The efforts of Main Street Fayetteville over the past year have earned it recognition for commercial district revitalization by meeting standards for performance set by the National Trust for Historic Preservation's National Main Street Center. For the fourth year, Main Street Fayetteville joins 625 other Main Street revitalization programs nationally recognized as 2006 Accredited National Main Street Programs.

"The National Accreditation means the Main Street program is meeting our national standards of performance for what a Main Street program should be doing," said Doug Loescher, director of the National Trust's Main Street program. "The organizations we name each year as National Main Street Programs are those that have demonstrated the skills needed to succeed in Main Street revitalization."

The annual accreditation process evaluates commercial district revitalization programs based on criteria ranging from having an active board of directors and paid professional manager to tracking economic progress and preserving historic Main Street buildings.

"Rebuilding a district's economic health and maintaining that success requires broad-based community involvement, active support from both the public and private sectors and sound management," said Loescher. “Having a solid organization at the foundation of that revitalization effort is so important to long term success."

The organization's performance was evaluated by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ Office of Downtown Development which is the coordinating organization for Main Street programs in Georgia.

“It’s an honor for downtown Fayetteville’s efforts to be nationally recognized,” said Nancy Price, director of Main Street Fayetteville. “This past year reflects our success and we’re proud of what our downtown has to offer individuals and families.”

Projects and accomplishments completed through Main Street for 2005 include producing Street Talk, a quarterly newsletter for Main Street merchants, renovating the Historic Train Depot into a welcome center, designing gateways for the historic city cemetery and receiving two state-sponsored awards. For more information, please visit www.downtownfayetteville.org.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a private, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to protecting the irreplaceable. Recipient of the National Humanities Medal, the Trust was founded in 1949 and provides leadership, education and advocacy to save America's diverse historic places and revitalize communities. Its Washington, D.C. headquarters staff, six regional offices and 25 historic sites work with the trust's 200,000 members and thousands of local community groups in all 50 states. For more information, visit the Trust's web site at www.nationaltrust.org.

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