Downtown Idea Exchange

• Downtown reopens with input, support from business owners
• Eight low-cost ideas downtowns are using to spur their recoveries
• Redesign transforms historic Main Street, creates pedestrian oasis
• To inject new life, improve safety, downtowns block traffic
• In tough times, pay attention to cost cutting, fundraising
• Downtown dips into reserves, cuts spending
• Downtown offers loans to struggling merchants
• Transit officials rethink rush hour
• Coping with the post-coronavirus commute
• Quick permitting helps restaurants
• As budgets contract, leaders worry
• College towns hit hard by coronavirus
• A new challenge to cleanliness
• Zoning changes aim at speeding recovery
• Educating shoppers
• A shared dining room
• Custom signage spreads the word

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The recovery from the coronavirus crisis threatens to be arduous and slow-moving. But architects Alan Pullman and Shannon Heffernan say there are steps cities and their downtowns can take now to speed the revival. Pullman and Heffernan, of urban design firm Studio One Eleven in Long Beach, CA, urge cities to use “parklets” and “flex…To read more — login/subscribe

 

A play on the word “parklet,” a pedlet allows for outdoor dining on the sidewalk while the adjacent parking space is converted to a pedestrian way. This arrangement allows for unobstructed travel by both pedestrians and restaurant staff.  Great Falls, MT, was an early adapter of the concept, launching its first pedlet in 2017. Last…To read more — login/subscribe

 

One downtown has dealt with a crush of Uber and Lyft drivers by directing the vehicles into designated rideshare hubs. Before the coronavirus shutdowns silenced downtown Orlando, FL (est. pop. 285,705), city officials say designating locations for drivers to pick up downtown patrons improved traffic flow during the late-night rush hour when bars closed and…To read more — login/subscribe

 

A reopening of the U.S. economy doesn’t mean activity levels in downtowns will immediately return to normal. As the coronavirus pandemic has dragged on, it has become clear that consumers and merchants will take time to resume old behavior patterns, says Matt Wagner, vice president of revitalization programs at Main Street America. That means downtown…To read more — login/subscribe

 

The coronavirus has shut down countless events, but Jennifer Rubenstein of the Louisville Independent Business Alliance in Louisville, KY, didn’t want to cancel the city’s annual Buy Local Fair entirely. So she moved the event online. For two days in May, Louisville hosted a virtual Buy Local Fair. For every $25 a shopper spent, they…To read more — login/subscribe

 

While the Covid-19 pandemic complicates their efforts, two Kansas libraries offer case studies in successfully drawing visitors downtown with makerspaces. Budding entrepreneurs in Overland Park, KS (est. pop. 192,525), can try their hands at a variety of technologies — including 3D printers, high-end video software, a TV studio, a sound studio, and machines for laser…To read more — login/subscribe

 

As cities try to return to normal, one small but important task stands out: Public transportation must be clean enough that workers and residents feel comfortable getting back on buses, trolleys, and trains. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the daily cleaning of subway cars in New York City.  “When people get into the…To read more — login/subscribe

 

As economic engines, restaurants don’t get a lot of respect. Eateries pay paltry wages to generally low-skilled workers, and dining establishments are notorious for their high rate of failure. And yet, try finding a thriving downtown that doesn’t boast good restaurants. “Restaurants are extremely valuable to cities,” Andrew Salkin, a founding principal of the nonprofit…To read more — login/subscribe

 

Even before the coronavirus pandemic brought attention to such streetside features as parklets and flex zones, cities were rethinking how to use these important but overlooked areas. Many cities are saddled with last-century practices that prioritize parking for single vehicles over reliable bus lanes, safe bikeways, efficient loading areas for freight, or even public space.…To read more — login/subscribe