In 1981, Rome was designated as a Georgia Main Street City by the Department of Community Affairs. This program assists Georgia cities and communities in the development of their core commercial areas. These cities are also expected to work within the National Main Street Center’s four point approach: Organization, Design, Economic Restructuring, and Promotion.
In 2003, Rome was recognized by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as a Great American Main Street City. At the time, Rome was one of only two cities in Georgia to receive this award and one of only 45 in the USA. The award is given to a community for their dramatic efforts to rebuild the pride, spirit, and economic prosperity of their traditional commercial districts.
In 2014, The Georgia Department of Community Affairs announced Rome was designated a Georgia’s Exceptional Main Streets Program. Rome has obtained this designation every year since. “The Georgia’s Exceptional Main Street communities, or better known as GEMS, represent some of the best of the best Main Street Programs that the state has to offer. These Main Street Programs have gone above and beyond expectations by making a strong and positive impact in their communities as measured by the Monthly Reporting and the Annual Assessment Process. GEMS level communities are entitled to special one on one technical services offered through the Office of Downtown Development as well as discounted training opportunities.” –GeorgiaMainStreet.org
The Rome Main Street Program is recognized nationally. Main Street AmericaTM has been helping revitalize older and historic commercial districts for more than 35 years. Today it is a network of more than 1,600 neighborhoods and communities, rural and urban, who share both a commitment to place and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development. Main Street America is a program of the nonprofit National Main Street Center, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.