Membership Benefits

Who Benefits from the Organization?
• Long-time residents who remember how their hometown used to be.
• New residents who are looking for a sense of community and who want to establish roots.
• Merchants located in the Main Street area who want to bring more customers into their shops.
• Organizations that care about the Downtown Kennewick’s values and history.
• Parents who want their children to grow up in a community with a strong sense of identity.

Why do we need a Downtown Organization?
The Downtown Kennewick area has experienced a transition over the past decade into a healthy business district. This revitalization has been guided, in large part, by the Historic Downtown Kennewick Partnership. The following are key elements in the revitalization effort:
• Developing partnerships with other community minded organizations in order to maintain
and expand the downtown.
• Creating promotional events designed to bring thousands of people downtown.
• Maintaining our historic buildings and encouraging property owners through the program.
• Recruitment and retention efforts that focus on inviting complimentary businesses which fill the needs of our target customers.
• Attracting more customers to the Downtown to ensure that dollars that could be spent elsewhere are circulated locally.

What is the Main Street™ Approach?
The Main Street Approach is a philosophy, a program and a proven comprehensive approach to commercial business district revitalization. The approach is used in over 1600 cities across the nation and focuses on four volunteer-based, integrated committees (i.e. Design, Economic Restructuring, Organization and Promotion).
• Design – means getting the downtown area into top physical shape and capitalizing on its best assets such as historic buildings and traditional downtown layouts. This is accomplished by creating an inviting atmosphere with window displays, parking areas, signage, and streetscapes.
• Economic Restructuring – helps existing downtown businesses expand and recruits new ones to respond to today’s market. Economic Restructuring also helps convert unused space into productive property and sharpen the competitiveness of business enterprises.
• Organization – has the responsibility of building consensus and cooperation among the groups that have an important stake in the downtown area. This includes educating the stakeholders regarding the benefits of a revitalized downtown area.
• Promotion – is responsible for creating a positive image of the Downtown through advertising, retail promotional activities, special events, and a marketing campaign carried out by local volunteers.

Click here to view Historic Downtown Kennewick’s membership brochure and sign-up form!

Click here to view Historic Downtown Kennewick Membership Tax Incentives