Discover Downtown

Four Stories. One Downtown. Downtown Excelsior Springs Named Semifinalists In Four Missouri Main Street Award Categories!

June 17, 2026
Collage highlighting the Missouri Main Street Conference in Excelsior Springs, featuring The Elms Hotel & Spa, conference attendees networking, volunteers welcoming participants, and organizers of the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience. The event showcases community engagement, tourism development, entrepreneurship, and outdoor recreation in Downtown Excelsior Springs.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Statewide recognition highlights the people, partnerships, projects, and places driving downtown revitalization.

Downtown Excelsior Springs is once again being recognized as one of Missouri’s leading downtown revitalization success stories.

The Missouri Main Street Connection has announced the semifinalists for the 2026 Missouri Main Street Awards, and Downtown Excelsior Springs has advanced four nominations spanning economic development, community partnerships, volunteer leadership, and tourism promotion.

The nominations highlight the people, places, partnerships, and projects that continue to transform Downtown Excelsior Springs into a destination community and demonstrate the power of long-term investment in place. Winners will be announced during the Missouri Main Street State Conference in Springfield this July.

The semifinalist nominations showcase the diverse efforts that continue to shape Downtown Excelsior Springs. From transformative events and community partnerships to historic investments and dedicated volunteer leadership.

Outstanding Economic Impact Project | Legacy Award
The Elms Hotel & Spa

The historic Elms Hotel & Spa stands at the entrance to Excelsior Springs, Missouri, serving as a major tourism destination and economic driver for the downtown district.

Few places are as closely tied to the identity and success of Excelsior Springs as The Elms Hotel & Spa.

Named a semifinalist in the Legacy Award category for Outstanding Economic Impact Project, The Elms was recognized for its lasting contribution to downtown revitalization and economic growth.

Following more than $36 million in reinvestment over the past three decades, The Elms has evolved into one of the region’s premier hospitality destinations. In 2025 alone, the property generated nearly 163,000 visits from more than 64,000 visitors, including approximately 39,000 overnight guests.

Beyond the hotel itself, those visitors support local restaurants, boutiques, attractions, and events, creating a ripple effect that benefits businesses throughout the downtown district. The nomination recognizes The Elms not only as a historic landmark, but as an economic engine that continues to fuel growth, investment, and opportunity in Excelsior Springs.

Read the full award nomination here.

A bartender prepares a handcrafted cocktail at The Elms Hotel & Spa, offering guests a premium food and beverage experience in Downtown Excelsior Springs.
A newly married couple celebrates with raised hands while walking through the gardens at The Elms Hotel & Spa, a popular wedding venue in Excelsior Springs, Missouri.
A mother and two children share coffee drinks and pastries inside The Elms Hotel & Spa, showcasing family-friendly hospitality in Excelsior Springs.

Spirit of Main Street | Legacy Award
Carol Baxter

Carol Baxter smiles while attending a Downtown Excelsior Partnership event. A longtime volunteer, business owner, and advocate, she has dedicated more than 15 years to revitalizing Downtown Excelsior Springs.

For more than fifteen years, Carol Baxter has been one of downtown’s most recognizable champions.

Named a semifinalist for the Legacy Award recognizing the Spirit of Main Street, Baxter was nominated for her extraordinary volunteer service and unwavering commitment to downtown revitalization.

As Promotion Team Chair for the Downtown Excelsior Partnership, Carol has spent countless hours planning events, beautifying public spaces, organizing volunteers, supporting local businesses, and helping create the welcoming atmosphere visitors experience throughout downtown. Whether she’s watering flowers before sunrise, decorating for the holidays, helping manage major events, or supporting revitalization initiatives financially, Carol has consistently invested her time, talent, and treasure into the community she loves.

Her nomination celebrates not only her service, but her lifelong belief in the potential of Downtown Excelsior Springs.

Read the full award nomination here.

Carol Baxter and fellow Downtown Excelsior Partnership volunteers smile while participating in a downtown cleanup day, holding brooms and tools along a sidewalk in Downtown Excelsior Springs.
Carol Baxter sits in a utility vehicle with event volunteers during a festival, helping coordinate event operations in Downtown Excelsior Springs.
Carol Baxter and Lyndsey Baxter pose together at the Downtown Excelsior Partnership Annual Benefit Dinner, celebrating community revitalization and volunteer leadership.

