Main Street Arkansas Update - June 16, 2008

NEW – October 20-21 - Artlinks 2008: The Value of the Arts in the 21st-Century, Little Rock

NEXT MSA QUARTERLY TRAINING: JULY 29-30, HARDY
TOPIC: MAIN TO MAIN (HOW CAN WE REPLICATE THIS IN AR?)
SPEAKER: LEON STEELE, MAIN TO MAIN COORDINATOR, LOUISIANA MAIN STREET
THIS TOPIC HAS BEEN REQUESTED BY NEARLY ALL OF OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS AFTER LAST YEAR’S DESTINATION DOWNTOWN CONFERENCE

JULY 24-25 - ARKANSAS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION SUMMER MEETING, MT MAGAZINE

OCTOBER 6-8, DESTINATION DOWNTOWN, BAY ST. LOUIS, MS
OCTOBER 21-25 – NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION CONFERENCE, TULSA, OK

Main Street Arkansas Calendar June 16-20, 2008
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MONDAY Cary, annual
TUESDAY Cary, annual; Susan & Mark – El Dorado (Window Display & Business Assistance Workshop)
WEDNESDAY Susan & Mark – El Dorado (Window Display & Business Assistance Workshop)
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
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IN THIS ISSUE
JONESBORO ADN PRESS
DEWITT ADN PRESS
MAIN STREET HARRISON PRESS
WALGREENS IN SOMA A NO-GO
LR’S CHERI NICHOLS DOG IN THE THIS PLACE MATTERS CAMPAIGN
4 GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
AHPP ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS FOR HPRG GRANTS
AWARD OPPORTUNITY
PRESNTATIONS FROM RECENT LISC FORUM AVAILABLE

Jonesboro ADN Press
http://www.jonesborosun.com/archivedstory.php?ID=33383&Search=downtown

DeWitt ADN Press
http://www.stuttgartdailyleader.com/news/x746924883/DeWitt-to-join-Main-St-Arkansas

FedEx Boost Skate Park in Downtown Harrison
http://www.harrisondailytimes.com/articles/2008/06/04/news/doc4846c5f464a64203773748.txt

Watch MSH’s Cookin’ On The Creek Commercial
http://mainstreetarkansas.blogspot.com/2008/06/main-street-harrisons-cookin-on-creek.html

Walgreens A No-Go in the SoMa Area
http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/2008/06/thumbs_down_for_walgreens.aspx
- this has been quite the interesting debate. I’ve asked Judi to speak about this for a ‘special topic’ during the roundtable at the upcoming Hardy Quarterly Training

Arkansas National Trust Advisor Cheri Nichols’ dog showcasing her house for the This Place Matters campaign
http://my.preservationnation.org/site/News2?news_iv_ctrl=1802&page=NewsArticle&id=8195&security=1762&JServSessionIdr009=61s59qfmd2.app1a

Grant Opportunity
Professional Development Grants for Archives and Historical Publishing
http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=41915

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission seeks proposals to improve the training and education of professionals in the archival and historical publishing communities. Projects can be for professional education curriculum development; for basic and advanced institutes; or research seminars.

Interpreting America's Historic Places Planning Grants
http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=41936

As part of the NEH's We the People program, Interpreting America’s Historic Places grants support public humanities projects that exploit the evocative power of historic places to address themes and issues central to American history and culture, including those that advance knowledge of how the founding principles of the United States have shaped American history and culture for more than two hundred years. Interpreting America’s Historic Places planning grants support planning that leads to the interpretation of a single historic site or house, a series of sites, an entire neighborhood, a town or community, or a larger geographical region.

Interpreting America's Historic Places Implementation Grants
http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=41937

As part of the NEH’s We the People program, Interpreting America’s Historic Places grants support public humanities projects that exploit the evocative power of historic places to address themes and issues central to American history and culture, including those that advance knowledge of how the founding principles of the United States have shaped American history and culture for more than two hundred years. Interpreting America’s Historic Places projects may interpret a single historic site or house, a series of sites, an entire neighborhood, a town or community, or a larger geographical region. The place taken as a whole must be significant to American history, and the project must convey its historic importance to visitors.

New Grant and Technical Assistance to Encourage Community Center Schools

Is your state facing threats of demolition or abandonment of neighborhood schools? When new schools are built, can your children to walk to their school? Do decision-makers understand the many roles schools play within your community? In addition to reaching educational objectives, do you believe that schools can serve other purposes in your neighborhood?

