December 18, 2006

Bryan bestowed Main Street status
By MARCI HUMMEL - Bryan Times Business Editor

Bryan is now an official Main Street Community, and Dan Yahraus, executive director of the Bryan Area Chamber of Commerce and interim director of Downtown Bryan Inc. couldn't be happier. He received the award for Bryan at a ceremony in the Statehouse Atrium in Columbus on Thursday. "It's exciting," Mr. Yahraus said. "It's going to be a great opportunity and resource for the community ... The resources we'll be receiving from them are just unreal."

With Mr. Yahraus were Mayor Doug Johnson, DBI board member, and his wife, Donna; Rhonda Fisher, DBI board member and city attorney; Kay Brink, administrative assistant for the Chamber; Cindy Castor, president and trustee of DBI and president of the Chamber; and Tim Herman, past trustee of DBI and incoming Chamber president. Kathy Smith, trustee of DBI and Chamber ex-officio, was unable to attend Thursday's ceremony but has been directly involved with working toward Main Street designation.

Mr. Yahraus said DBI was notified of the Main Street designation several months ago but was not allowed to announce it until after the official ceremony in Columbus. "That was kind of difficult," he admitted.

According to Heritage Ohio, the coordinating program of the National Trust Main Street Center, resources include training, tools, information and networking. Heritage Ohio provides advice and guidance in the "Main Street Four-Point Approach" - organization, design, promotion and economic restructuring - to aid a community's revitalization efforts.

Mr. Yahraus said being a Main Street Community will help in applying for a matching $400,000 Community Development Block Grant Tier 2 grant in October 2007. The city will find out shortly after that whether or not it will receive the grant.

"If we get it, it will be the second (the city has received)," Mr. Yahraus said. Bryan was awarded a matching $400,000 CDBG Tier 2 grant in 1998. But, he pointed out, there is no guarantee the city will receive another.

"Everything we do now and in the future goes toward the Tier 2 grant," Mr. Yahraus said. "It could be an $800,000 investment in the community."

He said DBI's goal is to have the downtown revitalization plan in place in the spring and then present it to City Council.

Along with Bryan, five other communities received Main Street status on Thursday: Clifton (Cincinnati), Historic Gateway Neighborhood (Cleveland), Kent, Portsmouth, Historic Warehouse District (Cleveland), Kenton and Vermilion.