A Community Assessment

For

Port Jervis New York

By

The Main Street Center

National Trust For Historic Preservation

Introduction

On August 10 and 11, 2000, a Main Street assessment team visited Port Jervis, New York, at the request of the city of Port Jervis and the Port Jervis Community Development Agency (PJCDA).  This report, prepared by the team, represents the findings and conclusions of that assessment.

The purpose of the assessment visit was to evaluate the community’s potential to undertake a Main Street program to revitalize and manage the central business district, to provide information on the Main Street Four-Point Approachä, and to recommend future action for establishing a revitalization program.

Two members of the National Main Street Centerâ staff, Teresa Lynch, senior program associate, and Joshua Bloom, senior program associate, conducted the assessment.  Prior to coming to the center, Ms. Lynch was involved in Main Street programs for 15 years.  She previously directed two statewide Main Street programs – in Arkansas and in Virginia.  She also served as the executive director of a local Main Street program in Orange, Virginia.  Mr. Bloom provides training, market analysis, and evaluation services to Boston’s 15 urban neighborhood Main Street districts and works with small and mid-size towns in the Northeast.  Before joining the Center, Mr. Bloom was the director of a Main Street program in South Orange, New Jersey.

The conclusions and recommendations presented in this report are based on the information gathered during the following activities.

Methodology

Prior to their site visit, Ms. Lynch and Mr. Bloom studied background material provided to them.  This material included the following:

This material furnished an overview of existing conditions in the Port Jervis central business district, demonstrated the types of information available, and provided the team with an introduction to the businesses, organizations, and agencies in the community.

During the two-day site visit to Port Jervis, Ms. Lynch and Mr. Bloom:

In addition to reviewing issues facing the community, its assets and liabilities, and projected revitalization activities, Ms. Lynch and Mr. Bloom looked at two critical questions that form the basis of every assessment conducted by the National Trust’s National Main Street Center.  The first question is whether a community should organize a local Main Street program.  The second is how the local program should be structured and funded.

A community should organize a local Main Street program only when certain conditions exist:

While the format and structure of the site evaluation and assessment process used by the National Main Street Center does not render a detailed picture of all factors contributing to the ultimate success or failure of a downtown revitalization program, it does give an accurate picture of the community’s ability to use the Main Street Approachä and the critical issues that affect implementation of the process.

The Main Street Approachä to commercial district revitalization is summarized on the following pages. 

The Main Street Approach and the Eight Principles

The National Main Street Centerâ is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.  Created by a Congressional Charter in 1949, the National Trust is a leading advocate of historic preservation in the United States.  The preservation movement involves more than saving historic buildings; economic growth, urban revitalization, and the creation of new jobs are all issues the National Trust addresses through the rehabilitation of historic structures. 

Established by the National Trust in 1980, the National Main Street Center (NMSC) has worked in 44 states and Puerto Rico.  Through these efforts 193,000 new jobs have been created, $12.8 billion have been reinvested in Main Street commercial districts, 51,000 net new businesses have been created, 62,000 buildings have been rehabilitated, and 1,514 communities have built strong organizations to revitalize their commercial districts.

The NMSC offers the National Main Street Networkä, a professional membership program for organizations involved in commercial district revitalization.  It produces publications, newsletters, and special reports on revitalization and preservation issues and serves as a clearinghouse for information on community redevelopment issues.  The NMSC accomplishes its mission through the Main Street Four-Point Approachä.

  The Four-Point Approach

Design takes advantage of the visual opportunities inherent in a downtown by directing attention to all of its physical elements:  public and private buildings, storefronts, signs, public spaces, landscaping, merchandising, displays, and promotional materials.  Its aim is to stress the importance of design quality in all of these areas, to educate people about design quality, and to expedite improvements downtown. 

Promotion takes many forms, but the goal is to create a positive image of main street in order to rekindle community pride.  Promotion seeks to improve retail sales events and festivals and to create a positive public image of downtown in order to attract investors, developers and new businesses.

Economic Restructuring strengthens downtown’s existing economic assets while diversifying its economic base.  This is accomplished by retaining and expanding existing businesses to provide a balanced commercial mix, converting unused or underutilized space into productive property, sharpening the competitiveness and merchandising skills of downtown business people, and attracting new businesses the market can support.