Concerned about the abandonment of older neighborhood schools and the siting of new schools outside of communities, the National Trust is offering an opportunity for organizations and coalitions in up to five states to analyze their state’s current policies and develop an educational outreach program with policy recommendations to help citizens and officials make informed choices when spending their limited dollars on school facilities. Selected organizations will receive a year of technical assistance and a $6,000 grant to: 1) research state policies and practices; 2) convene a policy summit to develop recommendations; 3) develop educational materials; and 4) hold a press event to announce policy findings. By participating in this program, organizations will secure community-centered schools for their state through the implementation of state-level policies. The proposal deadline is July 14, 2008 at 5:00 p.m. eastern.

Through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and with support from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, the National Trust launched the Helping Johnny Walk to School: Sustaining Communities through Smart School Siting Policies program to help localities site their schools in a way that not only achieves their educational objectives, but also anchors the local neighborhood, supports better public health, creates a cleaner environment, spurs economic development, and offers additional amenities to the community.

Since publishing the seminal work Why Johnny Can’t Walk to School: Historic Neighborhood Schools in the Age of Sprawl and listing the threat to older neighborhood schools on the America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Sites list in 2000, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has continually sought ways to raise awareness about the important link between community vitality and walkable neighborhood schools. This new effort is a program of the National Trust Center for State and Local Policy which provides technical assistance, trains advocates, and conducts research on policies that impact the country’s historic resources. Partners in this work with include authors Constance Beaumont and Tom Hylton, as well as organizations such as Safe Routes to School, The Rural School and Community Trust, and the 21st Century School Fund.

For more information about this issue and details about applying for this new grant opportunity, visit http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/historic-schools/ or contact Renee Viers Kuhlman, Director of Special Projects, Center for State and Local Policy, at Phone: 202-588-6234, e-mail: renee_kuhlman@nthp.org.

AHPP ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION GRANTS
The Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, will now accept Letters of Intent at any time during the year from constituents who intend to apply for grant funding through its Historic Preservation Restoration Grant and County Courthouse Restoration Subgrant programs, AHPP Director Frances McSwain announced today.
“Each historic building has a unique set of preservation concerns and we attempt to work with each applicant to prioritize these specific issues. For example, if a property has a leaking roof, we would not award a grant for a floor restoration,” McSwain said. “By sending Letters of Intent, potential applicants can receive technical assistance from the AHPP and ensure that their grant requests during the spring grant cycle focus on things that will help ensure the long-term survival of their historic buildings.”
Two Historic Preservation Restoration Grant options are available:
• Option 1 grants of up to $10,000 are available to the owners of properties that are listed on the Arkansas Register of Historic Places or are non-contributing structures in National Register historic districts if the grant project will make the property eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places and the owner follows through with National Register listing
• Option 2 grants of $10,000 or more are available to the owners of properties that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and owned by a not-for-profit organization or a local government.
County Courthouse Restoration Subgrants are available for preservation work at county courthouse buildings that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The program uses funds provided by the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council, which distributes money raised through the state Real Estate Transfer Tax.
Guidelines and applications for the Letters of can be downloaded from the AHPP web site at http://www.arkansaspreservation.org/preservation-services/grant-programs/ or by writing AHPP Grants, 1500 Tower Building, 323 Center St., Little Rock, AR 72201. Requests also can be sent to the agency via fax at (501) 324-9184 or via e-mail at joia@arkansasheritage.org

Independent Sector Accepting Nominations for the John W. Gardner Leadership Award

Deadline: January 30, 2009

The John W. Gardner Leadership Award was established in 1985 to honor outstanding Americans who exemplify the leadership and ideals of John W. Gardner (1912-2002), American statesman and founding chair of Independent Sector (http://www.independentsector.org/ ).

Independent Sector presents the award each year to an individual whose leadership in or with the nonprofit community has been transformative and who has mobilized and unified people, institutions, or causes that improve people's lives.

Accompanying this award is a prize of $10,000 and a replica of an original relief bust of John Gardner.

Anyone may nominate an individual for the award. Nominations should be made without the candidate's knowledge.

Visit the Independent Sector Web site for nomination guidelines and a nomination form.

Want Copies of the Presentations Given at LISC’s latest Urban Forum? Go here:
http://www.lisc.org/urbanforum/conference/schedule.php
- click on the session that interests you (for example Monday’s 2pm session on Negotiating TIF’s To A Better Community) & you’ll see a link to a pdf version of the session handouts.