Apply to the Main Street Program

As part of the Full-Strength Fort Worth revitalization strategy, the City of Fort Worth is kicking off a new pilot program in partnership with Main Street America, a proven national leader in revitalizing commercial districts in several cities across the country.

Two pilot communities in Fort Worth and their managing organizations will be selected through a competitive Request For Applications process to receive direct support from Main Street America and the City over a three-year time frame. Those managing organizations and their stakeholders will receive training from Main Street to help their community produce a customized transformation strategy and actionable goals to spark economic growth in their district.

This support will also include funding for a community-focused, full-time staff person who will be dedicated to implementing the strategy, as well as funding for projects and development that supports the overall transformation strategy and drives additional private investment into the district.

Fort Worth is the first city in Texas to partner with Main Street America on a coordination program that spans multiple corridors across the city. The two pilot corridors will lay the groundwork for Fort Worth to become Texas' first Main Street Coordination City, joining other major cities across the country like Washington D.C., Boston, Baltimore, Chicago and Orlando.

In August 2022, Historic Northside and Polytechnic were named Fort Worth's first two Main Street pilot program corridors. Their managing organizations are the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Southeast Fort Worth, Inc., respectively.

Program goals

• The goal of the Main Street America pilot program is to give community stakeholders the proven tools to understand and influence their own economic future, and drive positive change in the district.
• Each of the pilot communities will create or strengthen a district-focused managing organization, as well as a full-time community quarterback who will take on the role of implementing the community transformation strategy, organizing and training stakeholders, and moving the district towards its long-term goals.
• The community quarterback will collaborate with district stakeholders to create strong and diverse boards and community volunteers to represent different aspects of the district (neighborhoods, business owners, etc.) and will work with them to develop actionable goals, paths to achieving those goals, and additional metrics to inform their success.
• Together, these stakeholders will focus on adapting Main Street's Four Points to their communities:
  • Economic vitality: Inspiring new investment and jobs in the district, and cultivating an entrepreneurial ecosystem.
  • Organization: Build strong leadership and organizational capacity while ensuring broad community engagement and forging partnerships across sectors.
  • Design: Create an inviting and inclusive atmosphere by celebrating the historic character of the area and fostering people-centered public spaces.
  • Promotion: Communicate and market the district's defining assets and unique voice. 

Overview

As part of this initiative, the Main Street America technical services team and the City will provide direct support to grant recipients over a three-year timeframe. The two pilot communities will receive the following:

• Training and technical support from Main Street America for the chosen managing organization, as well as the community, its board, and partners to help build a robust revitalization knowledge base and to help inform future strategies and work. (More information about Main Street training is included at the link to the online application.)
• A customized transformation strategy for their district, which includes a work plan and metrics to put the strategy into action while providing tangible goals to measure progress.
• Direct support from City staff to assist with training and facilitate projects within the district.
• Up to $120,000 in operational support funding over three years for a full-time staff person, or community quarterback, dedicated to implementing the Main Street programming and working with community stakeholders.  
• Up to $150,000 in project implementation grants over three years to support the overall strategy, which will be awarded on a project-by-project basis. The goal for these funds is to energize the community through visible projects, and help the managing organization build the capacity to fundraise on their own for the long-term sustainability of both the organization and the district.  

How to apply

Applications for Fort Worth's Main Street Pilot Program closed at 8 p.m. Monday, June 6. The winning districts were announced in early August.

Applicants for the Main Street pilot program had to meet the following criteria:

• Eligible areas must have the majority of their commercial district in a Neighborhood Empowerment Zone, with special consideration given to those that include an Urban Village or a Revitalization Target Area. (View these areas on an interactive map.)
  • Eligible areas should have significant historical or cultural assets, and a desire to preserve them.
  • Eligible areas should demonstrate a need for community capacity-building, as well as the need for a community economic development organization exclusively focused on the district and a dedicated individual to staff it.

• Applicants must be a "managing organization" based in the neighborhood, or have a significant presence and support with the intention of locating an office there. These organizations must have sufficient staffing and sound financials to sustain economic development work in the neighborhood or demonstrate that there is significant support from organizations or individuals who will aid in fulfilling this objective.
• Managing organizations must be a local community development corporation, merchant association or chamber of commerce with a 501c(3), 501c(4) or 501c(6) status, and must have a Federal Employment Identification Number.
  • If the managing organization is not already district-focused, a new entity or organization will need to be established within the district. (This can be a subsidiary of an existing organization.)
  • If no such organization exists, a new organization can be established. As part of the application, it will need to demonstrate support and backing of institutions or other organizations that have a proven track record with the community. 

Main Street Application Workshops

The City of Fort Worth and Main Street America hosted two workshops to answer questions about the Main Street America framework, pilot program and application. The two workshops were held at the new City Hall, located at 100 Energy Way, on May 11.

• Noon-2 p.m. Wednesday, May 11
• 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 11

View the workshop presentation(PPTX, 11MB)

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