San Marcos proclaims Downtown San Marcos Day as Main Street program earns national semifinalist nod

Mayor Jane Houston proclaimed October 2025 as Downtown San Marcos Day and recognized the San Marcos Main Street program for its role in downtown revitalization.

The proclamation credited the program with nearly four decades of work in San Marcos’s historic downtown and said the district now contains nearly 300 locally owned businesses employing more than 2,300 people and almost 1,000 residents. The city has counted more than $150,000,000 in private and public reinvestment in downtown, including about $40,000,000 over the past five years, the proclamation said. The mayor also noted city infrastructure investments of roughly $12,200,000 over the past decade, with another $14,000,000 in improvements scheduled to begin construction in 2026.

Josie Faleta, downtown manager, said the program “is 1 of 8 semifinalists nationally” for the 2026 Great American Main Street Awards and described the selection as ‘‘the highest honor any Main Street program can achieve.’’ Faleta introduced downtown staff, volunteers and clean-team members and emphasized the everyday maintenance work behind the program’s visible events and grant-supported façade improvements.

Since the transcript’s wording about Main Street micro-grants and incentive totals was unclear, the program’s staff told the council that the Main Street incentive-grant program (established in 2012) has supported dozens of businesses; the transcript lists 86 downtown businesses as recipients but does not provide a clear total dollar figure for those micro-grants.

The proclamation and remarks framed the semifinalist selection as recognition of community partnerships and local leadership; Faleta said the city and state Main Street coordinators ‘‘have our fingers crossed’’ for a Texas winner.

The city did not take a formal vote during the proclamation; the mayor encouraged residents to celebrate the program and invited continued public support.