Blog
Home / Blog / Organization /
Organization

Emporia Main Street designated as an accredited Main Street program for 2021
Emporia Main Street has been designated as an accredited Main Street™ program for meeting rigorous performance standards. Each year, Main Street America and its partners announce the list of accredited...

What is next in the realm of Community and Economic Development?
During the National Main Street Conference, we had the opportunity to listen to a variety of different speakers and researchers tracking changes in community and economic development cultures. Understanding those...

How Can You Help-A Push For Collaboration!
We have just made it through DDO week, which is the first "major" event held in Emporia since October of 2019. We shook some rust off, greeted guests, and promoted...

What is the Cost of a Vacant Building?
"It's not hurting anything.""I can do whatever I want with whatever I own.""I inherited it, and I'm really not in a hurry to let it go.""It's got sentimental value.""For the...

EMPORIA MAIN STREET EARNS NATIONAL REVITALIZATION AWARD
CHICAGO (April 2021) – Emporia Main Street in Emporia, Kansas, is one of six winners of the Main Street Forward Awards, which recognize communities that have shown exemplary recovery and...

Business Life Cycles: Where is your business at, and what is your strategy to grow?
Businesses have different lifecycles, and the strategies to support businesses can vary by business type, owner acumen, and lifecycle tools. It is important for entrepreneurs to know what lifecycle stage...

New business trends emerge from the pandemic. What should you keep moving forward?
One of the advantages of Emporia Main Street's affiliation with Kansas Main Street and the National Main Street organization is training. We consistently receive access to high quality data that...

The New Federal Stimulus – what Does it Mean for Your Business?
Smart businesses have accessed governmental and nongovernmental resources to fit their needs during the pandemic. Those resources continue to change, and some dollars are specifically targeted to industry types that...

New Kansas Main Street Incentives.
The reformation of the Kansas Main Street program within the Kansas Department of Commerce promised to provide new technical and financial resources for Main Street communities and members. Everything was...

Emergency Messaging
Three weeks ago we ran into an issue. We needed to contact a number of business and building owners very quickly to communicate an emergency infrastructure issue, but our access...

Spring Cleaning – Getting Ready for Different Types of Business.
We aren't exactly out of winter yet. We are just one week removed from a -32 degree wind chill, but warmer weather is becoming more frequent. With the weather change,...

Public feedback on where we are, and how we can move forward.
Every six to eight weeks Emporia Main Street has released a consumer preferences survey. These surveys are an important data collection tool that allows us to communicate the wants and...

What Is Going On With Minimum Wage?
Legislation under consideration is generating A LOT of questions Whenever legislation that impacts businesses is considered on the federal or state level, businesses have questions. Has the legislation passed? When...

So, What’s the Plan? Second & Third Quarter Planning is an Uncertain Time.
The calls, emails, and social media notifications are already coming in. "What are events going to look like this year?" "When can my business open up at full capacity?" "When...

2021 Assistance Goals: Pushing Forward Through the Pandemic.
At the beginning of January, we published a brief look back at 2020 as a way to capture work done and close the book on a difficult year. Emporia Main...

New resources come online to support businesses repairing buildings, or evolving through the pandemic.
Emporia Main Street is always on the lookout for new funding opportunities to assist local businesses. There are three programs that we are going to highlight in this e-news.The Kansas...

Do You Want To Get More Involved?
Did your New Year's resolution include getting more involved in your community? Here are some simple ways you can utilize Emporia Main Street to start volunteering: Projects-Emporia Main Street always...

2020 – We still did some AWESOME things!
At the beginning of 2020, we were excited about the year to come. It seemed like every major event fell perfectly on the calendar. Businesses were expanding. Developments were in...

The Last Minute Holiday Push.
We are down to the Christmas season home stretch. The big day is Friday, the 25th, and all of you can check your calendar to see how close that day...

Brookings Study
Several months ago, Emporia was selected as one of three communities to participate in a rural economy/community study through the Brookings Institute. The Brookings research team was directed to Emporia...

Newman Regional Healthcare Staff Receive Gift.
All staff at Newman Regional Health were gifted a $10 gift certificate to Radius Brewing Company through the Adopt a Newman Regional Healthcare Hero Program and a contribution from Radius!...

Local Business Expands Operations to New Location.
EMPORIA, KS- After several months of anticipation and planning, A1 Pump & Jet has opened operations at its new facility. As a service provider to major commercial food processing plants...

Newman Regional Health Employees Receive Heartfelt Thank You
Red Line Truck Lines gives gift to say Thank You! Emporia, KS – The Emporia Main Street Office was packed with a special Thanksgiving feeling this week as over 50 gift...

The 2020 Holiday Season in Emporia
I know this sounds a little repetitive, but holiday events are a little different this year. With so much change in the world, we wanted to let you know what...

