If you live, work or shop in downtown Greensburg, Nancy Ligus wants to hear about your experience in the city.
The Greensburg Community Development Corp., led by Ligus, is seeking survey responses regarding the public perception of the city — specifically its downtown district. It’s part of a program the corporation plans to apply for in May to facilitate city development.
The survey — which consists of 45 multiple choice questions — asks responders for feedback on downtown Greensburg’s overall appearance and feel, economic characteristics, reputation, availability of activities and accessibility.
Residents and nonresidents can respond to the survey, Ligus said. The corporation aims to gather 450 responses by the end of December.
“It’s all very important, regardless of anyone’s personal experience, we want to know what those answers are,” Ligus said, “because it definitely gives us direction to create strategies for community development moving forward.”
The survey is the first step in working toward a Main Street accreditation through the state Department of Community and Economic Development.
The accreditation, Ligus said, would open the door for state funding to execute commercial improvements and attract developers. Municipalities with the accreditation are eligible to receive state operational funds, which could be used to fund the corporation, and apply for exclusive grants to attract developers, she said.
“Most of our downtown buildings are over 100 years old. There are challenges for developers, and those are costly,” she said. “If we can remove that barrier by stabilizing a building and making it more attractive to a developer, they could create student housing or develop a storefront on Main Street.
“This is all part of the bigger picture for the city of Greensburg, and that’s very important here.”
Survey responses will help the corporation develop its application for the accreditation — a five-year plan to bolster downtown Greensburg, said Michael Reese, vice president of the corporation’s board.
Safety, lighting, walkability, business variety, prevalence of housing options and availability of parking are some of the topics explored by the survey, he said.
“We can’t build a better downtown without listening to the people that use it every day. The state isn’t going to fund wishes,” Reese said. “They want to see a concrete strategy based on the feedback from the people who live, work, shop, study here.
“They go to dinner here. They cheer on events at The Palace Theatre. Those are the people that we want to hear from.”
The corporation aims to submit its Main Street America application May 1, Ligus said. Community input sessions on the application will be held around April.
