April 2008 - Vol. 1, Issue 1
(download the pdf version of this newsletter)

Buckeye is an Arizona Main Street Community. The Buckeye Main Street Coalition is the organization established under this program to represent the downtown Buckeye community in all matters relating to revitalization of the downtown area. Its work includes economic development of the area, historic preservation, beautification and business assistance.

The Buckeye Main Street Coalition serves as the voice of the people and businesses of downtown Buckeye in carrying out projects funded from the Town's Revitalization Program, established by ordinance in 1995.

The Coalition is governed by a Board of Directors elected by the membership of the Coalition. Membership is open to any business, individual, institution or organization that supports the objective of creating and maintaining an economically, socially, culturally and historically viable downtown Buckeye.

Join us in the park for a Networking Event, sponsored and hosted by the Buckeye Main Street Coalition.

WHERE: Benbow Park, 400 block of East Monroe
WHEN: Thursday, May 15, 2008
TIME: 5:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Come to the park on May 15!

• Meet and mingle with Downtown business people and residents
• Meet Mayoral candidates Jackie Meck and Michael Todd
• Learn about the status of major projects affecting Downtown Buckeye
• Refreshments and hors d’oeuvres provided by Main Street

The Buckeye Main Street Coalition is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to establishing Downtown Buckeye as a vital and productive part of our community’s economic base. Members of the Coalition will be on hand at this event to tell you more about how you can become involved with the work of the Coalition. We look forward to seeing YOU there!!!!!

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The Buckeye Main Street Coalition along with the Buckeye Parks and Rec Department are celebrating the installation and completion of new restrooms and a new concession stand at the Earl Edger Memorial Recreation Complex on South Miller Road. The new facility replaces a building many believe may have been built in the 1930’s to serve the Buckeye little league fields and rec complex. This new structure also sits next to and serves the newly created Craig Counsel Field that was opened for use last baseball season.

Dave Showen the Buckeye Recreation Manager told us that the building came in two sections on large trucks and was put into place with a very large crane. “The Public Works Department came in and demolished part of the old building, they then laid a new cement pad and hoisted the building sections into place with the crane that could lift up to 14,000 pounds.”

The grant application for the Buckeye Main Street Coalition Fast Trac Grant has changed. As part of the application process three bids are now needed for each part of the project covered by the grant. This was a result of raising the grant amount from $5,000 to $10,000. For example if you asked for assistance with paint, doors and signage you will need three bids for paint, three bids for doors and three bid for signage. These are governmental regulations that we all must follow with no exceptions. The Main Street Coalition will provide you with a list of local contractors when you receive your grant application. As has been the case, if you are approved for a Fast Trac Grant the money will come from the Town to the Main Street Coalition and the Coalition will pay your contractor as each part of the project is completed to the Main Street Standards and Town Code. Any money left over after completion of the work will be redirected to other projects only by a vote of the Town Council.

The Coalition continues working to create a strategic plan for the future of downtown Buckeye. We’ve done a lot of meetings in the past and some plans have been created, but they simply were not detailed enough to move us into the future that Buckeye is seeing. The last plan was good if the Town of Buckeye saw maybe 10,000 new people. Since then we’ve seen at least 20,000 new faces and they keep coming in everyday.

The New Year brings some new faces to downtown Buckeye and the Main Street Coalition. First of all the leadership of the Main Street Coalition has changed with the recent board elections. The new officers and board members include:

• Karla Walters - President
• Chuck Kupcik - Vice-President/Pres. Elect
• Charlene Powers-Broadbent - Secretary
• Alice Dryer - Treasurer
• David Calvert
• Tony Youngker
• Murel Stephens
• Bill Hartung
• Paul Winslow
• Jay Broadbent – Past-President/Ex-Officio

We say a big thank you to Jay for his 2 years of service as the President of the Main Street Coalition. Main Street is entirely volunteer driven, with the exception of the 1 staff person. All of the people listed volunteer their time to help make downtown Buckeye a better place. We thank them all and know that it says a lot about them as a person that they are willing to volunteer for their community.