Mask Up for Trick or Treat downtown on October 31st.
The Emporia Main Street Board of Directors met this past Wednesday during our regularly scheduled board meeting (the first and third Wednesday's of every month). One of the agenda items...

Start Your Own Business Class Enrolling Now!
The first class for the Start Your Own Business session is next Tuesday, October 13th. We have a few class slots open for our limited group (only 12 spots), and...

Insight Into the Strategies and Other Economic Development Professionals are Using to Build Better Economies and Communities.
Most people that know me well understand that I expect to gain something actionable from meetings, retreats, and/or conferences. Meeting simply to meet/network/"get on the same page"/etc. isn't something that...

A New Tool to Help Local Businesses and the “Gig” Economy.
Emporia Main Street communicates with other similar programs far outside of our region on a fairly consistent basis. Our emphasis on finding "like" communities, or areas that were once like...
Consumer Preferences – Round 3.
Emporia Main Street has obtained consumer preference information in relation to COVID response on three separate occasions. These responses can help business and organizations determine best practices as we continue...

Back to Business – Kansas Dept. of Commerce Releases Grant info for Businesses & Non Profits.
The Kansas Department of Commerce released information concerning COVID Relief Grants for businesses and nonprofits in the following categories ( you can apply for grants in multiple categories ): Small Business Working...

Back to School – What Should Businesses Expect during COVID-19?
Like everything else in 2020, Back to School is going to look a lot different. Emporia hosts K-12, along with Flint Hills Technical College and Emporia State University. From a...

Welcome Back Block Party & Moonlight Madness to Combine.
We are mixing things up a bit for two of our late summer events! Due to current circumstances we have decided to combine our Welcome Back Block Party and Summer...

The Great American Market Canceled for 2020.
Emporia, Kansas - The Great American Market has been cancelled for 2020. The Market is a joint effort between Emporia Main Street and its title sponsor, the Emporia Gazette, and features local...

New Assistance for Local Businesses
The City of Emporia, KS has been awarded $132,000 of funding through the Kansas Department of Commerce’s Community Development Block Grant COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program (CDBG-CV). The City of...

Annual Meeting Highlights
In 2021, the Emporia Main Street organization will turn 30 years old, and we've never experienced a year quite like this. Before mid-March of 2020, we saw a year full...

Consumer Pandemic Trends
The mind of the consumer during a pandemic is difficult to track. Even outside of Covid, trying to guess the wants and needs of your customers can be a full...

How Has the Pandemic Impacted Your Brand?
There are wonderful people that work very hard to understand the world around them for the benefit of others. These people aren't simply watching TV, reading commentary, or listening to...

Radical Transparency: Your customers, staff, and the general public need to hear from you in a different way RIGHT NOW
We have many positive traits in the Midwest. The people here work hard, they are punctual, people believe in teamwork, and they typically value getting things done. One of the...

Emporia Main Street Makes Top 10 in America’s Main Streets Contest!
https://www.mainstreetcontest.com/ These Main Streets represent the best in the country but only one will be chosen as the grand prize winner. The winner will be announced on Monday, June 1...

Dirty Kanza & Great American Market to Be Held on Sept. 12th, 2020
September 12th, 2020 will be a busy day in downtown Emporia. Emporia Main Street and Dirty Kanza are excited to announce that both the Great American Market and the Dirty...

White Ribbon Campaign to Support Emergency Medical Services and Frontline Workers
White Ribbon Campaign to Support Emergency Medical Services and Frontline Workers (Emporia, KS) – Newman Regional Health and Emporia Main Street announce the community’s first ever White Ribbon Campaign scheduled...

Design a Shirt for Emporia Main Street
It is that time of year to start thinking about our next round of Emporia Shirts! We are accepting entries for design ideas. Entries need to be in a pdf...

Emporia Main Street Rallies For a Chance at 25K
Emporia Main Street Named Quarterfinalist for America’s Main Streets Contestin Celebration of Small Business During COVID-19 CrisisSupport Emporia Main Street by Voting Today from the Safety of Your Home Emporia, KS —The...

Draw Your Main Street
Bust out your artistic skills and show some love to our Main Street Member Businesses/Organizations. How do you participate? Choose your favorite Main Street businesses and draw their picture! Drawings...

Great American Market and DK Finish Line Celebration to be held on Saturday, Sept 12th 2020
We have seen several schedule adjustments over the past several weeks. The most recent being the postponement of the 2020 Dirty Kanza event. The new race date is set for...

Small Business COVID-19 Grant Resources
GoFundMe: As part of the Small Business Relief Fund, GoFundMe, Intuit QuickBooks and Yelp have each donated $500,000.Google: Announcing a new $800+ million commitment to support small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), health organizations and governments,...

Payroll Protection Program Launches 4/3/20
PAYROLL PROTECTION PROGRAM Source: SBA - U.S. Small Business Administration The CARES Act includes $350 billion for federally guaranteed loans for small businesses, sole proprietors, self-employed individuals and independent contractors affected...