Paducah, KY, is offering incentives to lure remote workers to town. Paducah, a folk arts hub and a UNESCO Creative City, joins other small and mid-sized cities in wooing white-collar workers by offering cash stipends and other incentives. Paducah’s program includes cash reimbursements of up to $2,500 for relocation costs, up to $70 a month…Continue reading
Hartford, CT (est. pop. 122,591), faces a familiar problem: There just isn’t enough downtown housing to meet demand. While many downtowns are seeing conversions of under-used offices into housing, Hartford’s latest projects are a bit different. In one example, a struggling hotel will convert guest rooms to apartments. In another project, former student housing is…To read more — login/subscribe
In downtown Napa, CA, wayfinding signs are fading and more than two decades old. “They have patched-over fonts, different colors, and incorrect information,” says Economic Development Manager Neal Harrison. “A good example of that is the visitor center moved from Main Street to First Street and the signage hasn’t moved with it.” Napa’s experience with…Continue reading
With the US economy increasingly driven by the tech sector, a growing number of downtown leaders in mid-sized cities are looking for ways to spur innovation locally. One example is in Fort Wayne, IN, where a rusting manufacturing hub was transformed into an innovation district and changed attitudes along the way. Jeff Kingsbury is a…Continue reading
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
Advocates for pedestrian safety are pushing for a simple fix that promises to make crosswalks safer for those traversing streets on foot: Forbid motorists from turning right on red lights. To advocates, the safety rationale is straightforward: At a typical intersection, a motorist who plans to turn the vehicle right must pull into the crosswalk,…Continue reading
A2AC Murals brings large, vibrant works of art to the public in Ann Arbor and South East Michigan. The program is run by the Ann Arbor Art Center and funded through Patronicity and a matching grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The center encourages people to get out and get involved with the public…Continue reading
Most of downtown Dayton, OH, has become an outdoor drinking district, a move city leaders say creates cultural vibrancy and economic vitality. Business owners asked to expand the original Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA) with a new downtown drinking district that is more than nine times as large and includes dozens of restaurants and bars.…Continue reading
Empty store windows can sabotage a downtown’s best efforts to create a bustling, vibrant scene that encourages visitors to stay and spend. While vacant storefronts have long been the bane of small cities, the problem spread to larger cities during the pandemic. Downtown leaders can only do so much to combat the broad trends of…Continue reading
Office conversions are having a moment — the topic is the subject of news stories, webinars, and conference sessions. With office space experiencing heightened levels of vacancy and housing units very much in demand, the concept of repurposing underused office space to in-demand residential space is a compelling one. But an office-to-residential conversion is not…To read more — login/subscribe
