Casa Grande was recently selected second among 11 cities or towns across the county to win a grant from Partners in Preservation.
The $144,000 grant will fund a planned project to add a neon sign park downtown. The sign park project is a joint effort between Casa Grande Main Street and the Casa Grande Historic Preservation Commission. Construction is estimated to begin in early 2018 and finish by the end of the year.
The Partners in Preservation: Main Streets competition was determined by popular vote. The winners will each receive a share of the $1.5 million total in grants to fund their respective preservation projects. The contest ran for 37 days and brought in more than 920,000 votes.
Locations and projects awarded include:
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Open Doors in Germantown
- Casa Grande, Arizona: Light Up the Night in Casa Grande
- Los Angeles, California: Stage a Comeback in WeHo
- West Des Moines, Iowa: Light the Lyric in Historic Valley Junction
- Greensboro, North Carolina: Save a Seat in Greensboro
- Las Vegas, New Mexico: Answer the Call in Las Vegas, NM
- Birmingham, Alabama: Shine a New Light in Birmingham
- Cincinnati, Ohio: Brighten a Beacon in Cincinnati
- Cape Girardeau, Missouri: Take Center Stage in Cape Girardeau
- McKinney, Texas: Polish a Gem in McKinney
- Salt Lake City, Utah: Advance the Arts in Salt Lake City
An additional $500,000 in grants was distributed to the 25 Main Street communities that participated in the program at the outset of the campaign to help raise awareness about their preservation needs.
Partners in the project included American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The project was aimed at raising awareness of the Main Street movement nationwide.
For more information on the winning sites, visit savingplaces.org/partners-in-preservation-main-streets.
