Jefferson Matters hosts downtown documentary Thursday

Jefferson Matters: Main Street’s board of directors invites the public to view a movie directly related to their goals of a historic preservation of the downtown and transformation toward a vibrant and dynamic district.

Urban Century: America’s Return to Main Street is documentary filmed in 2014. The movie examines how downtown communities across the country are once again becoming vibrant, desirable destinations to live, work and play.

Examining this current rebirth of Main Street through the lens of several towns, including Flint, MI, and Joplin, MO, Urban Century takes a look at how these places from our past are becoming the key to our country’s future. “This isn’t a story about saving Main Street, but about how Main Street just might save us. Whether it’s economic downturn, climate change, or a glowingly unhealthy population, could the solutions to our biggest problems be as simple as returning to our urban roots?” a press release states.

Main Street board president, Jamie Daubendiek instigated the viewing of this movie by the community and said, “I saw this movie at the 2015 Iowa Downtown Summit and I was captivated so much by it, I wanted to figure out a way to bring it back and show everyone in Jefferson. This movie provides a unique historical view point on the rise and fall of Main Street America and now its most recent rise. The economics behind a successful Main Street are easily presented in this documentary and I hope to fill the theater and get people energized about our downtown and continue to take it to the next level.”

JM:MS invites all interested residents to spend their lunch hour at the Sierra Theatre. Lunch will be available from Uptown Café for a free will donation at 11:45 am. The movie will begin at noon and last for a little over an hour. Main Street Iowa staffer Terry Buschamp will lead a short discussion following the movie.

Please make reservations on our website at www.jeffersonmatters.org or email director@jeffersonmatters.org by May 11.

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