The document reviews the Main Street program, an economic development strategy that embraces merchants organizations, local development, design, and monitoring. It originated in Canada and the US in the 1980s. The American model follows a private consulting format, while Quebec's Rues Principales operates out of Quebec City and works with communities. Several case studies of Main Street programs are presented, including examples from Virginia, Quaticook, Contrecoeur, and Saint Romaud that implemented business funding, marketing campaigns, and online business directories. Collaboration with these groups could provide new ideas for the SDBSL program.

1. MAIN STREETS PROGRAM REVIEW
November 2010

2. DOCUMENT OVERVIEW
The main street program has become an elemental planning strategy in the culture of Canadian local economic
development. The following is introducing this program.The list below illustrates the layout of the document.
 Introduction
 American main street consulting
 Virginia HDC
 Rues Principales Quaticook
 Rues Principales Contre Coeur
 Rues Principales Saint Romaud
 Point Saint Charles
 Other Main Street Programs
 Additional resources
Important contacts identified by interACTION appear in grey text throughout these pages.

3. INTRODUCING MAIN STREET
The Main Street program is a widely recognized initiative that embraces a four pronged approach to local economic
development: merchants organization, local economic development strategies, design strategies, monitoring
strategies.The program had its start in Canada in the early eighties under the Heritage Canada Foundation.
In the United States this program began atroughly the same time. It is currently administered under the
national historic trust inWashington DC. It has become a popular resource for community groups who wish to
develop strategies for the economic development of their local main street. TheAmerican model has followed a
private sector, consulting format whereby services are purchased from the organization (see the following page).
Main Street programs are spread throughout the U.S. In this document a project from only only one will be
examined.
Quebec has chapter of the same organization called Rues Principale headquartered in Quebec City. They have been
very active in Quebec for over 25 years, and their collaboration with different communities across the province has
resulted in a number of valuable projects. Many of their best practices and annual updates are available online. A
sample of these which might prove instructive for the SDBSL can be found in the following pages.
Fig.1 Terrasse photo: interACTION

4. PRIVATE SECTOR MAIN STREET MODEL
This is a typical advertisement for information available from the American Main Street model in Washington DC
This webinar can be purchased for $10.00, for example, from the website of the national historic trust.
http://www.preservationnation.org/resources/case-studies/

5. AMERICAN EXAMPLE
This group acting as a business improvement association used the Main Street program to to
develop a campaign for filling vacant store fronts with temporary businesses. The campaign
was called “pop up shops”
Using simple marketing and good research they were able to make this idea of temporary or
itinerant store fronts viable and sexy.
Virginia Department of Housing & Community Development
Main Street Centre, 600 East Main Street,
12th Floor North Conference Room
Richmond, Virginia 23219
Douglas.Jackson@dhcd.virginia.gov

6. Rue Principales Quaticook
This group was able to implement a program for business development funding to the tune of $75 000.The program
that helped to stimulate existing businesses and kick start a few new ones.
The money for this project was gathered from the municipality and the association with and the support from Rues
Principale helped Rues Principales Quaticook to attain the funds from the municipality and activate those funds
through a participatory process involving case by case project evaluations.
On Saint-Laurent money is already available for business development through the PR@M program. At the SDBSL it
is Laure who administers interaction with the merchants concerning this program. Perhaps communicating with Rues
Principales Quaticook would offer new ideas and directions.
Julie Favreau
Agente de liaison commerciale
150, rue Child
Coaticook (Québec) J1A 2B3
Tél. : 819 849-9677
Courriel : jfavreau@ciril.qc.ca

7. RUE PRINCIPALES CONTRE COEUR
Rue Principales Contre Coeur marketed their business development campaign using “Buy
Local” rhetoric and ran a Christmas decoration competition during the holiday season. The
winner was awarded a spread in the local paper and a $700.00 gift certificate for future
publicity.
The Christmas decoration competition is an excellent idea. On a street as diverse as Saint –
Laurent the variety decorating styles alone could become an attraction.
The incentive this group offered the winner of the competition was also very good. The
promise of a credit for publicity is an appropriate reward geared for developing the
business.
Marie-Noëlle Girard, chargée de projet
4865, rue Legendre, bureau 209
Contrecoeur (Québec) J0L 1C0
Tél. : 450 587-5588
Téléc. : 450 587-7104
Courriel : ruesprincipales@
tlb.sympatico.ca
Fig.2 Le Monde Sur La Main photo: SDBSL

8. RUES PRINCIPALES SAINT ROMAUD
Rue Principales Saint Romaud used this network to help it put on line their own list of enterprise. It is a different style
of list from the one currently employed by the SDBSL characterized by a different categories.
It is interesting to note that a connection to the Rues Principales program can enable a group to accomplish efforts of
very diverse nature – from Chrismas decoration solutions to web application solutions.
www.ruesprincipalessaintromuald.com
Martine Bussière, coordonnatrice
2321, chemin du Fleuve
Saint-Romuald, Lévis (Québec) G6W 1X9
Tél. : 418 834-3662
Téléc. : 418 839-2794
Courriel :
info@ruesprincipalessaintromuald.com

9. HISTORIC PLAQUES IN THE POINT
This was a colaboration between the Comité de revitalisation des rues du Centre et
Wellington et la Société d’histoire de Pointe-Saint-Charles
The southwest borough in Montreal worked on the RUE Centre. Their project connected
historical plaques with the local merchants by having them displayed in the shop windows
(ie. instead of on the street)
This is a project that mirrors the efforts by the SDBSL and les Amis du Saint-Laurent along
the main. For the continuing/future success of the SDBSL’s historical plaque campaign
colaboration with Pierre Luc Côté might bear fruit.
Pierre Luc Côté,
Responsable du Projet et Commissaire, Développement Économique Local
815, rue Bel-Air , 1er étage
Montréal (Québec) H4C 2K4
Tél. : 514 868-5037
Courriel : pierre-luc.cote@ville.montreal.qc.ca
Fig.3 Guitar Circle photo: SDBSL

10. OTHER MAIN STREET PROGRAMS
 TheYounge Bloor Bay Busines Development association
http://www.ybba.org/
 TheTorontoBusinessDevelopmetnCenter
http://www.tbdc.com/
 The Oregon commercial district revitalization Program
http://www.oregon4biz.com/
 Portland Mainstreet
http://www.pdc.us/bus_serv/business_support/mainstreet.asp
 The Boston Main Streets Program
http://www.cityofboston.gov/mainstreets/
 The Alberta Main Street Program
http://www.albertamainstreet.org/default.aspx

11. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
 Holdsworth “Reviving Mainstreet”
 National Main Street Center book “Guiding Design on Main Street:The Professional’s Manual for Managing
Design”
 Canada Foundation for SaskatchewanTourism, Parks, Culture and Sport (2009) “Main Street Past and Present”
 Main Sstreet Handbook “Fill-in-the-Blank Business Recruitment:AWorkbook for Main Street Business
Development”
Please See the bookstore at the website of the National HistoricTrust:
http://www.preservationbooks.org/Bookstore.asp?category_id=76