Downtown Idea Exchange, December 2023
December 1, 2023
- Tips for tapping into federal funding
- How a struggling downtown used Blues music to launch an unlikely revival
- Downtown organization keeps tweaking pop-up retail program
- Downtown bans repeat offenders — but is the move legal?
- Embattled city tries ad campaign to bring back workers, visitors
- Biden administration unveils plan for office-to-residential conversions
- Downtown gift cards gain momentum
- Idea Exchange: Quick Tips and News from Around the Country
In Lethbridge, Alberta (est. pop. 106,000), downtown leaders are keeping streets clean and engaging the city’s unhoused population. The Clean Sweep Program pays homeless people $15 an hour to perform clean and safe work. Their tasks include trash pickup, snow removal, and disposing of needles, pipes, and other paraphernalia from downtown’s designated area for drug…
A “pawp-up” park for dogs downtown. A basketball court in a formerly unused underpass. Wayfinding signage scrawled on sidewalks with chalk. Painted pianos in public parks. Not every downtown attraction initiative needs to be a major undertaking. There’s a real role for small, inexpensive projects. Errin Welty, senior downtown development director at the Wisconsin Economic…
The post-pandemic performance of the nation’s city centers continues to be a mixed bag. On the downside, downtowns are facing well-documented problems. Office space remains underused, and office-serving merchants are struggling. At the same time, city centers bear the brunt of homelessness. But downtowns are also proving remarkably resilient. They have begun to recover dramatically…
Cities nationally are embracing a low-cost way to boost traffic safety and reduce pedestrian fatalities: They’re installing street murals. Compared to installing roundabouts or narrowing streets, asphalt art is a quick and inexpensive way to slow cars and make motorists more aware of their surroundings. Fast Company magazine labeled the concept a “ridiculously simple” way…
This year, Small Business Saturday — a crucial event for downtowns vying with suburban retail destinations — is scheduled for November 25. The event provides an opportunity for downtown leaders to foster community engagement, and for independent businesses to shine. But moving foot traffic and dollars from big box stores and online retailers takes focused…
When Antioch, IL (est. pop. 14,705), wanted to breathe new life into its downtown, the small city hired All Together, a Chicago-based marketing firm. All Together worked with Antioch to highlight the town’s unique history. In one initiative, All Together added “ghost signs” to half a dozen longtime businesses. In another initiative, the marketing company…
After a decade of planning, the Shasta Bike Depot opened this year in downtown Redding, CA (est. pop. 92,896). With support of $4.5 million from the McConnell Foundation, a local nonprofit, Shasta Living Streets operates the new facility. It features a secure place for people to park their bikes, a bikeshare program, bike tours, and…
Secure parking draws bike riders downtown The City of Kingston, Ontario, Canada is now providing cyclists with a safe bike parking hub downtown. The hub uses bike racks which offer several layers of protection and allow riders to lock and unlock bikes from their phones. Input for the program was gathered from cycling organizations and…