A recent Daily Yonder article was forwarded to the VMS Blog from the City of Martinsville, which is pulling together community investment in their central business district through the Uptown Partners project. “The Town that Builds Entrepreneurs” uses data from Oklahoma communities to demonstrate the power of the Main Street economic restructuring approach: an incremental effort to … More Towns that build entrepreneurs
Fast Company reports that Facebook is increasing its staff by 50 percent. The nearly 500-employee increase is substantial in a good economy, and in current recessionary times, it’s a flat out boon. But why, at a time when ad revenues are down, would an expansion like this make sense? For one, costs of doing business … More Turning the economy on its head
We have been promoting the idea that recessions and layoffs, while very difficult to navigate, provide the impetus for an entrepreneurial boom. Now, the Kauffman Foundation has issued its report supporting our claims. In economic gardening terms, this is the equivilant of burning last years crops to make way for the new “green shoots.” … More Entrepreneurial stories
Revitalization experts, downtown professionals and volunteers came together for two days of focused exploration of Main Street strategies at the 2009 Virginia Main Street toolkit, “Getting Strategic About Main Street.” Participants represented more than 25 Virginia localities. Communities with the highest representation included included the host community of Winchester, Harrisonburg (four attendees), Radford (three), and Franklin … More Seventy get strategic at Winchester Toolkit
Is Abingdon on the brink of a new renaissance? That was the title question of a front page Bristol Herald Courier story this week connecting new businesses in the Washington County town to a strategic investment in Southwest Virginia’s cultural heritage. This little town might be the next Asheville, at least according to the buzz downtown,” opens staff … More Growing a success narrative
The natural beauty of Virginia’s diverse landscapes is a major quality-of-life factor for commonwealth residents and a strong draw for tourists. In 2008, Virginia’s 35 state parks alone welcomed more than 7.25 million visitors with an estimated economic impact of nearly $170 million dollars. (Fun fact #1: Virginia State park trails stretch more than 500 miles.) When you add Virginia’s National Parks, site, … More Making the most of your natural assets
Forty-five community leaders and volunteers attended the latest Virginia Main Street (VMS) training at Cally’s Restaurant and Brewing Co. in downtown Harrisonburg May 27, 2009. This year’s VMS Spring Feature focused on the public realm in downtown, the space between buildings which includes all public spaces, streets, alleys, sidewalks, parks, and open space. The theme … More Recapping Spring Feature Training in Harrisonburg
Those of you who made it to the “Livable Downtowns” training held in Harrisonburg a couple of weeks ago know that just building upper story housing or rehabbing an old warehouse into loft apartments is not quite enough to get people living downtown. It is important to have the amenities people need (dry cleaning, corner … More How to attract Gen “Y”
What is a good business proposition? That is a tough question to answer. I am sure that many people thought that two old hippies were crazy when they started an ice cream company in Vermont, where summers last only a few months and the temperature can drop to near freezing in August. But those that saw promise … More Bright ideas for business
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