A handful of Edinburgh residents are brainstorming how to improve downtown.
Edinburgh Main Street held a public information meeting at the John R. Drybread Community Center on Wednesday for residents to hear about upcoming initiatives and give feedback.
Main Street organizations are community-led and focus on downtown revitalization. There is a state coordinating program for the national organization Main Street America called the Indiana Main Street Program that is in its 40th year and managed by the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs.
In Indiana, there are five aspiring-accredited, 76 downtown-affiliated, 15 state-accredited and 19 nationally-accredited Main Street organizations, according to OCRA. This includes organizations in Greenwood, Bargersville and Franklin.
Edinburgh could soon join the list. Edinburgh Main Street is in the first stages of applying through the state to be a Main Street Program, said SaraBeth Drybread, Edinburgh Main Street board president and the town’s economic development director.
The organization is currently visiting different organizations and groups to explain their goals and get feedback in what Drybread is calling “Main Street on the Move.”
“One of the reasons why we’re doing these Main Street on the Moves is because we never know what’s going to come out of that,” she said. “We never know who’s going to attend or what ideas or challenges or myths or anything that they see that they want to know more about or learn more about.”
The broader vision for Edinburgh Main Street is to revitalize downtown into a mixed-use district that is a “vibrant, economically diverse destination,” support existing businesses and entrepreneurs, and attract new employers and opportunities by collaborating with surrounding counties, Drybread said.
To meet these goals, Main Street provides four categories for towns to focus on through committees: economic vitality, design, promotion and organization.
Economic vitality
The economic vitality committee is looking to “the economic foundation” of downtown, including making sure businesses thrive, properties are active and the community visits the area, said Crissy Riley, committee chair.
“When downtown is economically healthy, it attracts more investment, visitors, residents,” she said. “That’s what we want to do, creating a ripple effect that benefits all of Edinburgh.”
In 2026, Edinburgh Main Street wants to hold small business workshops on topics like marketing, insurance, finances and more. While Edinburgh started some workshops this year, the organization wants to continue educating downtown businesses and entrepreneurs who want to do more for their business or need help with technical skills, Riley said.
Edinburgh Main Street also wants to activate two vacant storefronts. Approximately 17 out of 34 storefronts are vacant or inactive, Drybread said.
Since the buildings are mostly owned by landlords, co-chair of the organization committee Denise Koster advocated for rules to be put in place for what buildings should and shouldn’t be used for and how they should look.
Additionally, the organization wants to make an inventory of downtown businesses and have monthly business check-ins to talk with business owners about how they are doing and what they may need help with, Riley said.
Design
The design committee is looking at the physical attributes and environment of the downtown to make sure that their “best foot is forward,” Drybread said. The committee plans to walk around downtown to take an inventory and analyze design aspects, she said.
In the future, Edinburgh Main Street also could help with getting grants for more flower boxes and windows downtown, Drybread added.
“We go through these streets everyday, all day, and when you see something every day, you just become numb and blind to the paint peeling or the cracks … ” Drybread said. “Our buildings, our streets, our sidewalks, our signs, our lights, our decor, all of that is a first impression for people that we’re trying to attract into our downtown.”
One building being renovated could start a ripple effect to revitalize downtown, Koster said.
“We have currently a building in downtown Edinburgh [that the town owns] that would be perfect for some sort of business. It’s on Holland Street, it’s ready to go. We would basically give it away for free if someone would put a business in there,” she said. “So we have the way to do it, we just have to get that first step, that first person that’s willing to take a chance on Edinburgh.”
Promotions
The promotions committee is tasked with programming, social media, education and being “storytellers in the community,” Drybread said. Members will tell the history and success stories about downtown
One goal is to partner with Franklin Heritage and Indiana Landmarks to hold talks on why historical preservation is important, Drybread said.
Right now, Drybread said they are working on bringing back the Pixie Theater to its historical glory. It has been for sale for two years and Drybread is asking community partners to contribute to purchase the building and get it revitalized, she said.
Other ideas include creating a monthly newsletter or having a group set up table tents every month at local restaurants with information on events happening downtown. Foster referenced successful author talks at the Franklin library branch, and thinks Edinburgh could replicate that type of event.
Organization
Governance, sponsorships and community partnerships are where the organization committee comes in. It’s also where community can help fund Edinburgh Main Street initiatives.
By the late spring of 2026, the committee wants to secure at least five annual sponsorship commitments from local businesses that total at least $10,000, members said.
The organization also plans to recruit 20 volunteers by the end of 2026 and create formalized partnerships with at least three civic or community organizations by mid-2026, such as schools, the American Legion, Tri Kappa and the Lions Club, Koster said.
“We really want to form a partnership with these groups so that they work events with us, they get the recognition as a supporter of our Edinburgh Main Street because what we do together is going to be bigger than what either one of us can do separately,” she said.
Edinburgh Main Street plans to send out a survey to residents sometime in 2026 to make sure the organization is on the right track, Koster said. There is also a Facebook page, which can be found by searching the organization’s name.
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