TETON VALLEY, IDA – Local nonprofit Downtown Driggs Association has been re-designated as an accredited Main Street America program by the National Main Street Center. Downtown Driggs Association has earned the designation every year since 2014, and is one of only six communities in Idaho that have earned the Main Street designation—a group that includes Coeur D’Alene and Boise.
Downtown Driggs Association was recognized for commitment to community revitalization through the Main Street Approach, which provides a framework to promote the downtown business core and encourage revitalization efforts through ‘placemaking.’ This concept describes programs and activities that connect people to the places we live, work and play in, which contribute significantly to the long-term health of community.
“We’re so honored to be recognized again by the National Main Street Center,” says Alison Brush, Executive Director of Downtown Driggs Association. “Our board and volunteers continue to work hard to make the heart of Teton Valley a vibrant place to live, work and visit.”
Applying the Main Street approach to placemaking, Downtown Driggs Association produces visitor tools, designs improved spaces downtown such as the new Mugler Plaza, on N. Main and promotes Downtown Driggs through several popular annual free arts programs including Symphony on Sunday, Shakespeare in the Parks, Driggs Plein Air and Snowscapes.
“We are proud to acknowledge this year’s 840 nationally accredited Main Street America programs that have worked tirelessly to strengthen their communities,” said Patrice Frey, President & CEO of the National Main Street Center. “Main Street America Accredited communities are part of a powerful movement of change-makers, and their dedication to improving quality of life in the places they call home is inspiring.”
About Main Street America
Main Street America has been helping revitalize older and historic commercial districts for more than 35 years. Today, it is a network of more than 1,600 neighborhoods and communities, rural and urban, who share both a commitment to place and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. Since 1980, communities participating in the program have leveraged more than $79.12 billion in new public and private investment, generated 640,017 net new jobs and 143,613 net new businesses, and rehabilitated more than 284,936 buildings. Main Street America is a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
About Downtown Driggs Association
Downtown Driggs Association is a donor supported non-profit organization whose mission is to foster a thriving and vibrant Downtown Driggs. In 2003, a devastating fire in Downtown Driggs left a gaping hole both physically and emotionally. Businesses and investment began to leak out of the downtown, so a group of local residents and business owners established a grass roots association to bring life back to Downtown Driggs. They sought to reshape Driggs’ cultural identity, and to encourage healthy and sustainable growth in the heart of Teton Valley. Today, Downtown Driggs Association is the leading provider of free music, art and theater programs serving residents and visitors in the heart of Teton Valley.
