly, we just don’t want to hear about the old negative crap.?
Based on what the team saw during its one-hour tour of the downtown Tuesday morning, Kalogeresis said Oxford has a ‘great stock of historic buildings,? which are a ‘great asset,? and a ‘good business core? that forms ‘a decent base to start with.?
Donohue noted the Starbucks building is ‘gorgeous? and a ‘model? for other future ‘in-fill? buildings.
As for weaknesses, Kalogeresis mentioned downtown’s ‘transportation issues,? such as truck traffic, and referred to his earlier ‘pebbles in my eyes.?
‘The buildings are being sandblasted everyday,? Donohue quipped.
‘If you could get rid of the trucks that would be a great thing to do,? Kalogeresis noted.
Noise and ‘cigarette butts all over the streets? were also mentioned as by-products of the heavy traffic pouring through the downtown.
However, Kalogeresis noted, ‘I don’t think the transportation issues are going to stop this downtown from being what it could be in the future.?
‘In fact, a lot of communities look at traffic issues as a plus . . . (the volume of traffic) works in their favor by attracting new retailers,? he said.
Donohue said Oxford must be more ‘aggressive? when it comes to dealing with issues related to having a state highway (M-24) running though its downtown.
‘This town can’t bend over and let (the Michigan Department of Transportation) tell them the way it’s going to go. This town has to get very aggressive and organized, and work with the other Main Street communities to tell MDOT how it’s going to be,? he said.
Both Kalogeresis and Donohue stressed that Main Steet is above all a ‘community-driven? program that depends heavily on devoted volunteers willing to work hard. ‘This isn’t for wimps,? Donohue said.
To learn more about Main Street or to volunteer call OCDA Director Amanda Cassidy at (248) 628-3095.