The Oklahoma Main Street Center announced today the finalists of the program’s annual statewide awards competition. All finalists will be honored, and the winners announced, at the 27th annual Main Street Awards Banquet, May 3, at the Embassy Suites OKC Downtown/Medical Center Hotel.
“The Oklahoma Main Street Center received more than 250 nominations this year for 21 award categories,” said Linda Barnett, Oklahoma Main Street Center director. “These are the top events, volunteers, promotions, businesses, and designs in our 36 communities across Oklahoma. The competition is always fierce and all are deserving.”
Each award category falls under one of the “four points” in the Main Street Approach – Organization, Promotion, Economic Vitality and Design. Panels of outside judges for each point review the entries and determine the winners.
The Community of the Year Award will recognize the Main Street Community who led other towns by earning the most quality assurance points during the 2015 calendar year. The top 11 communities (in alphabetical order) include: Ada, Altus, Collinsville, El Reno, Enid, Hobart, Newkirk, Ponca City, Prague, Pryor and Woodward. The top community will also be announced at the banquet.
In addition, the top Main Street Program Directors will be recognized at the banquet. Those making the top three this year include Amy Jo Cobb, Main Street Altus; Stephen Boyd, Hobart Main Street, Inc.; and Heather Sumner, Okmulgee Main Street.
The award finalists are:
ORGANIZATION:
Premier Partner
Guymon – City Bank and Trust
Sapulpa – Larry White, Signs of the Times
Stockyards City – Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office Mounted Police
Best Community Education/Public Awareness
Ponca City – Hipstoric Banners
Stockyards City – Granville Community Music School
Wilburton – Main Street Week Fifth Grade Walking Tour
Best Volunteer Development Program
Guymon — Transformers
Newkirk – Leaders of Tomorrow
Sapulpa – Big Build Facelift
Main Street Hero
Hobart – Lou Sims
Newkirk – Sue Roy
Okmulgee – Ron Drake
Best Creative Fundraising Effort
Enid – Food for Thought
Newkirk – 6×6 Art Show and Sale
Okmulgee – Big Brain Trivia Night
PROMOTION:
Premier Special Event Under 1,000 Attendees
Kendall Whittier – Taste of Kendall Whittier
Laverne – Muddy Duck Dash
Tahlequah – Ladies Night Out
Premier Special Event Over 1,000 Attendees
Ada – Pat Taylor Memorial Parade of Lights
Ponca City – Crazy Days Street Party
Tahlequah – Red Fern Festival
Best Retail Event
Altus – Candy Cane Cash “Sweet”stakes
Kendall Whittier – Kendall Whittier Lunch Bunch
Prague – Shop Small Christmas Open House
Outstanding Image Promotion
Enid – Downtown Enid History Website
Kendall Whittier – KWMS Logo Redesign
Ponca City – Shop, Eat & Play
Creative New Event
Kendall Whittier – Ice Cream Social
Newkirk – 6×6 Art Show and Sale
Ponca City – Down by Downtown (DxDT)
DESIGN:
Best Placemaking Project
Enid – The Breeze
Enid – Breezeway Pocket Park
Ponca City – Downtown Fitness Trails
Best Sustainable Design Project
Enid – Keep Enid Beautiful Corners
Newkirk – Newkirk City Hall
Sapulpa – Big Build Facelift
Best Interior Design Project
Bartlesville – Ambler Hall
Claremore – North Block Common
Okmulgee – Park on the Square
Best Façade Rehabilitation Under $10,000
Bartlesville – Indian Lock and Key
Claremore – North Block Common
Kendall Whittier – Eby Brothers Building
Best Façade Rehabilitation Over $10,000
Guymon – Nuestra Tierra
Newkirk – Newkirk City Hall
Ponca City – East Administration Building
Best Visual Merchandising
Ada – Rustic Ridge
Claremore – The Burlap Closet
Hobart – Ace-in-the-Hole Ladies Apparel
Best Building/Business Branding
El Reno – Iron Tree Coffee Company, LLC
Tahlequah – The Spider Gallery
ECONOMIC VITALITY:
Best Adaptive Reuse Project
Duncan – Eclectic Echo & Company
Kendall Whittier – 1 North Lewis Avenue
Okmulgee – Park on the Square
Best Business Practices
Altus – Belles & Beaux
Guymon — TCEC
Ponca City – Eastman National Bank
Best New Business
Durant – With Bump
El Reno – Blu99
Wilburton – Sun Baby
Business of the Year
Ada – The McSwain Theatre
Altus – The Booterie
Kendall Whittier – Circle Cinema
Newkirk – Eastman National Bank
The dinner and program will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased from your local Main Street Program for $45.
For more information about the Oklahoma Main Street Program, please call (405) 815-6552 or visit OKcommerce.gov/mainstreet.
