In Case You Missed It: September 2023 Digest

Posted on by Department of Housing and Community Development

During the month of September, the Virginia Main Street (VMS) team published eight blog posts, highlighting the latest community vitality-related news, events and more! Here’s a recap:

Grant Announcements:

  • Fiscal Year 2024 Community Business Launch (CBL) grants were announced, and $410,000 will assist the awarded communities with hosting a business curriculum and business pitch competition to fill vacant storefronts in their commercial districts. Click here to learn more!
  • Fiscal Year 2024 VMS Downtown Investment Grant (DIG), Community Vitality Grant (CVG) and Virginia Business District Resurgence Grant (VBDRG) recipients were announced, and $2.5 million will help communities across the state revitalize their historic commercial districts, expand small businesses and bolster local economies and quality of life for all. Click here to learn more!

Training / Education:

  • Joe Borgstrom of Place + Main Advisors will be coming to Virginia to conduct “Development Ready Community” workshops, which are designed to provide communities with fresh insights, strategies and a deeper understanding of real estate redevelopment. Click here to learn more!
  • The Center for Nonprofit Excellence (CNE), a nonprofit resource center dedicated to helping nonprofits succeed, is excited to launch the 7 Actionable Principles for a Strong Social Sector, which offer a common language around key and proven practices that enable the social sector to be more effective, make better use of resources and increase community impact. Over the coming months, VMS will highlight each of the 7 Actionable Principles through the Firm Principles, Flexible Paths Series and explore further how they can help nonprofit organizations build organizational and community health and resilience. Click here to learn more!
  • In response to the increasing number of mural projects across Virginia, Frazier Associates recently launched a technical briefing about murals and mural programs. Click here to learn more!

Main Street Business Insights:

  •  Main Street America has a new platform to tell the stories of Main Street’s small businesses and entrepreneurs. Click here to learn more!

Getting Started With Main Street:

  • For those with the desire to improve their historic downtown or neighborhood commercial district and willingness to imagine what’s possible, VMS recommends that you become an Exploring Main Street (EMS) community to start your journey. Click here to learn more!

Engaging College Students:

  • Every fall, college towns experience an influx of new residents, as students move in and prepare for the academic year. Students are a unique, target audience and consumer demographic that can add a lot of excitement and vibrancy to a downtown. Click here to learn more!

Stay tuned for lots more great content in October!