Governor Wood, who chairs the Illinois Main Street Council, is pleased that Springfield, Taylorville, Aledo, Marion, Waukegan and Elgin were accepted. The communities will have one year to complete preliminary requirements. After a year, or when an accepted community completes the requirements, final review for Main Street designation will occur. After being designated, a community will receive technical assistance from the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs and the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and on-site consultations from Illinois Main Street staff. Governor Wood chairs the Illinois Main Street Council, which is dedicated to the economic development and historic preservation of Illinois downtowns.
Wood serves as the official spokesperson for the program and oversees the program.
Under her leadership, the Illinois Main Street program has grown to 53 communities in small towns, suburbs and large cities. The six communities competed with a number of neighboring communities for the distinction. Springfield, Waukegan and Elgin represent communities with populations over 50,000. Taylorville, Aledo and Marion have populations under 50,000. Over 1,400 communities in over 40 states belong to the National Main Street program, under the National Trust for Historic Preservation.