“Main Streets” Exhibition Opens at the FOCUS Lab!
On December 4, as part of Troy’s Victorian Stroll, we launched the grand opening of the FOCUS Lab’s new exhibition “Main Streets Resurfaced,” about the past and future of our downtown corridors. Over 300 people strolled in over the course of the afternoon, including Mayor Madden and other dignitaries! The Victorian Stroll is a great example of downtown programming that creates an amazing amount of foot traffic, culture, and commerce, and so the occasion was a highly appropriate launch date for the exhibit. “Main Streets Resurfaced” will be open to the public Saturdays 10-3 through July.
“Main Streets Resurfaced” explores the rise and fall (and rise again) of the American Main Street. Over the course of the 20th century, Main Street emerged as more than just a place—it became an emblem of democracy itself. But the postwar rise of the private automobile, suburbanization, and the Urban Renewal movement ushered in a long decline for Main Streets. Recently, small cities across the country have seen multitude of downtown revitalization efforts including farmers markets, co-working and maker spaces, festivals, and walkable urban design. Yet as we seek to redefine what the modern Main Street should look like in the 21st century, a number of challenges remain.
With case studies from Troy, Cohoes, Kingston, Poughkeepsie, and Western Mass.
Exhibit Sponsors: Pioneer, Rosenblum Development, and the RPI School of Architecture.