When the Old Takoma Business Association, voted to adopt the Main Street Program as a vehicle to help revitalise certain businesses and to bring in more of our many stakeholders, I did not envision it as a vehicle for sustainability. What I knew Main Street was a four point approach which had a proven track record to help rebuild and revitalise community commercial districts, which in turn benefit residential and commercial property owners, through its Design, Promotions, Organization, and Economic Restructuring Committees.

Time has now passed since we implemented this program for the Old Takoma neighborhood, and I now understand that we are contributing to the sustainability of our community. I see it in the recent successes we have had ~ a Main Street Clean-up Day in May, a Facade Improvement Program open to Takoma Park, MD businesses, and continued work addressing the parking issues in our commercial district. The addition of our new Executive Director, Roz Grigsby, whose background in Urban Planning will be instrumental to guide and shape the program. Main Street is all about sustainability, for now and looking to the future.

This spring I had the opportunity to travel out West and visited another Main Street community called Port townsend, in Washington State. They have had a number of years to work on their Main Street, and it shows. As my partner and my sister walked the town, I was struck at the vast similarities between the shops there and our own progressive ideals here which are manifest in our retail, professional, and service based businesses. It is a model for what we can become if we want over time, even though Old Takoma will also have its own special bent.

For those of you who live here in this community straddling the Maryland / DC border, please think about how you can help us create a sustainable community through Main Street ~ join a committee, volunteer to do one task with us. We are proud this community and want to see it grow smartly and progressively into the future, and sustain itself for years to come.