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The Niles Main Street Association
The Niles Main Street Association is a Tax Exempt, Non-profit community based organization devoted to historic preservation and bringing new economic life to a historic commercial district. About | Board of Directors | Address& Contact | Membership | History | Four Point Approach Membership
Members of the Niles community work together by devoting time, energy, and resources to rediscover our area's vibrant history and rebuild our historic commercial district. The Niles Main Street Association depends almost entirely on volunteers for its operation and seeks members from all parts of the community. We have a variety of volunteer opportunities. Join the association and you'll receive a copy of our newsletter, the Niles Herald, advance notice of special events, and much more. Download our membership form. We invite you to share your expertise and contribute toward making Niles Main Street a success in historic preservation and revitalization. Donations to Niles Main Street, a 501(c) 3 corporation, are tax deductible. We accept needed goods and services, as well as monetary donations. For answers to any of your questions, please contact us at our Niles Main Street Office at (510) 742-9868 or email info@niles.org.
A Brief History of Niles
Niles was established in the 1850's and was a junction point of the Southern Pacific Railroad lines from Oakland to San Jose and southern coastal points. Vallejo's Mill was the first flourishing flour mill constructed and completed in this country. It was run by water conducted in a long flume from Alameda Creek. Niles at one time was noted for the location of the California Nursery, the largest nursery in California, with the largest rose plantation in the state.In 1912, Essanay Studios was at the height of its movie making fame. The studio, owned by Broncho Billy, made famous movies of the time starring Charlie Chaplin, Wallace Berry, Chester Conklin and Ben Turpin. Many cowboy adventures were filmed through Niles Canyon and along the main streets of Niles. The towns of Niles, Mission San Jose, Centerville, Irvington, and Warm Springs were incorporated into the City of Fremont in 1956.
Today Fremont's Niles Desitrict is famous for its historic shopping district, Wildflower Festival, Niles Essanay Silent Film Festival and Museum, its annual Antique Fair, and the Niles Canyon Railway. Watch Niles as the community continues to show off a captivating historic character, a family atmosphere, and a friendly shopping experience. We hope your visit to Niles is a pleasant one. Come back and visit us often.
Niles - A Main Street Community
After a very extensive application process Niles was accepted as an official Main Street Community in 1996 -one of only five downtowns in the entire State of California at that time. The City of Fremont has worked very closely and has taken great pride in supporting the Historic District of Niles. Niles is truly a unique historic community with a proud history and a coalition of devoted citizens matched by none.The Main Street Four-Point Approach...
To help communities achieve their economic goals, the National Main Street Center and the affilated California Main Street Program have developed a comprehensive revitalization strategy that pairs thoughtful preservation of historic assets with sensible business assets. By blending common sense with sound planning, economic development, promotion, and design. The Main Street Four Point Approach has already produced dramatic results. Active in more than 850 Main Street towns and cities across the country, this revitalization process has generated more than $2.9 billion in physical improvements and produced 20,389 net new and 64,402 net new jobs since 1980. Nationally, every dollar invested in the operation of a local Main Street Program has leveraged $22.10 of public and private investment in physical improvements, making the Main Street approach one of the most successful economic strategies ever. The National Main Street Center is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
- Economic Restructuring. To benefit everyone -- residents, shoppers, and investors alike -- Main Street must have a solid economic foundation. The Main Street Approach not only provides current with tools to sharpen their competitiveness; it also recruits new and institutions to diversify downtown's economic base.
- Organization. No revitalization effort can succeed without a strong organization to support and guide it. The Main Street Approach builds cooperation and consensus among all the important players -- bankers, civic groups, government, merchants and individual citizens -- to ensure that the Main Street program benefits from a community wide vision of the future.
- Promotion. Every successful entrepreneur understands marketing. To keep investors on board and cash registers ringing, Main Street must beckon customers with a welcoming, consistent image. From simple graphics to sophisticated sales events and festivals, the Main Street Approach gears the promotional campaign to take advantage of the districts unique heritage.
- Design. A critical goal of every Main Street program is to create a friendly, attractive environment that will keep customers coming back. Signs, storefronts, landscaping, merchandising displays and promotional materials must work together to encourage people to shop, stroll and linger downtown. In many communities, the design effort must include rehabilitation of commercial architecture, a precious asset that could be lost unless action is taken to counteract the effects of time and neglect. The Main Street Approach emphasizes thoughtful design and a common-sense approach to the reuse of buildings to enhance the long-term appeal of the downtown.
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© 1997 - 2007 Niles Main Street Association All Rights Reserved.
