Wisconsin Main Street Economic Impact

Thanks to the efforts and initiatives of the Main Street communities in Wisconsin, downtowns are playing a vital role in the state's economy and quality of life. Below you will find statistics on each community as well as the top ten reasons to save downtown.

10 Reasons Downtown is Important 

Detailed statistics for each Main Street Community

• Estimated real estate taxes generated by building rehabilitations and new buildings - $85,160,039
• Estimated state sales taxes generated by new businesses - $248,810,000
• Estimated state income taxes generated by new jobs - $114,700,257
• Return for every state dollar invested through Wisconsin Main Street Program - $41.93
• Return for every local dollar invested through local Main Street organizations - $12.99
• Return for every state and local dollar combined invested through Main Street - $9.92

• For Rehab Investment and New Building ROI, assume all improvements add to the property tax base at full face value tax rate.
• For New Business ROI, assume each new business generates $200K/year in revenue and pays 5% in state sales tax.
• For New Jobs ROI, assumes each new job is 2080 hours/year and is paid $7.5/hr. and generates 6% state income tax.

10 REASONS DOWTOWN IS IMPORTANT

1. Your central business district is a prominent employment center. Even the smallest downtowns employ hundreds of people. Downtown is often the largest "employer" in your community.
   
   

2. As a business center, your downtown plays a major role. It may even represent the largest concentration of businesses in your community.
   
   

3. A downtown is a reflection of how a community sees itself. . .a critical factor in business retention and recruitment efforts. If the downtown is neglected, outsiders will see this neglect as a reflection of the entire community and its citizens.
   
   

4. Your downtown represents a significant portion of your community's tax base. If this district declines, its property will decrease in value. This increases the tax burden on other parts of your community.
   
   

5. The central business district is an indispensable shopping and service center in your community. Though it may not hold the place as your community's most dominant shopping center, it still includes unique shopping and service opportunities. Law, physician, accountant, and insurance offices. . .as well as financial institutions are often located downtown.
   
   

6. Your downtown is the historic core of your community. Many of the buildings are historically-significant. They should be preserved to help highlight your community's history.
   
   

7. Downtown represents a vast amount of public and private investment. Imagine paying to recreate all the public infrastructure and real estate in a central business district. Imagine the waste of past dollars spent if the downtown is neglected.
   
   

8. A central business district is often a major tourist draw. When people travel, they want to see unique places. . .there isn't another downtown like yours in the world!
   
   

9. Downtown is usually a government center. Most likely it is where your city hall, county courthouse and post office are located. This "one stop" shopping for government services is a notable feature of downtowns across the state.
   
   

10. And, perhaps most important, your downtown provides a sense of community and place. As Carole Rifkind, author of Main Street: The Face of Urban America said, ". . .as Main Street, it was uniquely America, a powerful symbol of shared experience, of common memory, of the challenge and the struggle of building a civilization. . .Main Street was always familiar, always recognizable as the heart and soul of village, town or city." In the end, this is why we revitalize our downtowns.

Information regarding the Wisconsin Main Street Program may be obtained by contacting Jim Engle at (608) 267-0766.