Organization establishes consensus and cooperation by building partnerships among the various groups that have a stake in main street.  This will allow the Main Street revitalization program to provide effective, ongoing management and advocacy of downtown.  Diverse groups from the public and private sectors (city and county governments, local bankers, merchants, the chamber of commerce, property owners, community leaders, and others) must work together to create and maintain a successful program.

  The Eight Principles of Main Street

While the Main Street Four-Point Approach provides the format for successful revitalization, implementing it is based on eight principles that pertain to all areas of the revitalization effort.

Comprehensive.  Downtown revitalization is a complex process that cannot be accomplished through a single project.  For successful, long-term revitalization, a comprehensive approach must be used. 

Incremental.  Small projects and simple activities lead to a more sophisticated understanding of the revitalization process and help to develop skills so that more complex problems can be addressed and more ambitious projects undertaken.

Self-Help.  Local leaders must have the desire and will to make the project successful.  The NMSC provides direction, ideas, and training; but continued and long-term success depends upon the involvement and commitment of the community.

Public-Private Partnership.  Both the public and private sectors have a vital interest in the economic health and physical viability of downtown.  Each sector has a role to play, and each must understand the other’s strengths and limitations so that an effective partnership can be forged.

Identifying and Capitalizing on Existing Assets.  Business districts must capitalize on the assets that make them unique.  Every district has unique qualities, like distinctive buildings and scale, that give people a sense of place.  These local assets must serve as the foundation for all aspects of the revitalization program.

Quality.  Quality must be emphasized in every aspect of the revitalization program.  This applies equally to each element of the program, from storefront design to promotional campaigns to educational programs. 

Change.  Changes in attitude and practice are necessary to improve current economic conditions.  Public support for change will build as the program grows.

Implementation Oriented.  Activity creates confidence in the program and ever-greater levels of participation.  Frequent, visible changes are a reminder that the revitalization effort is underway.  Small projects at the beginning of the program pave the way for larger activities as the revitalization effort matures.

  General Conditions

During two days of interviews and discussions with many downtown stakeholders and community representatives, the Main Street Assessment Team looked at general conditions for downtown revitalization as well as at specific downtown issues.  The main body of this report contains detailed observations and recommendations in each of the Four Points of the Main Street Approach.  The team identified the following general observations during the assessment, each of which directly or indirectly related to the issue of downtown revitalization.

All of the above observations indicate a potential for developing a successful downtown revitalization program.  Past endeavors have produced many achievements, but there appears to be a need to take those efforts to a higher level by establishing a staffed organization dedicated solely to managing the changes facing downtown and to facilitate desired growth and development.  How that might be accomplished is discussed in the organizational section of this report.

While the assessment team found much potential for forming a downtown revitalization organization by tapping into those resources, the team also noted that there are many issues with which a Port Jervis downtown revitalization program must deal.

 Design

It is true that impressions of a downtown’s vitality are most immediately made by the visual impact of the buildings and surrounding physical environment.  The team members noted several design issues – both minor and major – as they walked through the downtown district, drove into its center and around its perimeter, and toured the rest of the community.

The team’s observations are categorized below into the work areas normally handled by a Main Street program manager and a design committee.  The recommendations anticipate that paid staff and a volunteer design committee will eventually be put into place so that the strategies can be implemented.  But, there are some projects that can be undertaken by an ad hoc design committee that can partner with existing volunteer organizations and the city before an official Main Street program is initiated.

Building Design

Observations

The rehabilitation of the Erie Depot and adjoining Erie Hotel creates a marvelous first impression for visitors as they approach downtown along the Jersey Avenue corridor.  However, that favorable impression diminishes with a broader view of the buildings in the commercial district.

One sees, particularly along Front Street, evidence of building deterioration, deferred maintenance, and inappropriate building elements that mask original historic architecture.  Most of the vacant storefronts have dirty windows, outdated signs, broken windows, peeling paint, and litter in entryways.  Many of the structures currently in use suffer from similar neglect.  Buildings occupied by active businesses are often unappealing, with confusing facades, unimaginative window displays, and unattractive signs.  In some cases, there are too many poorly designed signs in windows that cause confusion to the viewer.  Several building facades have had inappropriate alterations that visually separate the lower facades from the buildings’ upper portions.  Some buildings have been “remuddled” with materials antagonistic to the building’s historic character.  On at lease one building, the team observed that exterior bricks have been cleaned by sandblasting.  This practice is extremely harmful to brick because it removes the exterior sealing finish and exposes the interiors to the elements causing rapid deterioration. 

