Main Street South Carolina recognized Main Street Inman with the Excellence on Main Street Award for the Mayor’s Youth Council. This award recognizes the top project from among the winners in eight categories of the annual Main Street Inspiration Awards.
The Mayor’s Youth Council also won the Outstanding Service Award from Main Street South Carolina. The Outstanding Service Award recognizes outstanding people that reflect an attitude of perseverance and dedication to community revitalization in South Carolina.
When Inman Mayor Cornelius Huff took office, he found that the city’s youth felt little connection to the city. He responded by creating the Mayor’s Youth Council, a group open to high school juniors and seniors through a competitive application process, which has cultivated civic pride and dedication and created a wealth of social capital in the city — including its downtown and the Inman Main Street program.
In 2023, the Mayor’s Youth Council, along with Inman’s Main Street volunteer team, contributed a total of 544 hours of service for the community. Having the youth involved in downtown activities has been invaluable to Main Street Inman. The Youth Council is also working on a research project to create a written and pictorial history of Inman’s downtown.
“The youth council is creating a lasting impact in Inman by fostering better community connections among its youth and serving as a model for other programs around South Carolina,” said Jenny Boulware, Main Street SC manager.
Main Street SC is a program of the Municipal Association of South Carolina. It empowers residents, business owners and local officials with the knowledge, skills, tools and organizational structure necessary to revitalize their downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts into vibrant centers of commerce and community.
Main Street SC follows the National Main Street’s Four Point Approach — economic vitality, design, promotion and organization. Each year, Main Street South Carolina recognizes members’ achievements and successes in downtown revitalization. For more information, visit the Municipal Association’s website at www.masc.sc (keyword: Main Street).
###