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Main Street districts report $60M in private investment, outline FY2026 plans for Linn County funds
Summary
Uptown Marion, Mount Vernon–Lisbon CDG and New Bohemia/Czech Village told Linn County supervisors they exceeded major private investment benchmarks, described events and facade-grant work, and asked the county to continue tourism and placemaking support in FY2026.
Three downtown revitalization groups told the Linn County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 20 that county support and private investment have helped transform Main Street districts and that they plan to use FY2026 funds for tourism marketing, events and placemaking projects.
Uptown Marion director Lacey said the district exceeded a private-investment benchmark this year and recently received acknowledgment of a $60,000,000 mark in tracked private investment. “We just received acknowledgment of our 60,000,000 mark which is huge,” Lacey said, crediting completed projects such as the Central Plaza in City Square Park that she described as a regional draw. She outlined FY2026 uses for Linn County funds, including a community brochure, updated professional photography, and support for new events such as the Marion Monster Mash and an Uptown Spooktacular.
Jessie Thurn of the Mount Vernon–Lisbon Community Development Group summarized an accreditation review and reported about 75,000 volunteer hours, roughly $20,000,000 in private investment and just under $2,000,000 in public investment in the CDG’s Main Street district. Thurn described recent facade and awning grant winners, plans to rebrand marketing and preparations to connect to the regional interurban trail to draw more visitors.
David Ernst, representing New Bohemia/Czech Village, called 2025 “a year of transition” after multiple executive-director changes but noted successful events—Dinner on the Bridge and the cider stroll—and said the board is evaluating whether to continue with a permanent executive director or explore alternative hosting arrangements for accreditation. “We’ve had three different executive directors and it’s been a challenging year,” Ernst said.
Supervisors thanked presenters and emphasized careful stewardship of local matching dollars the county provides to Main Street programs. The board did not make a new funding decision at the meeting; presenters described how Linn County funds already allocated will be used for tourism marketing and program support in the coming year.
The presentations covered: Uptown Marion’s placemaking, organizational capacity and $60 million private-investment milestone; Mount Vernon–Lisbon CDG’s accreditation work, volunteer hours and public-private investment totals; and New Bohemia/Czech Village’s transitional governance and event successes. The board expressed continued support and encouraged deliberative planning as districts undergo leadership changes.
