For almost three decades, Iowa’s Main Street communities have made a commitment to the long-term revitalization of their historic commercial districts. Using the Main Street Four Point Approach, local leaders have implemented practical management strategies producing fundamental changes in Iowa’s Main Street.

The Main Street Four Point Approach was developed in 1977 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Main Street Center. Its primary purpose is to establish historic commercial districts as economically-viable centers of commerce through comprehensive, incremental and coordinated work in four key areas: organization, promotion, design and economic restructuring.

In 1985, the Iowa Legislature adopted the National Main Street Center’s model and established Main Street Iowa as a program of the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IDEA). Today, Main Street is the premiere program of the Iowa Downtown Resource Center and is the one of most successful state programs in the nation.