HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – On August 17, Main Street Alabama held its tenth annual Awards of Excellence Banquet at Stovehouse in Huntsville to celebrate the successes of local programs. The event was sponsored by Alabama Municipal Electric Authority and Alfa Companies. Main Street Alabama’s President and State Coordinator, Mary Helmer Wirth, and Assistant State Coordinator, Trisha Black, recognized projects and individuals who made significant contributions to their communities. The Awards of Excellence program highlighted the tremendous impacts of these honorees in their respective areas.
The Awards of Excellence recognized winners in the categories of Adaptive Reuse, Preservation, Historic Rehabilitation, Fundraising, Public/Private Partnerships, Business Development, Economic Impact, Promotion, Business Promotion, Marketing, Tourism, Volunteer Development, Placemaking, Design Development, Non-Historic Building Design, Reinvestment, and Planning & Public Space.
Local Main Street programs also selected a Main Street Hero that honored an individual, business or organization that made an outstanding contribution to their program and was recognized at the Toast to Heroes Reception sponsored by Regions Bank prior to the banquet.
Mayor Brian Baine was awarded the Community Hero Award. Mayor Baine leads by example. He is incredibly involved with every event and activity that Fort Payne Main Street implements as well as other events in Fort Payne. He does all of this while also leading the city and community. He is hard working and an amazing leader!
Fort Payne Main Street received the following awards:
2022/23 Award of Excellence in Placemaking for the Pete the Cat Mural (thank you James Dean)
2022/23 Awards of Excellence – $5 Million Total Reinvestment – Fort Payne Main Street Downtown
The full list of winners and descriptions can be found on the Newsroom page on Main Street Alabama’s website, www.mainstreetalabama.org.
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“Last night, a celebration was held to recognize the achievements of various local Main Street programs, said Wirth. “Each community has been working tirelessly to improve, reinvigorate, and revitalize their downtown or district. The success stories shared at the event were truly inspiring, showcasing the dedication of businesses, organizations, and individuals in making their communities the best they can be.”
It was a night of celebration and recognition for the hard work put in by these Main Street programs. The Awards of Excellence Banquet is a highlight of LAB, a three-day annual conference that bolsters the efforts of communities participating in the nationally acclaimed Main Street program or those communities interested in district revitalization. The tenth annual event drew over 150 community leaders from Alabama.
Main Street Alabama has 32 Designated Programs and 32 Network Communities. Alexander City, Anniston, Athens, Atmore, Birmingham’s Historic 4th Ave Business District, Birmingham’s Woodlawn District, Calera, Centreville, Columbiana, Decatur, Demopolis, Elba, Enterprise, Eufaula, Florence, Foley, Fort Payne, Gadsden, Heflin, Jasper, Lafayette, Leeds, Marion, Monroeville, Montevallo, Opelika, Oxford, Scottsboro, South Huntsville, Russellville, Talladega, and Wetumpka each have Designated Programs. Communities interested in downtown revitalization can participate in Main Street Alabama’s Network.
Main Street Alabama is a non-profit organization focusing on bringing jobs, dollars and people back to Alabama’s historic communities. Economic development is at the heart of our efforts to revitalize downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts.
