Get poor, get moving, or get smart

Above, the Old Paxton State Bank building, built in 1895, was purchased in 1992 and its original facade restored. Inside, there still are teller windows and a vault, but it is now Paxton Chiropractic. Right, an aspiring young artist gets in the spirit at Morrison's "Paint the Town" event. These communities are among dozens in Illinois that are no longer willing to sit back and watch their population and businesses decline, and instead have taken pro-active approaches that are facilitated by several complementary programs and agencies.

Rural Illinois communities enjoyed some growth during the 1960s and 70s as many Americans yearned to "return to the land." Then in the 1980s and early 1990s, employment opportunities, particularly in manufacturing, began traveling south and west. Coupled with an "energy crisis," commuting to nearby communities became less attractive, and bright young minds were lured to year-round sunny climates with jobs and higher salaries. With a declining job market and a resultant "brain drain," the tax base declined and communities found themselves in a downward spiral. Schools closed and public services were curtailed. Some communities even found themselves, well, off the map in an out-of-control vehicle.

Some decided to halt the decline, formed new cooperative alliances among existing agencies, and began breathing new life into their communities. Two programs formed earlier this decade, Illinois Main Street (see Commentary, page 4), a downtown preservation program, and MAPPING, a community visioning program, are beginning to boast some impressive results.

In 1991, little Rushville in Schuyler County was the first to participate in one such program, called Management And Planning Programs Involving Nonmetropolitan Groups, or MAPPING, which was begun at the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) at Western Illinois University in Macomb. Initially funded by the lieutenant governor's office

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Festivals and special events, such as the "Taste of Lincoln" also help draw folks downtown.

and the governor's Rural Affairs Council, it now is supported largely through the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs.

Five years and dozens of graduates later, the program this year earned the National Association of Development Organizations' Innovation Award.

The accomplishments, articulated in the 1997 Directory of Programs and Activities, by Robin Hanna and Steve Kline of the IIRA, speak for themselves:

Rushville (pop. 3,229) worked with Schuyler County to establish an 80-acre industrial park. They created the Schuyler County Economic Development Corp. with $15,000 seed money; now it has two full-time staffers and an operating budget of $75,000. The SDC formed an area Community Development Corporation (CDC) among Schuyler and neighboring Brown and Cass Counties, five local banks, and Adams Electrical Co-Operative, capitalized through $150,000 in local funds and a $50,000 DCCA retooling-and-modernization grant. $100,000 is already working in the community through loans for new and existing business. Two new businesses have created 15 new jobs.

Roodhouse (pop. 2,139) has experienced a small business boom; recent openings include a computer supply and service store, an ice cream parlor, a youth recreation facility, a dance studio, two antique and craft stores, and a storage shed manufacturing and retail outlet.

In Mount Sterling (pop. 1,922), a 20-plus tax increment finance district was created for a mini-mall, where a restaurant and a discount store already have provided 15 new jobs. Discussions are underway to expand a grocery store and to build a motel/restaurant and another restaurant. A private youth center opened, there have been many improvements to park facilities and a community beautification group was formed.

Fairbury (pop. 3,643) passed a school referendum to build a new junior high school, an addition for the elementary school, a new high school library, and expand computer labs from grade school through high school. Business is up as well, with a new computer store, electrical supply, bank, paper supply and rental stores. An existing building was transformed into a craft mall, and its second floor converted to condominiums.

Carthage (pop.2,657) created an educational foundation which raised $40,000 in its first few months alone.

In Paris (pop. 8,987), schools and local employers created a comprehensive school-to-work program and Paris Community Hospital opened a $3.3 million expansion.

In Dieterich (pop. 568), a new multi-county water district was created and a new health care clinic was opened.

Tiskilwa (pop. 830) has developed an 80-mile bike trail (The Gem in the Valley Trail) using village, township and country roads, as a link in the national Discovery Trail. The town facilitates bike visitors with signage, bike racks and expanded park hours and facilities.

These are just a few of the many noteworthy accomplishments some communities have racked up since participating in MAPPING.

Key to its success is the fact that citizens determine their vision of their community's future. The process is remarkably short and simple, involving four sessions, each three-hours long, held in the evening, and usually accomplished inside three months. During session one, participants assess

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their community's current status, its strengths and weaknesses. In session two, they determine where they would like to be; in session three, how to get there; and in session four, how to keep going. IIRA staff review the results and help draft a community action plan and connect the community with the resources to accomplish goals.

The IIRA collects and studies data about the community, its health care, education, transportation, public finance and myriad other issues. Only a toll-free call away, it's a clearinghouse for information, referrals, technical assistance and a dizzying array of publications, satellite broadcasts, conferences and workshops.

Afterward, IIRA staff monitor the community's progress, continuing to provide technical assistance and links, not only to state agencies, but private ones and to other communities with similar experiences and willingness to share their successes. Afterward, the community is left with a working economic development body full of information and innovative approaches. The experience then can be used by the local school district to determine its schools' future or the local health care sector to plan for future health needs.

After MAPPING, communities are left with new leaders who consider the interests of the entire community, bridge social gaps by inviting broad representation, share decision-making, and promote an environment in which blame is scorned and some of the best lessons are learned by error.

For some communities, like Rushville, Mattoon, Lincoln, and Pontiac, the process leads to other, related programs, of which Illinois Main Street, a preservation-based program, enjoys the most visible success. Rushville, for example, after completing the MAPPING program, then became part of the Main Street program.

Communities do not have to undergo MAPPING to be a part of Main Street, but they do have to demonstrate commitment before being accepted. In selecting communities for the program, they must have broad community support, vision and a mission statement, a comprehensive work plan, a historic preservation ethic, an active board of directors and committees, an adequate operating budget, a professional (and paid) manager, and ongoing training for staff.

Before and After shots of DeBuhr's Seeds & Feeds in Mattoon show what a positive difference afresh coat of paint can make.

Results from the Main Street program also speak for themselves:

In Galesburg, the 101-year-old Odd Fellows building at a key intersection in downtown was transformed into an antique mall. "I visited antique malls nationwide and decided this business would be a match for the historic building and a complement to the shops on Seminary Street, "said Ross Stribling, a native of Galesburg. He formed a 37-investor company for the renovation and four local banks participated in financing. The city provided an interest-free loan for facade restoration and extended the enterprise zone to include downtown. In the first two months the mall was visited by customers from 23 states and Japan, and nearby merchants enjoyed a sales increase of more than 10 percent.

In Shelbyville, a domino effect was set in motion when Jim Finks, owner of Finks' Jewelers, repainted his two-story Victorian building last year. By summer's end, six other Main Street businesses followed suit. "With all the new colors, Main Street has really spruced up," said Pat Tolly, an employee at Finks'.

Salem's "Better Than a Mall" winter holiday home tour held in connection with a shop-Salem promotion enlisted local merchants in decorating the homes and displaying gift items. "We wanted to show residents they don't need a mall to do their shopping," said Achsah Stermsterfer of Main Street Salem.

In Danville, students from six county high schools published "The Grapevine," a monthly newsletter focusing on downtown. The students are part of the Vermilion County vocational education program and the newsletter is published by The Commercial News newspaper. Ten to 12 students do the work, from accounting to writing.

Rushville identified a community of artisans living in Schuyler County, and promotes them in literature circulated by its Main Street program

Again, such accomplishments are just a sampling of the success stories being told by many Illinois rural communities. As one Main Street newsletter noted in a review of a book by Jack McCall, who works with the University of Missouri Extension. McCall notes that there are three choices that apply to rural communities: Get poor, get moving, or get smart.

—Story by Janeen Keener

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