Absolutely Waterford Designation

On September 1, 2011, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) officially designated the Village of Waterford as a Wisconsin Main Street community. This designation officially recognized Waterford's commitment to downtown revitalization, economic development and historic preservation. WEDC provides technical support and training needed to restore Wisconsin Main Street communities to centers of community activity and commerce.

Community

The group developed to coordinate the Main Street program is Absolutely Waterford, Inc. Absolutely Waterford is a private, non-profit, community organization comprised of volunteers committed to restoring Waterford's downtown Heritage District as the business, cultural and social center of the community. Absolutely Waterford has grown to over 40 members, with broad representation from Waterford area businesses, residents, civic groups, and local government. This is truly a community-backed effort. There are over 60 additional groups and individuals that have committed to help with the revitalization through in-kind and financial commitments.

Criteria

Absolutely Waterford is organized around the National Main Street Centers (NMSC) criteria. The NMSC is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and advocates a proven four-point approach for downtown revitalization.

Organization Committee - This committee includes a working Board of Directors whose job is fundraising, advocating, volunteer recruitment and development, and general overview of Absolutely Waterford, Inc. This committee also hires and oversees the Executive Director.

Promotions Committee - This committee's primary responsibility is to market a unified, quality image of the downtown Heritage District as the center of activities, goods and services to retailers, shoppers, investors, and tourists. The responsibilities of this committee are broad and typically include coordinating advertising, reversing negative images of downtown through image campaigns, implementing special and business events, and establishing and maintain good media relations.

Design Committee - The design committee's purpose is to create an attractive, coordinated, and quality image of the downtown Heritage District by capitalizing on its unique assets and heritage.

Economic Restructuring Committee - The economic restructuring committee works to develop a market strategy that will result in an improved retail mix, stronger tax base, increased investor confidence and a stable role for the Heritage District's image as a major component of the Village's economy.

Committees

The Committees are chaired by the following volunteers:
Organization Committee - Mary Beth Mikrut
Promotions Committee - Michael Hobach
Design Committee - Howard Bryant
Economic Restructuring Committee - Gil Amborn

Board of Directors

Absolutely Waterford operates under the direction of a Board of Directors with an Executive Director responsible for the administration of the organization.

The Community's Vision

The concepts and strategies outlined in the documents at right, are rooted in the ideas and insight shared by the downtown Waterford stakeholders and community advocates that participated in the October 13, 2011 visioning session process.

Board of Directors

President - Howard Bryant
Citizen Volunteer

Vice President - Mary Beth Mikrut
Philanthropy Consultant

Treasurer - Michele Jones
Partner, Gordon J. Maier & Company LLP

Secretary - Dawn Jurgensen
Branch Manager, The Equitable Bank

Director – Nick Borth

Ex-officio:

Village of Waterford - Andrew Ewert

Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce - Katy Engels

Absolutely Waterford - Cynthia Jensen

Staff

Executive Director - Cynthia Jensen