Today, the villages of Oxford and Ortonville were officially selected to become Main Street Oakland County communities.
‘I think it’s going to mean great things for downtown Oxford,? said Michelle Bishop, executive director of the Oxford Community Development Authority. ‘I’m really excited.?
Main Street Oakland County is an economic development program specifically targeted to provide technical assistance to the 30 traditional (or historic) downtowns in the county.
The program’s mission is to revitalize the county’s historic commercial districts by maximizing their economic potential and development while preserving their heritage and ‘sense of place.?
In a nutshell, as a Main Street community, Oxford Village will receive free technical assistance from professionals and experts in fields ranging from economics of small downtowns and landscape architecture to planning and historic preservation.
‘Anything you can think of that’s associated with running a small, historic downtown,? Bishop said.
Professionals are available to aid downtowns with each facet of the Main Street program’s ‘Four Point Approach,? which includes Organization (building consensus among groups and individuals involved in the revitalization process), Design (enhancing the physical appearance of the downtown), Promotion (marketing the downtown to customers, new businesses, potential investors, visitors and local citizens) and Economic Restructuring (strengthening the existing economic base and finding ways to expand it).
Although the Main Street program does not mean any additional money for dowtown Oxford, Bishop said all the technical assistance is worth an estimated $60,000 to $80,000. ‘That’s assistance we would otherwise have had to pay for,? she said.
Sometime later this year, an outside team will come to visit Oxford and perform a ‘needs assessment,? which means determining and identifying the downtown’s biggest problems as well as its existing positive attributes.
Over a two-day period, Bishop said team members will tour the downtown and familiarize themselves with it. They will also be asking everyone ? residents, business owners and property owners ? a lot of questions to ‘get an idea of what needs to be done.?
At the end of the two days, the team will give a presentation of their findings. Depending on the types of problems that need to be addressed, the Main Street Oakland County program can call on the services of experts and professionals from all over the country because it’s in partnership with the National Main Street Center ? a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Whether it’s parking issues, traffic issues or building facades, Bishop said, ‘You name it, they’ll bring someone in to help us with it . . . Anything we find we’re having a problem with, they’re going to be able to help us.?
Besides technical assistance, the other thing being a Main Street Oakland County community provides is the fresh perspective of outside professionals, whose opinions aren’t colored by any local personal or political baggage.
‘It’s not the same people beating their heads against the wall trying to figure something out,? Bishop said. ‘We all know what the problems are. The problem is we’re all here, all the time, so we can’t really get outside of it.?
‘The team can come in identify the problems and tell us how to fix it,? Bishop said.
Bishop said the first three years of the Main Street program are ‘very intensive? and changes to the downtown could begin happening ‘I would hope within the year.?
Although being a Main Street member means a contractual agreement with the program to follow the experts? advice and implement their suggestions, Bishop assured, ‘They’re not going to have us implement things we can’t afford.?
‘They have a copy of our (OCDA) budget and they already know what we have to work with,? she said.
Bishop also said the Main Street program will not expect Oxford to implement all of its suggestions overnight. ‘They know some of the suggestions could take time,? she said.
Besides technical assistance, being a Main Street Oakland County community will also allow Oxford to establish ‘close ties? and network with the existing program members, which include Lake Orion, Farmington, Ferndale, Holly, Pontiac, Rochester, Royal Oak and Walled Lake.
‘We will be able to get their assistance and learn from their experiences because we’ll be meeting with them all the time,? said Bishop, referring to the quarterly meetings between the downtown managers of the member communities. In addition to being the OCDA director, she’s also downtown Oxford’s manager.
As a Main Street program member, Oxford will also have access to various workshops, training sessions, telephone and e-mail consultations, and other informational resources.
Bishop characterized the Main Street program’s selection process as ‘very quick.?
The Village of Oxford applied for membership in the program Sept. 3. On the morning of Monday, Sept. 20, village representatives made a 15-minute presentation to the selection committee and participated in a 15-to-20 minute question-and-answer session.
‘They said we did a great job and were impressed with our presentation and application,? Bishop said.