Waxhaw Happenings May 2019 | Page 7

In 2018, Downtown Waxhaw had a net gain of 6 new businesses and over $9.6 million in private investment. Volunteers dedicated over 600 hours to Main Street through events, beautification initiatives, and economic development planning efforts. The Waxhaw Main Street Program works to make Downtown Waxhaw into Union County’s hub for diverse retail shops, award-winning eating and drinking establishments, local artisans, and cultural events. ABOUT MAIN STREET AMERICA Main Street America has been helping revitalize older and historic commercial districts for more than 35 years. Today, it is a network of more than 1,600 neighborhoods and communities, rural and urban, who share both a commitment to place and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. Since 1980, communities participating in the program have leveraged more than $79.12 billion in new public and private investment, generated 640,017 net new jobs and 143,613 net new businesses, and rehabilitated more than 284,936 buildings. Main Street America is a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.