Could Main Street Iowa program thrive in Grundy Center?

    GRUNDY CENTER — More than 60 local business owners and interested individuals attended a meeting last Tuesday (March 25) to learn about the possibility of Grundy Center applying for the Main Street Iowa program.
    Michael Wagler, the State Coordinator for Main Street Iowa, explained what the program is, what it could potentially bring to the city and what the requirements to apply and participate would be. Using data from previous Main Street programs, Wagler projected that the program could bring up to 56 businesses and 84 jobs to Grundy Center. He said it could also bring up to 128 building rehabilitations and 41 buildings sold.
    “This is happening in communities across the state,” Wagler said.
    The Main Street program uses a specific formula tested over the past 30 years. It includes downtown revitalization and economic development. There are currently 52 Main Street Iowa programs in communities as small as 430 people to cities as large as Des Moines. Conrad, in southwest Grundy County, was one of the first Rural Main Street communities and was the first to bring the entire community into the Main Street program rather than only the downtown area.

For more of this story, see the April 3 Grundy Register.