Allenhurst named a 2026 "Great American Main Street" finalist
The National Trust for Historic Preservation shortlists Corlies Avenue as one of five national finalists
Main Street southbound through downtown Allenhurst — the corridor at the center of the borough's Great American Main Street finalist nomination. — Photo by Mr. Matté, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has named Allenhurst's Corlies Avenue commercial district a 2026 finalist for its Great American Main Street Award — a recognition that places the borough's three-block downtown among the top five preservation-led commercial districts in the United States this year.
The designation comes two months after the Borough Council approved its new façade-restoration matching-grant program, and one year after the reopening of the former Allenhurst National Bank building as a café — both initiatives that the Trust cited in its nomination.
The other four finalists
- Downtown Elkhart, Indiana
- Main Street, Livingston, Montana
- Galena Public Square, Galena, Illinois
- Old Town Orcutt, California
The winner will be announced at the Trust's annual conference in October. Whether or not Allenhurst takes the top prize, finalist recognition comes with a $10,000 preservation-planning grant and technical assistance from the Trust's Main Street America program.
"This is a recognition of forty years of work by Allenhurst property owners who made the quiet, unglamorous choice to restore rather than replace," said Council President Michael Moeller. "We're proud, but mostly we're grateful — to the families who kept these buildings standing."
Eleanor Brinton covers Allenhurst history, borough government, and life along Corlies Avenue. A longtime Jersey Shore resident, she writes a weekly column for The Allenhurst Press.
