Why Main Streets

Local economies are deeply vulnerable to global economic shifts and geopolitical tensions. While large-scale transformations unfold on a macro level, it’s our main streets, businesses, and communities that feel the immediate impact, and demonstrate the real outcomes across:

  • Housing & Infrastructure
  • Wellbeing & Social Cohesion
  • Economic Prosperity & Business Health
  • Placemaking & Quality of Life

Why Main Street Canada

The Canadian Urban Institute has been developing main street oriented projects for a decade. With the call for main street support being more important than ever, CUI is bringing it's work together in one place for main street advocates, investors, and practicioners.

  • Analytics: Understanding main streets through local economic indicators.
  • Leadership: Providing insights and convening key players to strengthen Canada’s main streets.
  • Business: Supporting entrepreneurs and independent retailers that drive local economies.
  • Infrastructure: Ensuring main streets are built for resilience, accessibility, and long-term growth.

Led by the Canadian Urban Institute

CUI is Canada’s Urban Institute, the national platform that houses the best in Canadian city building — where policymakers, urban professionals, civic and business leaders, community activists and academics can learn, share and collaborate with one another from coast to coast to coast.

Over the last decade, the Canadian Urban Institute has successfully developed, managed, and distributed $100M+ in funding programs for Main Streets successfully and has brought together 40,000+ top city-building leaders and national networks to quickly get that support to Main Streets across Canada.

The Main Street
Advantage

What happens when main streets - their people, infrastructure, businesses and beyond - are well cared for and invested in?

Main streets support independent businesses, create jobs, and keep wealth circulating locally. When small businesses thrive, so do the communities around them. A strong main street means a resilient local economy.

Main streets are gathering places where people connect. They reflect local history, culture, and identity, providing spaces for public life, events, and shared experiences that make communities unique.

Walkable, mixed-use main streets reduce reliance on cars, encourage active transportation, and support public transit. Investing in main streets means investing in a more sustainable, climate-ready future. 

During crises—whether economic downturns, pandemics, or climate events—main streets serve as stabilizing forces. They provide essential services, foster mutual support, and help communities adapt and recover. 

When a main street is thriving, it signals a healthy community. When it struggles, it’s often an early warning sign of broader economic and social challenges. Investing in main streets is investing in the well-being of people and places.

Main Streets Are Vital
Yet Vulnerable

Main streets are the backbone of local economies, but they operate within a larger system of national and global forces that can make them particularly fragile.
Unlike big-box retailers, online giants, or corporate chains that can absorb shocks across multiple locations, main street businesses often operate on razor-thin margins and are deeply tied to the economic health of their immediate community. Here’s why they are especially vulnerable:

Main streets feel the impact of macroeconomic changes—such as inflation, interest rate hikes, and trade policies—much more acutely than larger corporations. Supply chain disruptions, import tariffs, and fluctuating consumer confidence can have immediate and severe consequences for independent businesses that lack financial buffers. 

Local businesses on main streets often face rising commercial rents, property taxes, and operational costs while struggling to compete with large chains that can afford to keep prices low through economies of scale. Unlike national retailers, main street businesses can’t always pass these costs onto consumers without losing customers. 

The rise of online shopping and big-box convenience means that fewer people rely on main street businesses for their daily needs. While some businesses have adapted by expanding digital offerings, many independent retailers and service providers struggle to compete with the convenience, pricing, and reach of major e-commerce platforms. 

Main streets depend on local spending, meaning economic downturns in a particular town or region can be devastating. When major employers close, when population shifts occur, or when household incomes decline, main street businesses lose customers directly unlike national retailers that can absorb losses in one location through revenue from others. 

Weather events, infrastructure failures, or construction projects can have an outsized impact on main street businesses. A single road closure, flood, or extreme weather event can be the difference between survival and closure for a small business that doesn’t have backup revenue streams. 

Unlike large corporations with lobbying power, main streets are often at the mercy of municipal, provincial, and federal policies on zoning, taxation, minimum wage, and infrastructure investment. A lack of supportive policies can further strain their ability to adapt and thrive. 

Why Main Streets Matter More Than Ever

Main streets are the backbone of Canadian communities. They are where local businesses fuel the economy, where people connect, and where culture comes to life. Yet, main streets face mounting pressures - from rising costs and global market shifts to changing consumer behaviors and climate challenges. Investing in their resilience isn’t just about preserving the past; it’s about securing the future.