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Norman Mintz

Senior Fellow, Main Streets and Downtowns
nmintz@pps.org

One of the Main Street movement’s earliest pioneers, Norman Mintz has consulted on all matters of downtown revitalization providing technical assistance in areas of urban design, retail retention, organization and promotion. He works with communities and organizations of every size to strengthen their capacity to successfully execute and manage the many revitalization challenges they face.

Norman’s career in historic preservation and downtown revitalization began with his direction of the nationally acclaimed Market Street Restoration Program in Corning, NY (1974-81), where he initiated the role and became recognized as America’s first Main Street manager. He is the co-author of the widely acclaimed book, Cities Back From the Edge: New Life for Downtown, which chronicles stories from around the country that illustrate how dozens of Main Street business districts and urban commercial neighborhoods have revitalized their commercial centers using small scale, innovative approaches that encourage new local businesses.

He has worked closely for twenty years with the 34th Street Partnership and Bryant Park Corporation, two large Business Improvement Districts in midtown Manhattan. He lectures widely on the subject of downtown revitalization and has extensive teaching experience, having taught at Columbia University, Cornell University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He currently instructs a course in Neighborhood Commercial Revitalization at Pratt Institute.

Norman formerly worked at PPS from 1982-1989, when he assisted many communities in implementing various revitalization initiatives. He has recently begun a new collaboration with PPS on our in-house training workshops, and will be helping us integrate placemaking with the National Trust for Historic Preservation Main Street program as part of our new partnership. He will also be contributing his practical experience and expertise to various PPS projects.