about downtown goldsboro
Goldsboro Downtown Development
Downtown Goldsboro is a designated Main Street Community, maximizing a partnership between the City of Goldsboro’s Downtown Development Department and the Downtown Goldsboro Development Corporation, a non-profit arm, to revitalize the heart of our City.
Goldsboro’s Main Street program provides leadership dedicated to the improvement of Downtown Goldsboro by creating and facilitating downtown development, promotion and preservation activities. Together, we enhance the appearance, desirability and vitality of Downtown Goldsboro.
Our Main Street History & Success:
Since 2013 we have seen:
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372 Net Jobs Created
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$23M in Private Investment
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$35M in Public Investment
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58 New New Businesses
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68 Additional Residences
Our Plan of Work:
Downtown Goldsboro has followed the Main Street Approach since 1984, during which time, 650 buildings have been rehabbed and over 100 new businesses have opened in the 21 square block downtown district. Most notably, a major revitalization effort, Center Street Streetscape, was completed in three phases between 2012 and 2020, with $15M in grant funding from a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) award. In 2017, the Main Street program was named a semifinalist by Main Street America for the Great American Main Street Award. To learn more about the efforts to revitalize Downtown Goldsboro, review the 2007 Downtown Master Plan.
Our Leadership:
Downtown Goldsboro is a Main Street Community, based on a working relationship between the City of Goldsboro, the Downtown Development office and the Downtown Goldsboro Development Corporation (DGDC), a non-profit arm. These organizations work in partnership for the benefit of downtown, promoting revitalization within the context of historic preservation.
The DGDC is comprised of a Board of Directors and four working committees, which direct and administer development activities, guided by Downtown Development staff. Members serve voluntarily and represent diverse backgrounds and interests, including downtown merchants, property owners, businesses, community advocates and organizations. The Board and Committees meet once a month.
The DGDC relies on the support of generous community sponsors to fund a full, annual calendar of events and development initiatives.
Meet Our Staff
Erin Fonseca
Downtown Development Director
Greg Mills
Business and Property Development Specialist
Austin Rye
Marketing and Events Specialist
board of directors
Grayson Hussey
President
Lauren Metzler
Design Chair
Barbara Aycock
Wayne County Representative
Jena Polito
SJAFB Representative
Viola Ryals-Figueroa
Nina Jackson
Cindi Pate
Ad-Hoc Member
Doug McGrath
Past President
January Hammond
Promotions Chair
Hiawatha Jones
City Council Representative
Todd Walker
Wayne County Chamber Representative
Cindy Hamner
Johnny Peacock
Shelby Ostendorf
Ad-Hoc Member
Liza Govan
Vice President
Rick Sumner
Economic Vitality Chair
Matthew Livingston
City Manager
Beverly Durham
Scott Satterfield
Elizabeth Rutland
Kim Bogue
Treasurer
Kimber Roche
Downtown Merchant Chair
Col. Jason Okumura
SJAFB Representative
Selena Worrell
Brittani Gardner
Jessica Clark
Main Street Program
We Are a Proud NC Main Street Designated Community
North Carolina Main Street Rural Planning Center
The NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center is North Carolina's state coordinating program for Main Street America. The NC Main Street staff are charged by the NC Department of Commerce to facilitate downtown economic development, using the Main Street America Four Point Approach, in designated communities. The Main Street Approach™ is centered around economic development strategies that will transform downtown. These strategies articulate a focused path to revitalizing or strengthening a downtown economy. Designated NC Main Street community's work is organized around the Four Point Approach: Economic Vitality, Design, Promotion, and Organization.
The selection process is competitive. The NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center's Downtown Associate Community is the first step towards the NC Main Street Designation. Communities are selected every other year via a competitive application process. North Carolina municipalities, with an identifiable traditional downtown business district and a certified population under 50,000 are eligible to apply to the Center for services under the Downtown Associate Community program. Selected communities will receive three years of downtown revitalization technical assistance services from the NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center and may have the opportunity to move up to Main Street designation upon successful completion of the program.
Learn More: NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center
As a Main Street America™ Accredited program, Downtown Goldsboro is a recognized leading program among the national network of more than 1,200 neighborhoods and communities that share both a commitment to creating high-quality places and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. All Main Street America™ Accredited programs meet a set of National Accreditation Standards of Performance as outlined by Main Street America.
Downtown Goldsboro is a North Carolina Main Street community, designated by the N.C. Department of Commerce Main Street & Rural Planning Center. Downtown Goldsboro is charged with administering the program at the local level and building public-private partnerships to spur economic development that achieves measurable results such as investment, business growth, and job creation.
The National Main Street Program | 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. Main Street America is a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation o Main Street America™ is a movement. Main Street America has been helping revitalize older and historic commercial districts for more than 40 years. It is the leading voice for
preservation-based economic development and community revitalization across the country. Made up of small towns, mid-sized communities, and urban commercial districts, Main Street America represents the broad diversity that makes this country so unique. Working together, the programs that make up the Main Street America network help to breathe new life into the places people call home.
Main Street America is a mark of distinction. It is a seal, recognizing that participating programs, organizations, and communities are part of a national movement with a proven track record for celebrating community character, preserving local history, and generating impressive economic returns. Since 1980, over 2,000 communities have been part of Main Street, bringing renewed energy and activity to America’s downtowns and commercial districts, securing $61 billion in new investment creating more than 525,000 net new jobs and rehabilitating 251,000 buildings.
Main Street America is a time-tested strategy. Main Street America communities are encouraged to make use of a time-tested approach, known as the Main Street Approach. The Main Street Approach is rooted in a commitment to broad-based community engagement, a holistic understanding of the factors that impact the quality of life in a community, and strategic focus on the core principles of downtown and neighborhood revitalization: Economic Vitality, Design, Promotion, and Organization.
Learn More: Main Street America