Downtown Idea Exchange

City monitors waste, installs receptacles The Downtown Worcester Business Improvement District, marked a new phase of its placemaking and beautification action plan with the installation of dog waste stations and cigarette disposal receptacles. The initiative seeks to keep streets and sidewalks clean while bringing attention to important quality of life issues in the Massachusetts city.…To read more — login/subscribe

 

• Food cart support, asphalt art among models of post-pandemic recovery efforts
• Five strategies downtowns are using to come back from the pandemic
• TIF remains popular, but beware the pitfalls
• City encourages home-based businesses in downtown neighborhood
• Want to pitch your downtown to visitors? Tap into the wisdom of locals
• Hefty parking tickets? The higher, the better, some say
• City makes investment in homeless shelter
• Idea Exchange: Quick Tips and News from Around the Country

To read more — login/sign up

In Fort Lauderdale, FL (est. pop. 182,434), downtown leaders are organizing a “Get Back Downtown” event for September. The outdoor office party will urge office workers to return to their cubicles in the central business district’s office towers. In Columbus, OH (est. pop. 902,073), a downtown group likewise is marketing the city center by sprucing…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Fort Collins, CO (est. pop. 170,245), was a bike-friendly place going into the pandemic. Since 2018, it had been one of just four U.S. cities to earn a Platinum designation from the League of American Bicyclists. During the depths of the pandemic, the city raised its cycling game even more by further investing in its…To read more — login/subscribe

 

As part of a redevelopment of their downtowns, two mid-sized cities are making an unusual move: They’re giving up the traditional model of a city-owned parcel housing City Hall. Instead, the cities are spurring downtown redevelopment projects by partnering with private developers. In the process, they’re moving city administrative offices into mixed-use developments. The cities…To read more — login/subscribe

 

In Moline, IL (est. pop. 41,920), the city council this spring approved spending $214,000 on a system of video surveillance cameras for 16 locations downtown. Downtown merchants welcomed the new security measure, Geoff Manis, manager of Moline Centre Main Street, told KWQC television. “There’s been a big uptick in car thefts and individuals breaking into…To read more — login/subscribe

 

The summer kicked off with triple-digit temperatures in the Pacific Northwest. It was a record heat wave in an area not accustomed to high mercury readings. John Pattison, a content manager with Strong Towns saw the intense heat as a reminder of an unfortunate reality: There’s just not enough shade in many cities, and certainly…To read more — login/subscribe

 

The post-pandemic real estate market has seen many changes, three major trends among them: Demand for retail space has softened. Employers are wavering in their commitment to office space. And housing demand is on fire. Those shifts explain why many downtowns are seeing developers repurpose commercial buildings for residential uses. In Manchester, NH (est. pop.…To read more — login/subscribe

 

As electric scooters proliferate in downtowns throughout the nation, proponents see the vehicles as an important ingredient in any solution to gridlock and pollution. When paired with trains, buses, and trolleys, shared scooters offer a quick, convenient, eco-friendly way for commuters to travel the “last mile” to their destinations. “These are transportation devices,” says Dominick…To read more — login/subscribe

 

In California’s Stanislaus County, the Relief Across Downtown (RAD) gift card program is working to put more money in consumers’ hands and help local businesses get back on their feet. The RAD Card is a digital gift card which may be used at participating downtown businesses. And it offers a real incentive to spend money…To read more — login/subscribe