Ferndale and Pontiac big winners in 2013 Main Street Oakland County Awards

The Ferndale Downtown Development Authority and the Pontiac Downtown Business Association took home 16 of 30 awards given out last week at the Main Street Oakland County awards celebration at the Royal Oak Music Theater. The event honors member communities of the Main Street Oakland County (MSOC) program for their downtown development efforts. More than 200 people attended the event, which was sponsored by ITC. "Main Street Oakland County is a model for other Main Street programs across the country," County Executive L. Brooks Patterson said. "I'm exceedingly proud of the progress Pontiac has made in bringing its downtown to life and Ferndale continues to amaze with the energy and passion it brings to the program. I congratulate both cities as well as the other winners for the contributions they make to create desirable and viable downtowns." MSOC, which created the awards program in 2008, recognizes excellence in downtown revitalization in five categories: Special, Organization, Promotion, Design, and Economic Restructuring. Ferndale was honored for Outstanding Board Member (Stacey Tobar, Ferndale Downtown Development Authority), Volunteer of the Year (Scott Wright, Ferndale DDA) and Volunteer Recruitment Program among others. Pontiac's honors included the Lafayette Lofts and the Lafayette Market. Pontiac also won the MSOC Spirit Award. A total of 11 MSOC communities won awards. "Main Street is an economic development program that works and it continues to grow as we added Birmingham to the family this year," Patterson said. "This is a vital tool that improves our downtowns and our county." The winners were: Organization * Outstanding Board Member: Stacey Tobar, Ferndale DDA. * Volunteer of the Year: Dick and Dawn Rossell, Holly DDA. * Outstanding Fundraising Project: Yard Sale, Rochester DDA. * Outstanding Public Relations Effort: Lake Orion DDA and Oxford DDA. * Volunteer of the Year: Scott Wright, Ferndale DDA. * Volunteer Recruitment Program: Ferndale DDA. Promotion * Outstanding Retail Event: Wish List Window, Farmington DDA. * Outstanding Promotional Design Piece: Artwn - The Exhibit Brochure, Ferndale DDA. * Outstanding Event Series: Rhythmz in Riley Park, Farmington DDA. * Outstanding Special Event: C-Art, Highland DDA. Design * Most Creative Sign: Rust Belt Market, Ferndale. * Outstanding Signage: Lafayette Lofts and Lafayette Market, West Construction, Pontiac. * Outstanding Adaptive Use of a Building: Lafayette Lofts and Lafayette Market, TDG Architects, Pontiac. Economic Restructuring * Outstanding Public Investment: Downtown Streetscape/Main Street Makeover, Rochester DDA. * Outstanding Private Investment: Valentine Distilling Co., Ferndale. Special Awards * Outstanding Business of the Year: Rust Belt Market, Ferndale. * Corporate Responsibility and Community Support: Future Help Designs and SCORE Detroit, Pontiac. * Best Media Promotions Partner: Cavalier Pictures. * Outstanding Retail Recruitment: Hope Ponsart and Holly DDA. * Guts & Diplomacy: Madonna Van Fossen, Oxford DDA. * Best One Year Progress: Clawson DDA. * Best Historic Preservation Ethic: Village of Franklin and Main Street Franklin. * Best Work Plans/Action Plans: Pontiac DBA Main Street Program. * Leadership & Integrity: Pontiac DBA Main Street Program. * Most Volunteer Hours: Glen Konopaskie, Pontiac DBA Main Street Program. * Best DPW and DDA Partnership: Ortonville DDA and DPW. * Outstanding Public Relations Effort: Ferndale DDA. * Private Investment over $50,000: Imperial Bar, Ferndale. * Outstanding Downtown Planning Effort: Downtown Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, Clawson DDA and Greenway Collaborative, Inc. Main Street Oakland County Spirit Award: Pontiac DBA Main Street Main Street is a trademarked program of the National Main Street Center in Washington. Clawson, Farmington, Ferndale, Franklin, Highland, Holly, Lake Orion, Ortonville, Oxford, Pontiac, Rochester and Walled Lake are MSOC communities. Birmingham, Clarkston, Leonard, South Lyon and Waterford are communities in the associate level program. Oakland County is the first county in the United States to operate a full-service county-wide Main Street program for the 32 distinct, historic downtowns in Oakland County. MSOC downtowns have generated more than $632 million in private and public investment, 7,629 new jobs and 773 new businesses since the program was formed in 2000. For more information, visit MainStreetOaklandCounty.com. The Oakland County Department of Economic Development & Community Affairs, under the leadership of County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, is committed to promoting economic vitality, supporting distinct communities and conserving environmental resources through knowledge, cooperation and consultation services. For additional information, visit AdvantageOakland.com. Published: Wed, Mar 13, 2013

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