GREENVILLE – Fall is the best time of year to be in downtown Greenville, and Main Street Greenville is making it easier than ever to find your way around. The nonprofit is inviting everyone, from Darke County neighbors to day-trippers from Dayton and the Miami Valley, to spend Saturday, Oct. 10, downtown for the annual Fall Crawl and Girls Day Out, while also launching Experience Main Street, a new website and free mobile app for iPhone and Android that puts all of downtown in your pocket.
Fall Crawl: A Full Day Downtown
Fall Crawl runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10, across Historic Downtown Greenville. It’s a full day of shopping, seasonal treats and family fun, and it’s built to be walked.
From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., shoppers can browse their favorite Main Street stores while pumpkin painting, pumpkin carving and an art contest take over the courthouse lawn. Online registration is available for pumpkin carving.
From 3 to 6 p.m., visitors get a rare look above the storefronts with upper-floor building tours. These are spaces most people walk past every day and never see. Participating buildings will be announced closer to the event.
The day wraps up at 6 p.m. with Spooky Tales Hour at TAG.
All day long, the 4th Street Farmers Market will be open and free popcorn will be waiting at the Main Street Greenville Welcome Center.
Participating shops will be handing out fall treats along the way, including pumpkin bread at Merle Norman, Green Apple Caramel Popcorn from Tin Acre Popcorn at Topsy Turvy Toys, maple cookies from Flora Homestead at Happily Ever Co., cookies at Readmore Hallmark, hot or cold mulled cider at Refined (plus a senior citizen discount), a Maple Syrup Mania coffee tasting at TAG Me Play Café, and spiked and regular apple cider at Better You Boutique.
“Fall Crawl is one of those days that reminds you why downtown matters,” said Angie Kreitzer, president of Main Street Greenville. “You walk in the door of a shop, somebody hands you a cookie, you run into three people you know, and before you realize it, it’s dinnertime. We want families to come down, bring their friends, and make a whole day of it. And if you’ve never been to Greenville, this is the day to come see what we’re all about.”
Experience Main Street: Downtown in Your Pocket
This year, visitors won’t need a paper map to plan their day. Main Street Greenville has launched Experience Main Street at experiencemainstreet.com, along with free apps for iPhone and Android.
The website and apps bring everything happening downtown into one place: a directory of downtown merchants, an interactive map, the full events calendar, current downtown weather and optional notifications about what’s going on. There’s no account to create and nothing to sign in to. Just download it and go.
The platform also serves people looking to open a business downtown, with listings for storefronts, offices and upper-floor spaces available to lease or buy along Broadway.
“Experience Main Street is something we’ve wanted for a long time,” Kreitzer said. “Our merchants work so hard, and now every one of them has a home on the website and in the app where people can actually find them. Whether you live three blocks away or you’re driving in from Dayton for the afternoon, you can pull out your phone and see what’s open, what’s happening and where to go next. It’s the front door to downtown Greenville, and we couldn’t be more excited to open it.”
The website and apps were designed and built locally by Workshop & Web in Greenville.
The apps are available now:
iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/
Android: https://play.google.com/store/
Scarecrow Decorating Contest: Last Call to Enter
Before Fall Crawl arrives, downtown’s light poles are getting dressed up for the season. Main Street Greenville’s Scarecrow Decorating Contest invites local businesses, organizations, families and community members to decorate a downtown light pole.
Registration closes Wednesday, Sept. 30. The $20 entry fee is a donation to Main Street Greenville that supports downtown programs and events. Entrants can register online at https://experiencemainstreet.
Poles will be decorated Oct. 1–8, and the public can vote for their favorites Oct. 9–12, which includes Fall Crawl weekend. Voting will be available at the Welcome Center, on social media, and right in the Experience Main Street app. First-, second- and third-place winners will be announced on social media. The scarecrows will stay up through Halloween.
“Every year the scarecrows get a little more creative, and I love seeing what people come up with,” Kreitzer said. “Walk the street during Fall Crawl, pick your favorite, and vote for it right from your phone.”
About Main Street Greenville
Main Street Greenville is a volunteer-driven nonprofit working to keep downtown Greenville vibrant, walkable and worth the trip. Located in Darke County, less than an hour from Dayton, Historic Downtown Greenville is home to locally owned shops, restaurants, The Wayne Theatre and the Downtown Greenville Mural Project. Learn more at https://experiencemainstreet.
