Virginia Main Street

On May 27, 2021, The Advancement Foundation (TAF) celebrated the graduation of 56 new businesses through its 7th annual Gauntlet program and made awards, totaling $300,000 in cash and in-kind services, to kick-start those business ventures. This included four of the participants from Buena Vista’s Community Business Launch (CBL) program, which partnered with TAF on … More Entrepreneurs Becoming Small-Scale Developers in Buena Vista

Our guest blogger, Ben Levenger, is an AICP planner, registered landscape architect and Certified Economic Developer. He is the president of Downtown Redevelopment Services, LLC, a boutique planning firm specializing in assisting communities through comprehensive downtown planning and building adaptive re-use projects throughout the continental United States. He has provided services in over 30 states and continues to consult … More Activating Underutilized and Vacant Properties

Excitingly, four existing or planned downtown Norton businesses are sharing $60,000 in cash prizes after pitching their businesses to a panel of judges at the end of a five-week business plan training course. Partnering with Virginia DHCD through its Community Business Launch grant program, the 2021 Norton Business Challenge is the second such competition that … More Norton Business Challenge Announces Four Winners!

After living in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and New York City, our guest blogger, Jenny Gehman (left) headed to Virginia’s Eastern Shore where she now serves as Program Manager of Onancock Main Street, working to revive and preserve the small town of Onancock, VA, “A little slice of nowhere else.” When asked about why she loves … More Onancock’s Main Street Program Manager Reflects on 2021 Main Street Now Conference Experience

The Clinch River has become Virginia’s first blueway state park and the Commonwealth’s 41st state park! Based around a river, the Clinch River State Park consists of 696 acres, situated across small anchor properties and connected by numerous canoe-kayak access points that run through Tazewell, Russell, Wise and Scott counties. These areas draw outdoor enthusiasts, … More Clinch River Named Virginia’s First Blueway State Park

Annually, communities and stakeholders across Virginia have the ability to take advantage of various funding opportunities to support downtown revitalization, bolster job creation and private investment, achieve homeownership goals and more! The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development‘s (DHCD) Community Revitalization Office (CRO) encourages potential applicants to be mindful of upcoming grant deadlines, explore the … More Upcoming Community Revitalization Grant Deadlines

With support from the Culpeper Wellness Foundation, the Culpeper Downtown Farmers Market, a one-stop shop for local agriculture and horticulture items, has launched the Youth Nutrition Education and Fresh Farm Dollars for Kids Program to promote the health benefits of locally produced agricultural products, educate youth through virtual seasonal nutrition classes, highlight local producers and … More New Program to Help Educate Culpeper Youth on Benefits of Eating Healthy, Locally Grown Food

During LGBTQ+ Pride Month, Main Street districts across the country celebrate diversity, engage in the fight for equality and seek to bolster the LGBTQ+ community. In a recent blog post, Main Street America (MSA) highlighted a few of their favorite celebration initiatives from around the Network, ranging from public art installations to supporting LGBTQ+ businesses. … More Celebrating LGBTQ+ Pride Month on Main Street

Annually, the Virginia Governor’s Housing Conference (VAGHC) represents the state’s largest housing event, bringing together a diverse group of housing and community development professionals to discuss a host of important issues affecting all Virginians. The three-day event will be held on November 10-12, 2021 in Norfolk, VA, and the VAGHC planning team has decided to feature both … More 2021 Virginia Governor’s Housing Conference: Registration Now Open!

Today, unemployed Virginians are facing a variety of childcare, transportation and other barriers to returning to the workforce while some small businesses are struggling to find workers. To support Virginians in their transition back to employment, Governor Ralph Northam will invest $3 million to pilot the Return to Earn Grant Program. The pilot initiative will … More Governor Northam Launches Return to Earn Grant Program to Help Virginians Transition Back to Work