Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance

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About HDR In early 2002, the Harrisonburg community came together to discuss the possibility of creating a pedestrian mall downtown. The trend for cities nationwide had been to close their downtowns to automobiles, creating a walker-friendly area. But was a pedestrian mall the right choice for Harrisonburg? Public meetings were held to discuss the merits and drawbacks of a pedestrian mall. Ultimately, the community decided to keep its Main Street open to traffic. From these discussions, however, a strong voice emerged from the community in resounding support of downtown revitalization. On July 1, 2003, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance was born. The National Trust Main Street Center has developed a method for revitalizing downtown districts across the country. There are more than 1, 200 active Main Street programs today, including regional success stories like Lexington, Manassas, and Staunton. In August, 2004, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance became a designated Virginia Main Street, and we are following the Main Street approach to revitalization closely. This means concentrating on four separate but equal points: Economic Development, Design, Promotion and Organization.