By By JAMES COLLINS / Niles Daily Star
NILES -- Because Niles has been following the principles of the Main Street program for the past couple years, the Michigan Main Street Reconnaissance Team said our city is a step ahead of many of its Main Street counterparts.
The team's two day visit, which began on Monday, is designed to introduce the Main Street officials to the Niles community. The visiting group is comprised of Kalogeresis, Kara Wood, of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Julie Hales-Smith, of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority, and Amy Arnold, of the State Historic Preservation Office.
This visit is the first phase of Niles' recent selection as a Michigan Main Street community. It allows the Niles community to become familiar with the Main Street program and allows the reconnaissance team to learn about the city and what the residents want out of the downtown area.
On Monday, the team got a good look at downtown Niles and met with the Main Street board of directors, downtown stakeholders and the entire community at a visioning session for the future.
Kalogeresis, who is visiting Niles for the first time, said he had a good first impression of our city.
He pointed to the "great collection of historic buildings" as a valuable asset and said the streetscape project is a big step toward making downtown more attractive.
Kalogeresis also complimented the city for its progress with the facade removals saying the project was moving at "hyper-speed" compared to other cities doing similar work.
The issues that need to be addressed in Niles are many of the same issues that the team confronts in other cities, he said.
Some of the typical concerns that Niles is facing are problems associated with parking, traffic management, bringing in more businesses and improving the store fronts.
While parking in a downtown area is often troublesome, Kalogeresis said this is not necessarily a bad problem to have because it is a sign that people are coming downtown.
Niles' recent selection as a Michigan Main Street community made it one of seven communities in the state to become involved with the technical assistance program. This is only the second year for the program in Michigan.
Because it is such a new program, there is no hard data to indicate the impact of this program on the four communities selected last year.
But, Wood said that she has already noticed a positive change in those communities with an increased amount of excitement and investment in their downtown areas.
The technical assistance that Niles will receive from the program over the next three years includes advice and support from a team of experts, the development of a plan for the future, design assistance and a market study to help determine what types of businesses will be viable in the Niles community.
Wood said this assistance varies from city to city and is customized toward the needs of each different community.
Niles Downtown Development Authority director Lisa Croteau said being selected as a Main Street community was a true blessing for the city.