A re-start to the Main Street Taneytown program promises a new look and feel to the downtown area, according to Economic Development Manager Jay Meashey.

Meashey, who took the position in March, said the Main Street Advisory Board has been on hiatus for several years. An ordinance is expected this season to formally re-introduce the Main Street Taneytown Advisory Board.

Main Street America is a nationwide historic preservation project designed to revitalize the historic business districts of small towns.

Main Street Taneytown has been a partner of Main Street Maryland and Main Street America since 2002. The Main Street Taneytown Advisory Committee spreads the word of happenings and works to encourage and support businesses in the historic downtown.

The mission of Main Street Taneytown is designed to promote the economic vitality of business downtown. A video series by Main Street Taneytown detailing local business can be found on YouTube.

Providing tours around town, Meashey has become a familiar sight to local business owners and fellow neighbors. "Connecting people to downtown is important," Meashey said.

Owning a business in downtown presents unique challenges including parallel parking and maintaining store fronts. The board looks to alleviate those challenges in any way they can, he said. Through the Main Street Board, the town will work with business owners to establish programs and funding to meet their needs, he said.

The advisory board will work with businesses in town, Meashey said.

The six-member board plus a chair will be in charge of the six most crucial aspects of downtown business, including design, promotion, economic vitality, organization, arts and entertainment, and clean-green and safe.

The philosophy of Main Street Taneytown is the belief that having those that are directly affected by the success of downtown involved in the infrastructure of the program will produce the best results. The board will consist of members of the community who have a stake in the downtown area such as shop owners.

"Someone with skin in the game of Main Street," Meashey said.

Approximately 25 businesses make up the downtown area, the business owners and the board of Main Street Taneytown Advisory Board will work together to address needs.

"A lot of people are trying to make something happen, but you can only move at the speed of what you’ve got," he said.

While awaiting the formal ordinance, Meashey has been hard at work with prospective and existing businesses, collecting feedback, and applying for grant funding aid business and providing improvements to residential façades.

The city has grown from 2,000 residents in the 1980s to more than 7,000 today and will only continue to expand as new housing developments like Meads Crossing and Meadow Brook are being considered, Meashey stated.

Meashey stressed that the biggest current challenge faced by the downtown area is businesses packing up and leaving, so a vital aspect of the project is to strengthen the core of the business district and make it an environment they want to stay in.

After the pandemic struck, many businesses had to make do with limited hours, so the goals of the board will include not only getting more stores into the downtown area as well as ensuring current stores can operate longer hours.

"We want business in every storefront, and people in every business," he said.

More information about Main Street Taneytown can be found at www.mainstreettaneytown.com.