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New Murals Installed Downtown
As we try to kick start 2022, we are excited to announce the installation of two new interactive murals downtown.In the spring of 2020 Emporia Main Street worked with Coffelt...
Year In Review -2021
The 2021 year started with some promise. Vaccines were coming on the market; restrictions meant to help our health care systems were starting to loosen up in the spring; and...
Christmas is on Saturday, and that day/date combination can change things for businesses.
When Christmas lands on a Saturday it can cause some adjustments for the before Christmas shopper, and after Christmas crowds. A lot of the consumer behavior adjustments are actually good...
Local Gift Certificate Program to Benefit Employees in Education and Healthcare.
Two Holiday recognition programs are back at Emporia Main Street- just in time for Christmas. This month, the non-profit organization re-launched the popular 2020 programs; Adopt-A-Newman Healthcare Hero and Teacher...
Businesses must generate visibility to capitalize on holiday sales.
December is here, and small businesses have a few short weeks left in the countdown to the end of 2021. This month can get super busy for many entrepreneurs, but...
A Soft Spoken Community Win: The story of one local family that brought a building back from the brink of demolition to expand a unique local business.
Emporia is the type of community that constantly faces opportunities and threats. Individuals who go above and beyond the call often make the difference in the general direction of the...
Heal Grants for Downtown Buildings – A New State Program Can Help Specific Types of Building Rehabilitations
The Historic Economic Asset Lifeline (HEAL) grant was recently announced by the Kansas Department of Commerce. This program was developed "for the revitalization of underutilized, vacant, or dilapidated downtown buildings through the...
Caffeinated For a Cause
Local Coffee Shop Introduces New Brew that Benefits Emporia Main Street EMPORIA, KS- The Granada Coffee Company has extended their line of community coffees with a new 727 Blend. Named...
Highlighting our local art history through the quilt block project!
The East-Central Region of Kansas has a rich and diverse history that informs our present. Emporia Main Street works with partner agencies and volunteers to enhance cultural celebrations, create athletic...
4th Quarter Focus – Crunch Time for Businesses.
The last three months of the year are commonly referred to as the 4th Quarter, and as the year nears a close businesses need to close out strong! Depending on...
Supporting the Local Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. Entrepreneurship Tax Credits Make Economic Sense with Targeted Delivery.
Emporia Main Street acts as a partner with a statewide group called Network Kansas. The Network Kansas group helps connect businesses in Lyon County with resources like training, loans, network...
Downtown Construction Update
Some downtown street improvements are complete, a side street enhancement is under construction, and a large street resurfacing project is on the way. City of Emporia Public Works recently finished...
Experts, City Officials, Main Street Managers, and Developers from around the state talk through a type of housing that works for communities.
Communities throughout the United States are struggling with housing. Growing communities struggle to acquire land and pay for infrastructure associated with housing developments with local tax dollars. Communities with static...
A transparent discussion on activity decisions for Emporia Main Street moving forward
We are aware that several local events are either being postponed or cancelled due to COVID. Every event is different, and various groups or organizations have different risk thresholds that...
Stress Tests
When you and your staff have better coping strategies, you can avoid burnout We have all the elements of a perfect stress storm in work places right now. Businesses are...
Local Business to Offer Staffing Support
Emporia, KS – When the Pandemic hit, Misty Gardner (RN) found herself facing a professional and personal dilemma. Like others in her field, medical professionals were faced with grueling schedules and...
New Job Board for Gigs, Part-Time, Full-Time, and Freelancers!
Across multiple industries, organizational types, and work place sizes businesses, governmental entities, and nonprofits are struggling to fill positions. After some thoughtful consideration by the Emporia Main Street Board of...
Details on the City of Emporia Fireworks Show!
In a year where many holiday traditions are just getting restarted, people are contacting the Emporia Main Street office inquiring about different activities. One of the most popular summer events...
#VaxToNormal
The Greater Emporia Area Disaster Relief Fund (GEADRF) is excited to announce the #VaxToNormal campaign. In partnership with Newman Regional Health and Lyon County Public Health, the GEADRF is working...
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...
