About Spencer Main Street

On August 7, 1987 Spencer was honored by being designated a Main Street Community by the Main Street Iowa Program. The original Board of Directors and visionaries were Wyman Steffen, Tim Steffen, Tom Manley, Mary Rahn, Bob VanderTuig, Jim Getting, Chris Bjornstad, Tom Hart and Carolyn Toebes. We are forever grateful they stepped up to the plate and helped get this organization off the ground. Over the years, there have been many board members that have shaped our downtown district, many continue to be business owners, downtown employees, land owners, and city officials.

Spencer is one of 54 Main Street communities in this great state of Iowa. We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and are funded primarily through a Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District (SSMID) that was established in 1987 and supported by the City of Spencer. That district includes more than 190 businesses on North Grand Avenue from HyVee, Walgreens and Fareway south to the bridge and a block east and west.

Main Street is comprised of four committees that focus on Promotion, Design, Organization and Economic Vitality. We have hosted successful events like Wine Stroll, Cinco de Mayo Roc n' Guac, Shop Small Saturday and Grand Meander. Our goal through all of these committees is to get people downtown to live, work and shop while supporting economic development within the structure of historic preservation.

In 2004, Downtown Spencer was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated as a Cultural District. We hope you will enjoy the heart of our city as much as we do.