The Review Magazine Summer 2025

The winners of the 2025 Oakland County Main Street Awards gather for a group photo following the award ceremony.

Established in 2000, Main Street Oakland County is the first and only countywide program in the United States, and one of two officially designated Main Street Programs serving Michigan. The organization boasts membership from 29 communities (adding Beverly Hills this year) throughout Oakland County, notable for being the largest county in the United States without a city of 100,000 people. “A few years ago, when you Googled ‘tourism in Oakland County,’ the number one thing that came up in the Google search was how to visit the jail,” deadpanned John Bry, Main Street Oakland County Program Coordinator, at the event. “We saw that as a problem.” Times have changed: Since the founding of Main Street Oakland County, member communities have attracted over a billion dollars in public and private investment, creating over 8,000 jobs and opening more than 1,500 new businesses. A notable success this past year was Andy’s Place, a beloved family-run restaurant in downtown Holly, which was gutted by a fire in 2022. Owner Andy Chapin lost her business and home, located on the building's second floor. As a result of Main Street Oakland County working with Chapin and the leaders of Holly, connecting Chapin to business resources and providing technical assistance with applications, the building has been saved and stabilized, and Chapin has secured a grant of over $400,000 from Michigan’s Revitalization and Placemaking program. Andy’s Place will be rebuilt.

The top honors at this year’s Main Street Awards (which includes a $2,000 cash prize from Genisys Credit Union) were captured by the Village of Oxford, winning recognition for its video, titled We Are Community, which highlights the village's commitment to its historic roots while fostering an inclusive, modern, and lively community in the 21st century. Other Oakland County Main Street awards, comprising 50 nominations from 12 member communities, include: • Legacy of Main Street Excellence: Ortonville (Hamilton’s of Ortonville) • Main Street Jubilee: Wixom (Promotion Power Unite) • Business Innovation & Entrepreneurship: Rochester (Home Bakery) • District Placemaking: Farmington (Masons Corner) • Small Business Retention and Attraction: Pontiac (Make It To Scale Incubator Kitchen) • Main Street Leader: Farmington (Kate Knight) • Achievement in Community Character or Historic Preservation : Highland (Odds & Ins Historic Restoration) • Community Event of the Year: Rochester (Kris Kringle Market Expansion) • Main Street Resilience: Lyon Township (Whole Hearted Winery) • Outstanding Partnership: Wixom, South Lyon, Lyon Township, and Highland (Burger Battle) • Volunteer of the Year: Rochester (Ben Giovanelli)

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| Summer 2025