March 28, 2024

Getting people downtown big focus for Newton Main Street

Through work on several different committees, the Newton Main Street organization has established its goals and objectives for future.

The economic restructuring committee is focused on business retention for the coming year. It wants to identify consumer and business market niches and organize regular business visits by Main Street committee members.

“(We want to) do what we can to strengthen existing businesses in the district,” Andrew Bassman, director of Newton Main Street said.

The committee will work to initiate a block captain program in the district as well as evaluate the hours that businesses that are open.

Upper-floor development as another objective the committee will tackle in the coming years.

“There is a lot of underutilized space in the downtown on the second floor,” Bassman said.

The committee will begin by proposing an ordinance to prohibit first-floor residential establishments in the downtown district. They will also identify which buildings have two or more floors and if they are being used or not.

Second floor housing is an option for the space. If the business owner owns the building, it puts in place a second source of revenue.

“When business is good they still get that cash flow and when business is not so good they still get that steady cash flow,” Bassman said.

Education is the focus of the design committee. They want to educate the business and building owners of good and historically appropriate building design with an overall goal of encouraging improvement of the Main Street District’s physical appearance.

“The downtown, one of its biggest assets is its old buildings. We’d like to see the historic elements of these buildings preserved. It creates a unique experience for the customer, it’s one of the advantages the downtown has over the shopping malls. It creates a fun place to go and do business,” Bassman said.

Main Street would like to build a historic preservation ethic with the building owners which could lead to historic preservation tax credit eligibility for those that participate.

Getting people to come downtown is the goal of the promotions committee. Through an image development campaign, the committee will articulate an identity for the downtown based on the strengths it already has.

Another project they will work on is holding a retail event for the downtown businesses, for example something like a ladies night out. The goal is to get people into the stores and generate same day sales.

Another special event is also in the works.

“(We want to) get people downtown to have a good time, not necessarily looking to generate sales that day but to raise awareness to show people that downtown is a great, fun place to come to,” Bassman said. “The best events typically take about a year in advance to plan. So we want to ready next year to get those going.”

Down the road, Main Street would like to hold several retail and special events each year.

Contact Staff Writer Jamee A. Pierson at (641) 792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com.