Trying to remedy the negative visual problems above can seem an overwhelming task if taken as a whole.  That is why an incremental step-by-step Main Street Approach, using a volunteer base in the form of a design committee, is the best way to tackle these cumbersome issues.  In the beginning stages of a downtown program, it makes more sense to undertake those projects that are doable and show immediate results while the planning and groundwork is being laid for major projects that will take longer to accomplish.

These are some of the small steps that a design committee can take while making plans for the larger actions.

Recommendations 

(Small Building-Related Projects)

Begin offering small matching grants for façade improvements.  Tie receipt of grant monies to design guidelines and offer free design assistance at the outset of the project to ensure desired results.  The matching grant is payable as a reimbursement upon approval of the completed job.  The team suggests that the matching grant pool not come from either state or federal funds.  The fewer governmental strings that are attached to the application and receipt of funds, the more flexibility you will have.  Amounts of grants don’t have to be much more than $250 to encourage changes.  (An example of a matching grant application form is in the Appendix).

You already have a low-interest loan program that is not getting much use.  If the monies are available through federal funding, the application process sometimes is too bureaucratic, and potential clients might see it as such.  Most Main Street low-interest loan programs are set up with local financial institutions that either pool their funds or individually offer loans for applicants who are preapproved by the Main Street program.  Again, it is important to offer free design assistance and to make the loan contingent upon the borrower following the design guidelines.  A sample low-interest loan application form is in the Appendix.

Set up a regular system for offering free design assistance and become more aggressive in promoting its availability.  Free design assistance has acted as a trigger in Main Street programs to encourage both small and large building improvements.

While some of the smaller projects listed above are being tackled, the design committee, the PJCDA, and the city can begin planning strategies to encourage some major building improvement projects.  The following are recommendations for major design projects based on the assessment team’s observations.

Recommendations

 (Large Building-Related Projects)

The process of nominating the downtown as a State and National Register Historic District requires a good deal of historical research and writing and sometimes requires the expert assistance of a historic preservation consultant.  In the event that it is necessary to hire a specialist, there are sometimes planning grants available through the State Historic Preservation Office, which can help to underwrite the costs of that assistance.  The Main Street design committee can work with the Minisink Valley Historical Society and the city to formulate the process for establishing a district. 

  Note:  Unlike a local historic district, which frequently has companion ordinances that mandate or prohibit certain treatments for historic buildings, state or national district designation carries with it no restrictions on treatments to buildings.  The designation is strictly honorific and presents no intrusions on private property rights.  The only “teeth” resulting from a National Register Historic District designation is that individual buildings or the entire district may be de-listed if substantial inappropriate alterations are made.

Urban Design

Observations

The city has already made major investments in downtown infrastructure, streetscape improvements, and to Riverside Park.  One individual interviewed by the team said that Port Jervis used to be called the “Pothole Capital” of the region.  This is no longer the case as the city has also done an excellent job in bringing its roadways into first-class condition.  The amenities that have been added – benches, lighting, trash receptacles, banners – create a unified and attractive image for the downtown’s public spaces.

A general recommendation would be for the city to expand its good efforts in public improvements to the entire downtown commercial district.  An important first step for the downtown organization is to outline geographically the area upon which the downtown revitalization effort will be focused.  Once that is done, the city will have a clearer idea of where its public improvements can have the most impact.

The assessment team understands that the city is about to hire specialists to undertake a master plan for the downtown.  That plan should address and make specific recommendations for urban design improvements.  While the city is preparing for the master plan process, the following are suggestions for some small urban design projects that can be undertaken by the design committee.

Recommendations 

(Small Urban Design Projects)

  It is important that municipal lots dedicated to public parking are well marked, conveniently located, well lighted, and landscape

It is also important that business owners and employees refrain from parking in front of their shops, thereby freeing prime parking spaces for customers.

If there are time limits for on-street parking for the public, then those time limits should be monitored regularly and restrictions enforced.

Attention to all of these details of parking management should lessen any complaints about lack of parking.

