Utah Main Street Program

Revitalizing communities

The Utah Main Street Program (UMSP) helps communities revitalize the economy, appearance, and image of their downtown commercial districts. It does this by guiding communities as they build a strategy centered around their unique heritage and attributes.

UMSP is a new coordinating program affiliated with the National Main Street Center. For the past 40 years, this group (a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation) has provided a framework, process, and resources to support the revitalization of community downtowns and commercial districts across the nation.

The Utah Main Street Program provides designated communities with project planning, business counseling, training, long-term business strategic planning, access to placemaking grants, and a host of other valuable resources.

“We’re thrilled to be a part of this program that provides a framework and resources to support a community’s unique heritage,” said Nan Anderson, director of the Utah Main Street Program and rural outreach manager in the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity. “This program honors what makes a community different and focuses on what makes it a great place to live and visit.”

The Utah Legislature created and funded the UMSP in the general session of 2021. In the fall of 2021, interested Utah communities applied for designation from the UMSP, and 16 received Tier 1 or 2 designations, with varying community requirements and time frames:

• Brigham City – Tier 2

• Cedar City – Tier 2

• Gunnison – Tier 1

• Granary District (SLC) – Tier 1

• Heber City – Tier 1

• Helper – Tier 2

• Kaysville – Tier 1

• Magna – Tier 1

• Midtown (SLC) – Tier 1

• Mt. Pleasant –Tier 2

• Ogden – Tier 2

• Parowan – Tier 1

• Price – Tier 2

• Richfield – Tier 1

• Salina – Tier 1

• Tooele City – Tier 2

Partner organizations supporting the Utah Main Street Program include Preservation Utah, the State Historic Preservation Office, Utah Community Development Office, Utah Department of Cultural & Community Engagement, Utah Department of Transportation, Utah Office of Tourism, and the pilot communities of Brigham City and Price.

“The Utah Main Street Program is the perfect blend of preservation-based economics and community engagement,” said Kelsey Maas, associate director of Preservation Utah. “Utah is home to vibrant communities, each with unique and rich architectural history. The Main Street Program provides the necessary support to local communities that utilizes the existing historic fabric of its downtowns while also maximizing people-centered spaces, economic growth and vitality, and community involvement.”

The UMSP reports its progress to the National Main Street Center and the Utah Legislature. The program’s success metrics include full- and part-time jobs created, new businesses, rehabilitation projects completed, and decreased downtown vacancies.

To learn more, please get in touch with Nan Anderson, Utah Main Street Program director, Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity, at nanderson@utah.gov.