The new organization presented its objectives and how it will work alongside other growth-centered groups in Plant City at the City Commission meeting Monday, Feb. 22.
In under a week, thousands will gather in Plant City to attend the 81st Florida Strawberry Festival. Visitors will buy products from local vendors, eat at local restaurants and explore all Plant City has to offer.
One new nonprofit is trying to attract these visitors to the Winter Strawberry Capital of the world year-round, specifically in the Historic Downtown district and Midtown. Plant City Main Street presented its newly formed board of directors and objectives at the City Commission meeting Monday, Feb. 22.
Main Street isn’t the first program in Plant City to be centered around growth. The Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce, the City of Plant City and the Plant City Economic Development Corp. have all been working on attracting both visitors and new business to Plant City.
To ensure the right growth for Plant City in the right places, the four groups have established the responsibilities of each organization. While the City of Plant City will remain focused on governance, infrastructure, education and public safety, the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce will center around volunteerism, marketing and the tourism task force.
Main Street and the EDC will focus on growth in particular areas of Plant City. While a major goal of Plant City Main Street is to revitalize the Historic Downtown district, the EDC will focus on bringing new businesses to other areas of Plant City, including County Line Road.
“This shows how these groups can work together to make a better Plant City,” Main Street Vice President Dave Schultz said.
The conversation about separate responsibilities but equal necessity began with EDC President Jake Austin.
“Main Street is critically important for the EDC,” Austin said.
The reason for this is because the success of Main Street will determine much of the success of the EDC. Culture, quality of life and amenities in Plant City are all aspects that potential business owners look at and are ones that the Main Street program is focused on in Historic Downtown.
“It really started with Jake,” Yvonne Fry, a director for Plant City Main Street, said. “Everybody’s got a heart for this collaboration … but we needed to be intentional to make sure people understood the different roles. Jake started that conversation.”
“Main Street has a very specific role as well, in making sure that development continues and progresses the way it should,” Austin said. “I think it was important to explain.”
PLANT CITY MAIN STREET
At the Feb. 22 Commission meeting, Plant City Main Street’s board of directors presented a proven four-point approach for growth. The plan centers around organization, design, promotion and economic development. In addition to the organization’s board of directors, four individuals have taken over as the leaders of each of the four points.
The four-point approach is modeled after the Florida Main Street Program
Four-Point Approach. The program has been executed in dozens of communities around Florida, including Ormond Beach, New Port Richey, Bartow and Tallahassee.
Members of the board of directors will head each of the four points.
Darcy Stottlemyer, of All-A-Bloom Florist, is the team leader for organization. Through the management of the overall Main Street program, the team’s further goals are to promote the program to the community and raise funds.
Plant City Mercantile co-owner Dave Schulz is the team leader for the design aspect of the four-point approach. He and his team will focus on aspects that are unique to Plant City, including visual enhancements, streetscapes and physical assets.
PAR Interiors’ Patricia Rogers, who also is the president of Plant City Main Street, will be leading promotion efforts. The job of the promotion team is to develop a positive Plant City Main Street image and develop a marketing strategy. Rogers also will be in charge of managing Main Street events.
Yvonne Fry, of Fryed Egg Productions, will be leading the organization’s economic development efforts. The economic development team will work on strengthening existing businesses in Plant City and creating incentives for further business development. Like the EDC, the economic development aspect of Plant City Main Street is focused on bringing businesses to Plant City. However, the ultimate goal of Plant City Main Street is to bring such businesses to Historic Downtown and midtown.
“You can’t do economic development in a vacuum,” Fry said. “You have to have all the cylinders firing. All those things really, really matter.”
The City Commission was pleased with Plant City Main Street’s presentation and on board with the organization’s ideas of responsibility for partnered groups.
“I thought it was thoughtful and progressive,” City Manager Mike Herr said. “I’m glad to see business leaders who have invested in downtown come together … and be more proactive. I think this is a fantastic opportunity. What’s really good about this is that it’s businesses and citizens driving it, and not government.”
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.
