Two downtown business owners pick up Main Street torch

Two downtown business owners will now lead the effort to start the Main Street program in Fredericksburg. Scarlett Pons of PONSHOP Art Studio and Gallery, and Paul Cymrot of Riverby Books and Read All Over will lead a new “formation committee” that will try to work out the details of the city’s participation in the Main Street program. The matter has been under discussion for most of the year, but no consensus has been reached on how to fund an annual budget that is estimated at $225,000. The funding will likely come from a combination of a special real estate tax on downtown property owners within the Main Street district as well as contributions from Fredericksburg’s City Council and Economic Development Authority.

A letter from Pons and Cymrot will go out to downtown business and property owners this week asking for help in getting the Main Street program off the ground. The resulting committee could form the basis of an initial Main Street board, which may eventually come before City Council to present a funding plan.

About two dozen Virginia towns and cities take part in the Main Street program, which is intended to create thriving downtown business districts.

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