For decades, a former furniture store and warehouse in downtown Swainsboro, GA (est. pop. 7,396), sat empty. Now it’s a thriving hub that’s home to an antique mall and a gallery featuring local artists. Swainsboro’s project won praise for activating a long-vacant space. The turnaround was spurred when the city bought the property and completed…To read more — login/subscribe
Closed streets draw visitors The Open Streets program returned to Salt Lake City, UT, with new fall dates this year. The special fall edition ran from September 15 through October 28, every Friday and Saturday from noon to 1 a.m. During that time, a central portion of Main Street was closed to automobile traffic to…To read more — login/subscribe
Art carts showcase artists’ work, enliven downtown Art on the Town was created to help artists in Lexington, KY, show and sell their work. The program features eight mobile carts that are available seven days a week at no cost to artists. “The carts are mobile and can move around within several block areas of…To read more — login/subscribe
Parking requirements designed for suburban shopping areas are sapping the life from downtown business districts, argues Charles L. Marohn Jr. “We don’t need the miles and miles of asphalt dictated by local governments’ minimum parking mandates,” says Marohn, president of the nonprofit organization Strong Towns and author of the 2019 book Strong Towns. “Communities have…To read more — login/subscribe
Comprehensive, realistic, and easy-to-use, The Community Economic Development Handbook is just what you need to turn a neighborhood or business district around. Author Mihailo Temali has distilled over twenty years of experience in community-based economic development into this practical, jargon-free handbook which describes a proven way to make… Continue reading
Valerie Marmone once ran a clothing boutique in Sacramento, so she knows firsthand how hard it is to operate a retail business in an era of tight margins and online shopping. In her post-entrepreneurial career, Marmone works as vice president of business development at the Downtown Sacramento Partnership. In that role, she runs the annual…To read more — login/subscribe
Somerset, KY (est. pop. 11,998), unveiled a new wayfinding system that features directional and informational signs throughout downtown streets. The signs carry the city’s brand and logo, and their role is both practical and less obvious revealing connections, highlighting diversity, and demonstrating community pride. The network was launched in Somerset’s downtown core with plans to…To read more — login/subscribe
A series of public art projects — including an innovative lighting installation in a formerly dreary underpasses — has helped Lynn, MA (est. pop. 94,300), shake off its malaise. The initiative, known as Lynn Lights, garnered media attention and won praise from groups such as the Center for Community Progress. Lynn was once known as…To read more — login/subscribe
The coronavirus recession has devastated independent restaurateurs, but it hasn’t stopped the spread of commercial kitchens, those facilities that serve as co-working spaces for food trucks, caterers, and other food producers. Commercial kitchens are coming to downtown Orangeburg, SC (est. pop. 13,120), Oak Creek, WI (est. pop. 35,843), and other locations. Orangeburg City Council recently…To read more — login/subscribe