·        Increased business downtown will bring additional traffic and place greater demands on parking.  As downtown becomes a more desirable destination, parking resources may become more strained.  However, from the shopper’s point of view – and this is especially so for tourists – a highly trafficked downtown becomes attractive in itself.  People become more accepting of parking hassles as the lure of the destination increases.

In several of our meetings, interviewees mentioned towns they wish Port Jervis could emulate:  Warwick, Nyack, Milford, Lake Placid, Saugerties.  Field trips to other communities are worthwhile because they provide ideas and insights worth bringing home and applying to many aspects of revitalization.  We suggest that a group of Main Street leaders visit a couple of these model communities.  While there, pay particular attention to parking and traffic:  How hard is it to Park?  Can you find the parking?  Are there clear sign systems?  Do you have to pay for the parking?  How are the rules enforced?  Where do business owners and employees park?  Did you as a visitor find parking and traffic to be deterrents?

Now come home and conduct an informal survey:  If you were coming to Port Jervis for the first time, would you be able to find the parking lots?  Are cars on the street parked long-term, i.e., all day?  At the highest demand time of day (in most places weekdays before 2:00 p.m.), how many empty spaces can you count?  When done, take the results to the city council;  write an article about the informal study for the paper.

·        It is suggested that the master plan for which the city is seeking proposals deal with major urban design issues.  That plan should:

1)      Provide information and visual renderings that form the basis for grant applications that the city might submit to make improvements to public spaces.  For example, applications for CDBG monies or TEA-21 funds would be enhanced by a professional urban design master plan.

2)      Produce a system of base maps that will visually communicate to the public and prospective business and property developers the downtown program’s plans for redevelopment.  Drawings should include footprints of all downtown structures and should indicate current and proposed businesses, institutional, entertainment, and other clusters.

3)      Provide drawings that indicate proposed improvements to the downtown streetscape and the entryways to the district.

4)      Create a unified design image for all downtown public spaces.  The design plan should include landscaping, directional signs, sidewalk and roadway improvements, lighting, and other public amenities like benches and trash receptacles.

5)      Design landscaped connectors, pedestrian walkways, and other enhancements that make the downtown commercial district more accessible to the riverside park and the railroad.

6)      Identify and provide landscaping and sign designs for all of the key gateways to the downtown district.

7)      Suggest designs for potential improvements and accessibility to rears of buildings that are visible from the street.

8)      Provide a complete cost analysis for all of the suggested improvements.

9)      Include much public participation in the planning process.  Of course, the downtown program should take a very active role in helping select the urban design team and facilitate the public discourse that will be needed.

·        Once the urban design plan is completed, the downtown revitalization organization and the city will need to find funding to implement the projects it suggests.  CDBG and TEA-21 funds could provide support for those projects.  Finding those sources of funding and preparing the grant applications can be a joint effort of the city and the downtown revitalization organization.  It might be desirable if improvements recommended in the urban design master plan were phased so that the city and the downtown program can better allocate resources.

·        Several individuals indicated to the assessment team that a sign should be erected  on Route 84 to direct vehicles to Port Jervis’s many assets and, particularly, to its downtown district.  The design committee could either take this on as a separate project or fold it into the scope of work for the urban design master plan.

Promotion

Observations and Issues

Promotion is an extremely important part of Main Street’s Four-Point Approach and a Main Street promotion committee will work in the areas of special events, retail events, and image development.  In Port Jervis at this point in time, the best course of action would appear to be to concentrate on image development or public relations to market the downtown district.  Although the downtown is doing an excellent job of promoting itself through its web page (one of the most complete and graphically interesting pages we’ve seen), there are several other avenues of communication that will need to be investigated and expanded upon.

During the visit, the assessment team consistently heard the following messages from those interviewed:

Special Events

We learned about a number of special events in Port Jervis that the city, chamber of commerce, and others have organized over time.  Among these, the historic steam locomotive rides of several years ago and the recent arts walk successfully brought people downtown and hold promise for the future.

The first thing to note about downtown special events (besides that they are a lot of work) is that they are not for the businesses; they are for the customers.  They are not to get people to spend money; they are to give people a positive experience downtown.  When working with downtown businesses to encourage their participation in future events, make sure the event’s purpose and the merchants’ expectations are clear.

