By Chris Patterson
Contributing Writer

Thurmont’s May 10 designation as a Main Street community is already yielding grant money for downtown area improvements as well as the praise of state and local officials alike.

During a June 15 dinner celebrating the Main Street designation received in May, Kevin Baynes, the Main Street Maryland Program Coordinator, announced that the town would receive a $4,000 grant for improvements to the downtown area.

Baynes stressed how impressive it was that the town had achieved the designation with only about 21 months of direct work. He cited the town’s passionate and systematic approach to seeking the designation and the commitment of those involved as making it happen. Much more is possible in the future, he said.

“(The Main Street Program) is what you make of it,” Baynes said. “It is only as good as you make it. You can make it great.”

In the packed room at the Cozy Inn and Restaurant, Thurmont Economic Development Committee Vice President John Kinnaird told the evening’s guests that the grant money along with $4,000 in matching funds from the town will be used to create public seating in the downtown area along the street, install signs designating the Main Street area, and to install permanent waste receptacles. The money will also pay for brick-look crosswalks at the town square, he said.

Grants are not the only benefits from becoming a Main Street community.

Towns accepted into the program are eligible for multiple services designed to bolster business in the community, maintain the integrity of the historic and downtown area, and promote tourism. There will be assistance with architectural and on-site redesign of the downtown area, education about state and federal funding programs, and training for volunteers and for a town program manager, among other services.

John Fieseler, Executive Director of the Tourism Council of Frederick County, said his office would help obtain advertising for Thurmont outside Frederick County while the town promotes the program within the county.

Mayor Martin A. Burns credits the work of Kinnaird, town Commissioner Bill Blakeslee and Vice Chair Vickie Grinder for the speedy success of the application process. It is not uncommon for towns to make multiple unsuccessful attempts to obtain the coveted designation, but Thurmont received it on the first try.

Burns also credited the consulting firm of Jakubiak and Associates of Annapolis. In addition to the Main Street designation, the firm has already helped the town obtain a grant for more than $100,000 to be used for work on the Moser Road Bridge.

Donovan Hart of Jakubiak and Associates said the Main Street program is really a “ticket to the dance.” It opens doors to a myriad of opportunities that can benefit the town.

Kinnaird said the next step for the committee will be to incorporate as a non-profit organization and to hire a full-time program manager. Fund-raising will then be the next order of business, he said.

Main Street Maryland is a comprehensive downtown revitalization program striving to improve the economic potential of Maryland's traditional main streets and neighborhoods. Thurmont is one of three Main Street communities in Frederick County, along with Brunswick and Frederick city. There are 18 Maryland Main Street communities, including the other 2005 addition, Havre de Grace, in Harford County.