Following a New Year’s Day vehicle attack in New Orleans, Mobile, AL, is bolstering safety measures in advance of its annual Mardi Gras celebration in March. The attack in New Orleans, focused new attention on bollards as a routine part of traffic control for downtown events. However, in a cautionary tale for downtowns everywhere, New…Continue reading
Cities everywhere are encouraging the development of housing and hotels downtown. One noisy problem: City centers often lie adjacent to railroad tracks. And while the noise is tolerable in a 9-to-5 city where office workers go home at night, it can be disruptive in a 24-hour downtown. One solution is a quiet zone. Federal regulators…Continue reading
By all measures, the pop-up retail program in downtown Memphis, TN, is a success. Since its launch in 2020 over 35 stores have tested the retail market downtown. However, Brett Roler, COO of the Downtown Memphis Commission, cautions that downtown leaders who expect instant success are likely to be disappointed. Roler says his first hurdle…Continue reading
The city of Watsonville, CA, with a population of just over 50,000, reports a total of $8,879,604 in direct economic activity generated by local arts and culture organizations. This includes an average of $30.49 spent per person attending an event. That data is from Americans for the Arts. Every five years, the nonprofit takes an…Continue reading
Just a few months after Mishawaka, IN, enacted a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA), the city council voted in December to expand the boundaries of the drinking zone. Downtown Idea Exchange newsletter reports that Mishawaka’s experience with public drinking mirrors that of other cities across the nation. First, state lawmakers, seeking to help downtowns recover from…Continue reading