Past events have succeeded in bringing people downtown.  But they have not been part of an ongoing promotional calendar or part of a larger strategy that addresses holiday celebrations, seasonal opportunities, and desired customer groups.

Downtown events can connect to retail businesses in several ways:  Businesses should remain open during the event and provide some reason for people to come inside (a refreshment; a clue in a scavenger hunt).  Trackable coupons distributed during the event can provide a reason or incentive for event visitors to come downtown again during the following week or month.

  Retail Promotions

  Unlike special events, retail promotions specifically give customers a reason to make a purchase downtown.  Despite the small number of retail businesses in downtown Port Jervis, there are still a number of retail promotional opportunities.  Some retail promotions offer a price savings, i.e., sale incentives; others just promote the variety of goods and services available.

Image Development

Much of Port Jervis’s image problem is low self-esteem.  Several people we met during this assessment – local leaders, residents, and business owners – have some of the worst opinions of downtown.  The downtown’s harshest critics may be those on the inside, not the occasional shopper or weekend visitor.  A number of the people we met during this assessment have a long relationship with downtown; some have been working on revitalization for more than 20 years.  We want to quickly point out that not everyone takes a negative view.  We met some very positive long-time leaders, including Port Jervis’s tireless octogenarian promoter.

In order to change the attitudes of customers and visitors, Main Street must first change the attitudes of local leaders so they can see and promote downtown’s strengths.  In our experience elsewhere and in Port Jervis, newer residents – those who have deliberately sought out Port Jervis as a place to live – often bring a fresh, positive view to downtown image development.  Because they didn’t know Port Jervis in “the good old days,” they tend not to long for what’s been lost.  They know the present and they can help uncover opportunities.  We suggest reaching out to some of Port Jervis’ newer business owners and residents for the promotions committee.  Bringing the history of the longtime leaders together with the fresh ideas of newcomers can be a powerful source of inspiration for promoting downtown. 

Recommendations

 To respond to the concerns raised above, it is recommended that the Main Street promotions committee concentrate on:

The image of Port Jervis downtown organization develops for its commercial district must be detailed, specific, imaginative, and compelling.  It must capture the public’s imagination, reflect the true quality of the place, and be consistently delivered whenever someone visits the district.

The following steps for creating an image for your downtown district are discussed further in the NMSC’s Promotion Committee Handbook.

Identify downtown’s assets.  What are the unique and desirable buildings, shops, and social gathering spots?  The design committee can help identify some of these assets.

1. Compile information about the marketplace.  What are the business mix, market potential, demographics, and shoppers’ attitudes?  The economic restructuring committee can provide much of this information.
2. Analyze all data.  Which negative attitudes can be changed?  Which positive attitudes can be reinforced?  Can niches for the downtown be carved out of the regional market?  Again, the economic restructuring committee can help with this analysis.
3. Match assets with market niches.  Which groups of shoppers can your business mix attract?  Which downtown assets support this niche?  Will existing promotions appeal to these customers?
4. Write a position statement.  How should the district be positioned in the minds of the public?  The position statement should be based on sound market data and community values.
5. Develop a district marketing strategy.  What types of images, activities, campaigns and events will strengthen the downtown district’s newly defined position with the targeted market niches?
6. Design a graphic icon.  What type of graphic logo and signature or mission statement will embody the spirit of downtown’s market position and capture the public’s attention?  What media should be used.

Once the promotions committee has done this homework they will be ready to create an image campaign by:

There are numerous opportunities for a Main Street promotions committee to receive training in image development techniques and to learn much more about coordinating special and retail events.  If it is not possible to attend training sessions, the NMSC offers a variety of booklets and slide shows that can be helpful.  Specifically, for learning more about image development, the Main Street Center has a publication entitled Marketing an Image for Main Street, which can be ordered through its New Tools for Main Street Revitalization catalog.

Economic Restructuring

Issues and Observations

Some of the economic development issues brought to the attention of the assessment team during interviews and discussions related to:

These are very complex issues that will require a focused and sophisticated economic development strategy.  At present, various existing organizational entities may be able to address some aspects of these issues, but the economic restructuring committee of a Main Street program, along with paid program staff, would be able to coordinate work in several of these areas at the same time.  Until a downtown revitalization program has officially begun, the team suggests that an ad hoc economic restructuring committee be established to work closely with the city, the PJCDA, the Tri-State Chamber of Commerce, Orange County Community College, and the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to accomplish the recommended tasks.

