 |
|
|
St.
Cloud Main Street
903 Pennsylvania Ave
St. Cloud, FL 34769
Phone: (407) 498-0008
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
| WHAT
IS ST. CLOUD MAIN STREET? |
The St. Cloud Main Street Program was created by community
leaders in the City of St. Cloud, to support and encourage
the restoration, promotion, and maintenance of the historic
character and viability of downtown St. Cloud for the
enjoyment, benefit and education of residents and visitors.
In addition, St. Cloud Main Street works to combat community
deterioration and lessen the burdens of local government
through its activities committed to the improvement
and beautification of the St. Cloud neighborhoods. St.
Cloud Main Street is committed to sponsoring programs
that fulfill charitable and educational goals including
historic preservation, community education, lessening
the burden of local government, and combating community
deterioration. |
 Historic
Preservation
The St. Cloud Main Street program area encompasses the
St. Cloud Downtown Historic District, an area of St. Cloud
bounded by Florida Avenue and Massachusetts Avenue and
Eighth Street to Thirteenth Street, which was the original
downtown center of the city when St. Cloud was founded
by Union Civil War veterans in 1909.
The St. Cloud downtown district has a total of 100 historic
buildings and these buildings comprise 54% of all buildings
in the area. The area is rich is historic homes and business
properties dating back to the early 1900’s.
Historic preservation will be facilitated in several ways.
St. Cloud Main Street will provide design assistance to
merchants and property owners in downtown St. Cloud to
help ensure that exterior improvements, from renovation
and rehabilitation projects to new construction, are compatible
with the overall architectural character of the historic
downtown commercial area, which consists of early 20th
century buildings in Spanish Colonial and Mission styles.
Particular attention will be paid to issues such as facades,
signage, and exterior fixtures. Main Street will also
ensure that local, state, and national expertise is available
to assist property owners with renovation projects. For
instance, St. Cloud Main Street will receive in-kind technical
support from both Main Street Florida in Tallahassee and
the National Main Street Center in Washington, D.C. In
addition, a program also exists which seeks to educate
St. Cloud property owners about the benefits and importance
of preserving historic properties. These activities ensure
the development of a streetscape, which is consistent
with St. Cloud’s historic downtown and encourage
higher standards for the maintenance of historic buildings.
St. Cloud Main Street also has a program to provide improvement
grants that will help foster the preservation and restoration
of buildings within the historic districts. Rehabilitation
work funded by this program is limited to exterior improvements
for buildings within the historic districts and must comport
with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for
the Rehabilitation of Historic Properties.
|
 In
this manner, the Main Street faŤade grant program will
provide incentives for property owners to make exterior
improvements that are compatible with the traditional
character and architectural style of the downtown area,
instead of being intrusions that undermine its overall
historic character. |
Education
Another goal of St. Cloud Main Street is educating the
public, property owners, and businesses about the history
and cultural resources of downtown St. Cloud and how they
may best be utilized and preserved. These educational
programs and activities help to increase the public’s
appreciation of the need for sound renovations and encourages
private preservation efforts.
We will educate the public and merchants through our sponsorship
of workshops and training programs on a variety of topics
such as the history of St. Cloud, faŤade and design issues,
historic preservation rehabilitation tax credits, and
customer services. We also have plans to sponsor monthly
seminars designed to assist merchants in maintaining the
appearance of their stores and areas in front of the stores,
e.g., landscaping, building maintenance and visual merchandising.
St. Cloud Main Street will also sponsor a unique educational
program for St. Cloud middle school and high school students.
As part of this program, SCMS will work with local middle
school and high school art classes to stage art exhibits
of local students’ works depicting life in historic
St. Cloud. This special program is designed both to increase
utilization of, and appreciation for, St. Cloud’s
unique history and architecture, and educate the next
generation as to the importance of preserving St. Cloud’s
heritage
|
| |
|
|