Premier Partner | Annual Award
City of Excelsior Springs, Downtown Excelsior Partnership, Inc. & Excelsior Springs Area Chamber of Commerce

Members of the Excelsior Springs planning team gather outside The Elms Hotel & Spa while hosting the Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference, showcasing collaboration between local organizations and community leaders.

The partnership that brought the Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC) Conference to Excelsior Springs has been recognized as a semifinalist for the Annual Award for Premier Partner.

The nomination highlights the collaboration between the Downtown Excelsior Partnership, the City of Excelsior Springs, and the Excelsior Springs Chamber of Commerce.

Together, the three organizations welcomed community leaders, entrepreneurs, and economic development professionals from across the region while showcasing Excelsior Springs as a model for collaboration and revitalization.

More importantly, the nomination recognizes how the planning process itself strengthened relationships among the three organizations, creating new levels of trust, communication, and cooperation that continue to benefit the community today.

Read the full award nomination here.

Conference attendees network and exchange ideas in the lobby of The Elms Hotel & Spa during the Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference in Excelsior Springs.
A presenter leads a downtown revitalization workshop during the Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference, sharing strategies for community development and economic growth.
Conference attendees enjoy local food and beverages while networking inside the historic Hall of Waters during the Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference.

Transformational Promotion Activity | Annual Award
Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience

Cyclists gather at the starting line of the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience in Downtown Excelsior Springs, preparing to ride scenic gravel roads through rural Missouri.

The return of the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience has also been recognized as a semifinalist in the Annual Award category for Transformational Promotion Activity.

Originally created by Phillip and Stacey Scherer, the beloved cycling event returned in 2025 after several years on hiatus. Its comeback brought approximately 300 riders and their supporters to Excelsior Springs while generating more than 1,100 volunteer hours and creating new opportunities for local businesses.

The nomination recognizes Opal Wapoo’s evolution from a cycling race into a catalyst for recreational tourism, economic activity, and future outdoor recreation development. Through partnerships with the Downtown Excelsior Partnership, Excelsior Springs Parks & Recreation, and Urban Trail Company, a portion of event proceeds now supports development of Excelsior Springs’ first singletrack trail system.

Read the full award nomination here.

Organizers of the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience pose together before the event, celebrating community partnerships that bring cyclists to Excelsior Springs.
Participants begin the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience as cyclists ride through Downtown Excelsior Springs following the event's lead vehicle and start arch.
Top finishers celebrate on the awards podium following the Opal Wapoo Gravel Experience in Excelsior Springs, Missouri.

While each semifinalist tells a different story, together they reflect the ongoing transformation of Downtown Excelsior Springs.

They represent a historic hotel that continues to drive economic activity, a volunteer who has dedicated years of service to her community, organizations working together to achieve common goals, and an event that has created new opportunities for tourism and recreation.

“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again…my job is magical because of the people I get to do it with,” said Lyndsey Baxter, Executive Director of the Downtown Excelsior Partnership. “These nominations aren’t about one organization or one person. They’re about a community full of people who continue to dream big, show up, and do the work. I’m incredibly proud that Missouri Main Street is recognizing some of those stories.”

Award winners will be announced during the Missouri Main Street State Conference in Springfield, Missouri, this July.

Additional information about each semifinalist nomination is available at VisitExcelsior.com.

About the Downtown Excelsior Partnership, Inc.

The Downtown Excelsior Partnership, Inc. is a nationally and state accredited Main Street America program dedicated to the revitalization, preservation, and continued growth of Downtown Excelsior Springs. Through collaboration with business owners, property owners, local government, investors, volunteers, and community partners, DEP works to strengthen economic development, support small businesses, preserve historic character, enhance cultural vitality, promote tourism, and improve the overall quality of life within the downtown district.

Contact
Name: Lyndsey M. Baxter
Title: Executive Director
Phone: 816-719-9912
Email: [email protected]
Website: VisitExcelsior.com