Downtown Idea Exchange

Each month downtown leaders turn to Downtown Idea Exchange for practical news reports, how-to information, and hundreds of real-world examples of how downtowns are growing and prospering.

 


An outdoor open house

October 1, 2020
To gain public input for its downtown strategic plan, the Village of Cary, IL, hosted an outdoor community open house.  The strategic plan focuses on future land uses, connections, and infrastructure improvements that will encourage private investment near the village’s Metra station. To solicit public input, the city is hosting public open houses, pop-up events,…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Downtown Idea Exchange, October 2020

October 1, 2020
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Curbside commerce, vacant-lot dining: Coronavirus inspires creative concepts

September 1, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has claimed thousands of lives while spreading untold fear. Yet the crisis also unleashed a wave of creativity. For evidence, look to the city of Baltimore’s Design for Distancing contest, a program created to elicit ideas for innovative responses to the COVID-19 recession. The competition brought more than 160 entries, many from…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Downtown takes cleaning, distancing seriously — but not too seriously

September 1, 2020
In Rosslyn, VA (est. pop. 12,314), the response to the COVID-19 pandemic has taken the form of purple stickers, signs, and banners placed throughout the 17-block Business Improvement District. The city’s Rosslyn Ready program includes hundreds of signs, stickers, banners, and instructional materials distributed throughout the most-trafficked areas of downtown, including sidewalks near the Metro…To read more — login/subscribe

 

“Environmental design” can contain crime, but only to an extent

September 1, 2020
Downtown Billings, MT (est. pop. 109,544), has long struggled with vandalism and other property crimes committed, in part, by the homeless. Like many downtowns, Billings has turned to the concept of crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) to discourage loitering, public drunkenness, and vandalism. Cities from Portland, ME, to Redding, CA, have adopted some of…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Coronavirus recession cuts into local budgets

September 1, 2020
Empty office buildings, canceled events, shuttered bars and restaurants. The short-term fallout of the coronavirus pandemic was painful for downtowns. Now, downtown leaders across the country are bracing for a slower-to-unfold crisis. State and city tax revenues have been hit by the COVID-19 recession, and that’s likely to mean tighter budgets for downtown priorities for…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Granny flats, in-law suites — ADUs by any name can make towns stronger

September 1, 2020
Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are gaining momentum across the country. The backyard apartments — sometimes known as guest quarters, casitas, carriage houses, in-law suites, or granny flats — can ease housing shortages and boost density in residential neighborhoods that are downtown or adjacent to downtown areas. For downtowns that have struggled to lure housing units,…To read more — login/subscribe