Berlin Main Street Gets Accreditation

BERLIN — For the third consecutive year, the town of Berlin has received National Trust Main Street Center (NTMSC) accreditation.

“We’ve done it again,” Economic and Community Development Director Michael Day told the Mayor and Council Monday. “It keeps us in good standing with the state. It gives us a little bit more credibility with them.”

Each year, even previously certified municipalities must pass a 10-point checklist that evaluates towns on everything from “historic preservation ethic” to an “adequate operating budget.”

Doug Loescher, director of the NTMSC, congratulated Berlin and all of the country’s other Main Street towns on receiving a 2011 accreditation.

“Accredited Main Street programs are meeting the challenges of the recession head on,” he said, “and are successfully using a focused, comprehensive revitalization strategy to keep their communities vibrant and sustainable.”

Day hopes to use the positive attention generated by the certification to give Berlin an edge when applying for grants.