Monson chosen for Community Entrepreneurship Program   

MONSON — A check for $10,000 arrived at the town of Monson last week from the Maine Community Foundation with the community being chosen as one of three communities participating in the Community Entrepreneurship Program. This first check is for planning purposes and will be followed by another for $25,000 for implementation purposes and a further $25,000 in 2021.  The National Main Street Center will provide workshops, training and local assessments worth a further $10,000 so the total investment will be $70,000. 

The Economic Development Committee of Monson’s Business Association put the three-page grant proposal together.  Joy Bueschen of Turning Page Farm offered that “the committee had worked hard on writing the grant and putting together a diverse team of 10 from Monson who were ‘up for the challenge’ of the project. This is about us taking ownership of the future growth of our town.”

Monson’s Town Manager, Daniel Swain, one of the team of 10, said that the committee had done a “fantastic job.”

Monson’s proposal touched on strengths such as Monson Arts, the new arts residency program; the Information Center manned by Wendy Weiger of the Appalachian Mountain Trail Club and that recently installed solar panels cover 100% of municipal electricity usage making Monson one of the greenest towns in Maine. It also highlighted the Business Association’s purpose statement to support the success of new and existing businesses through collaboration, holding the vision of sustainable growth for our community.

Monson was selected along with Skowhegan and Lisbon via a competitive application process managed by the Maine Community Foundation in partnership with Maine Development Foundation’s Maine Downtown Center.  The Maine Downtown Center is Maine’s statewide coordinator for the National Main Street Program – a 40-year-old preservation-based approach to economic development.

“Developing a community-based network to support entrepreneurship will help create and sustain an innovative environment in these communities and downtowns to attract innovators and makers to start and grow businesses,” said Anne Ball, program director of MDF’s Maine Downtown Center.  Questions about the program should be directed to MaineCF Senior Program Officer Maggie Drummond-Bahl at mbahl@mainecf.org.