The streets of downtown Waynesville will soon receive a look-see from a group of folks who really care about the streets of downtowns. The North Carolina Main Street Program is hosting its fall Main Street Managers meeting in Waynesville Aug. 20-22.

Main Street managers — who oversee downtown revitalization and marketing efforts throughout the state as part of their individual Main Street Programs — will come to Waynesville to network and attend workshops. They’ll also be paying close attention to the host town. 

“They want to see what downtown Waynesville’s doing,” said Buffy Phillips, executive director of the Waynesville Downtown Association. “They definitely want to check us out.”

Liz Parham, director of the state Main Street Program, agrees. 

“We’re looking for all aspects of Main Street revitalization,” she said. “Building rehabs, that kind of thing.”

This is not the first time the Main Streeters have visited Waynesville. They’ve hosted meetings here twice before.

“We move it around, from the east to west,” said Parham. “And we have not been to Waynesville in a number of years and it’s a good chance to get back and see the changes.”

The Main Street managers will begin their stay in Waynesville with a reception at the Wells Event Center. Conveniently, the event center will serve as an easy conversation piece among the revitalization crowd, as the recently renovated property previously housed a newspaper printing press and before that, a pool hall. 

Work sessions will also be held at First Baptist Church. The managers will cover topics such as infrastructure and tourism, zoning and food trucks.

“A little bit of everything, really,” Parham said. 

 — Jeremy Morrison, News Editor