The following three items are priority actions to be taken in support of a broad-based economic development strategy for the downtown.

Recommendations for First Steps

One of the economic restructuring committee’s first tasks should be to conduct a market analysis.  This will tell a lot about the district’s current economic condition, Port Jervis’s place in the regional market, and opportunities for market growth.  Once that analysis is complete, the Main Street organization can begin work to strengthen existing businesses, recruit new ones, and find new economic uses for downtown’s building. 

The basic steps in a market analysis are to identify:

q       Who is doing business downtown –an inventory of all downtown businesses;

q       The trade area for the business district;

q       Who lives in the trade area, including demographic and psychographic data;

q       Projected population growth;

q       The current business environment – recent sales trends, current business climate;

q       The downtown’s business clusters (like or related businesses that share complementary merchandise and services or similar customer groups);

q       Downtown’s current customers – who they are, and what they want, how they use the district, and what they think about the downtown;

q       The current retail sales in the trade area;

q       The downtown’s retail sales potential, including surpluses and gaps in retail sales and the overall business mix; and

q       The market opportunities.

All of this information, once analyzed, will identify existing and potential markets for downtown businesses, identify expansion opportunities for existing business, and determine the types of business that could complement the existing mix.

A market analysis will help focus economic development activities, promotions, and even design improvements on the most promising markets for Port Jervis.  Determining strategies for long-term economic development should be the result of careful research, customer surveys, assessment of the business and building inventory, and focus groups.

A professional firm could be commissioned to do the market analysis, or volunteers could be asked to do part or all of it.  A professional analysis may take less time to obtain, but will cost considerably more and may or may not focus exclusively on the downtown.  A market analysis conducted by volunteers will be less expensive and better tailored to the community, but the project can be somewhat intimidating to volunteers and could take six to twelve months to complete.  Either way, the data gathered through the market analysis process is critical to making more informed decisions about the downtown and identifying next steps in business and property development.

If Port Jervis decides on the do-it-yourself market analysis process, we recommend using the NMSC publication, Step-by-Step Market Analysis, a workbook for conducting a downtown market analysis. Using this workbook, Port Jervis can begin the analysis process before a Main Street program is established.  Even if a professional is hired to perform all or part of the market analysis, it would still be very beneficial for the economic restructuring committee to participate in the data-gathering portions of the process and to understand the whole market study process.

While the market analysis is in progress, the Port Jervis downtown revitalization program can begin to encourage business development and building rehabilitation by developing incentive programs and funding sources.  Development of these incentives should be one of the first priorities.

The following are just some of the types of incentives that have worked in other downtown revitalization programs.  Some of these may already be in place in Port Jervis, or there may be ones not listed that can be tailored to the community’s needs.  Be creative!

q       Free design assistance

q       Façade grants

q       Low-interest loans for façade improvements

q       State and federal tax credits for rehabs or employment

q       Tax abatement

q       Permit fee waivers

q       Capital funds for business start-up

q       Low-interest loans for business inventory

q       Marketing assistance

q       Business start-up/planning assistance

q       Coordinated promotions program

Another top priority of a Main Street economic restructuring committee in its first few months should be to determine business needs and to respond to them.  Conduct a business survey or personally visit all businesses to assess their primary concerns.  Then structure programs and activities to meet their needs.  A sample business visitation survey form is provided in the Appendix.

Use this needs assessment to establish business incentives, including technical and financial assistance.  Many of those incentives have already been listed above.  Investigate resources that may be available through financial institutions, Orange County Community College, the Small Business Development Center, and other sources.  Work with all those in the region involved in economic development to identify these resources.  If existing programs don’t meet the needs of Port Jervis’s downtown businesses, work with the above entities to establish these resources locally.

The economic development issues in Port Jervis will not be easy for volunteers to tackle alone, particularly without paid staff in place to keep it all on track.  The following recommendations anticipate that a comprehensive revitalization program based on the Main Street Four-Point Approach will be started in Port Jervis and that management staff will be put in place to help guide the program’s development.

Recommendations 

(Major Economic development Issues)