NASHVILLE—The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development announced today the 2014 Economic Impact and Reinvestment Statistics from 28 Tennessee Main Street communities for activities occurring between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2014. These Main Street communities created more than 1,500 new jobs and generated more than $95 million of public/private investment in 2014, while continuing to be a vital part of the state’s economic and cultural identity.
“Tennessee’s main streets are such an important part of our state’s identity and cultural heritage,” Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd said. “Flourishing downtowns provide a sense of pride for our communities, spur tourism and promote entrepreneurship, which ultimately creates jobs.”
Tennessee Main Street provides technical assistance and training for communities in developing real-world solutions to make downtowns safe, appealing, vibrant places where folks want to shop, work, live, invest and make memories.
Other reinvestment statistics from the designated Main Street communities reporting include:
• Net new jobs: 1,565
• Net new businesses: 171
• Building rehabilitation projects: 298
• Public improvement projects: 248
• Net new housing units: 54
• Volunteer hours contributed: 114,807
• Total public/private investment: $95.5 million
“Annual reports from Tennessee’s 28 accredited Main Street programs demonstrate strong reinvestment in 2014 for the historic commercial cores of Tennessee communities that are making an effort to revitalize their downtowns,” Tennessee Main Street Program Director Nancy Williams said. “It shows that taking good care of downtown reaps economic benefits, including jobs, for the whole community.”
There are currently 28 designated Main Street program communities across Tennessee. Bristol, Brownsville, Cleveland, Collierville, Columbia, Cookeville, Dandridge, Dayton, Dyersburg, Fayetteville, Franklin, Gallatin, Greeneville, Jackson, Jonesborough, Kingsport, Lawrenceburg, Lebanon, McMinnville, Murfreesboro, Morristown, Rogersville, Tiptonville, Savannah, Sweetwater, Union City, Ripley and Winchester.
Tennessee Main Street is currently working with six communities through the affiliated Tennessee Downtowns program: Arlington, Carthage, Ducktown, Etowah, Jamestown and Shelbyville. An additional 28 communities have participated in the Tennessee Downtowns program.
Tennessee Main Street is a coordinating partner with the National Main Street Center. Designated communities are required to meet national accreditation standards annually, which include illustrating broad-based community support for the program, development of a comprehensive work plan, a sufficient operating budget and professional staff with volunteer support.
For more information about the Tennessee Main Street Program, please visit http://www.tennesseemainstreet.org. For more on the National Main Street Center, visit http://www.mainstreet.org.
About the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development
Tennessee was named 2014 and 2013 “State of the Year” for economic development by Business Facilities magazine. The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies which help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. The department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. Find us on the web: tnecd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @tnecd. Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/tnecd.
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