Downtown Idea Exchange

• Flowers, exercise mats, off-duty police: How downtowns are luring workers back
• Downtown leaders clean up by suing uncooperative property owners
• Downtown organization boosts occupancy with cash grants to retailers
• Ending right turns on red could boost pedestrian safety
• “Daylighting” downtown streams boosts ambience — and flood control
• Downtown event organizers embrace their authentic identities
• Idea Exchange: Quick Tips and News from Around the Country

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During the Great Recession, Danville, VA (est. pop. 42,556), had fallen on such hard times that it was unclear if downtown could ever bounce back. “Our downtown completely died,” says Diana Schwartz, executive director of Danville’s River District Association. “Our entire community died.” No one was living downtown. The inventory of vacant commercial space stretched…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Downtown leaders in Milwaukee, WI (est. pop. 569,326), plan a dog park as part of an ongoing overhaul of the languishing area along — and under — Interstate 794. The interstate was part of a nationwide development of highways that divided many downtowns during the 20th century. In the case of I-794, the 3.75-mile roadway…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Electric scooter rentals continue to grow in popularity in downtowns. But in many cases, the rollout has been chaotic.  Downtown merchants and residents complain about disorderly parking and groups of young joyriders. Most startlingly, riders have died of injuries suffered while using the scooters. All of that has led some cities to tighten regulations. In…To read more — login/subscribe

 

It’s one of the most common complaints from downtown leaders: “I don’t have enough volunteers.” Whether you need community members to staff events, to judge business plan entries, or tackle some other task, volunteers are both crucial and scarce. Liz Parham, director of North Carolina’s NC Main Street and Rural Planning Center, says you need…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Champaign, IL (est. pop. 89,116), has a problem: Downtown has become a bustling destination on warm-weather weekends. But the city police department is so short-staffed that it can’t handle the inevitable calls for service that flow from the nighttime entertainment district. So the city of Champaign will spend nearly $330,000 to hire a private security…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Amid a nationwide housing shortage, many downtowns are revisiting their zoning codes in hopes of expanding the range of available housing. If you want more housing units in your downtown, you should opt for policies designed to attract new development, says R. John Anderson, co-founder and principal of Tolar | Anderson | Kim Architecture +…To read more — login/subscribe

 

The city of Auburn, ME (est. pop. 23,790), wants to support small local grocery stores — and it’s using $150,000 in American Rescue Plan funding to make that goal a reality. In the 1950s and 1960s, Auburn banned new neighborhood markets, although existing shops were allowed to stay open. But shifting retail trends meant the…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Every downtown worth its salt has commissioned a public mural. Those with ambitious arts programming might have asphalt art, sculpture walks, or even hire buskers to perform downtown. But poetry rarely takes center stage. However, Storrs, CT (est. pop. 16,784), builds a month of activities around the overlooked discipline. The Mansfield Downtown Partnership just wrapped…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Albuquerque, NM (est. pop. 562,591), is trying a novel approach to quelling crime in a problematic area downtown: It’s bringing in food trucks. Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller has labeled two parking lots on Central Avenue “drivers of crime.” To address the issues there, the city plans a “food truck corral” that will operate on Friday…To read more — login/subscribe