Plan Fundamentals - Bring People In

A thriving, busy downtown must give people a reason to go and a way to get there. To do this, communities should articulate their unique assets through marketing, catalyze activity through events, and address transportation challenges, such as parking or walkability.

Branding

A downtown’s reputation within a community and the city’s reputation among the area are important drivers for bringing people in. Through figuring out how to market the area, a small town or city can tell its story succinctly and attract visitors and investment. If done well, branding can increase retail sales and bring residents and visitors downtown.

Identify Unique Assets

A place’s brand should focus on what makes it stand out. These factors can be related to natural or historic landmarks, as well as feelings or values (hospitality, adventure, comfort, etc.).

Many cities tout certifications and designations, such as pet-friendly city or music-friendly city, that advertise these assets to specific audiences.

Invest in Your Brand

Social media campaigns, TV or radio ads, posters, events, and other communications strategies strengthen awareness of the assets a community has and can influence public opinion about a place.

Building Loyalties

By engaging the community throughout the creation and implementation of a branding strategy, a place can create a more authentic vision and build buy-in.

Events

To attract tourists and locals downtown, local organizations can sponsor different types of events:

Festivals

Festivals, parades, concerts and similar events can highlight the community’s unique assets, attracting out-of-town visitors.

Farmers’ Markets and Vendor Events

Farmers’ markets can attract locals and out-of-towners alike, while creating new economic opportunities for nearby agricultural producers and highlighting the area’s rural heritage.

Similarly, craft fairs with local businesses and food trucks use unique, locally made goods to attract visitors and support small businesses.

Athletic Events

Fitness classes (dance, yoga, etc.) can be held in parks, plazas, and other public spaces, bringing people (and new activity) downtown. Organized runs (5k runs, marathons, etc.) can attract visitors, especially on weekends.

Volunteer Opportunities

Communities can organize events or volunteer organizations that provide opportunities for people to improve their downtowns. Volunteers can paint facades; plant and maintain landscaping; and/or pick-up trash.

These efforts not only beautify public spaces, but build support for local businesses and public investment in downtown areas.

Tourism

Small cities and surrounding rural areas often have notable cultural and natural resources. Supporting context-sensitive economic development in these areas can draw tourists and investment downtown, while creating new opportunities for landowners.

There are several different types of tourism, including but not limited to:

Heritage Tourism

In Texas, heritage tourism brings in over $7 billion annually. Small towns offer visitors an opportunity to learn more about the state’s unique history and culture within a relatively short drive.

Agritourism

Across the country, farmers are looking for new ways to generate income, while preserving the integrity of their land and the area’s rural character.

Agritourism focuses on providing visitors with opportunities to experience activities associated with agricultural production, such as raising and harvesting crops. Examples of agritourism businesses include wineries, farmers’ markets, pick-your-own operations, rural bed-and-breakfasts, corn mazes, horseback riding, and other farm-related activities.

Visitors will not only patronize these rural businesses, but visit shops, restaurants, and hotels in nearby downtowns. Agritourism operations in scenic areas within a short drive of major cities are often the most successful.

Ecotourism

Hiking, birding, and other types of outdoor recreation are popular pastimes. The Houston-Galveston region contains high-quality protected landscapes that can accommodate these activities, including coastal wetlands, prairies, and forests.

Rural downtowns can serve as base for those visiting surrounding natural areas, providing ecotourists with accommodations, restaurants and other necessities.

Niche Tourism

Within the Houston-Galveston region, there are treasure troves of unique and interesting features that appeal to specific groups. Whether a town was once featured in a popular movie, has a museum dedicated to a specialized topic, or has buildings with unique architectural features, there are people that may be interested in visiting.

This type of tourism will depend on an area’s marketing and the things it chooses to highlight.

Parking + Transportation

As important as it is to give people a reason to go downtown, they also need a way to get to and move around downtown. Historic downtown areas may have limited space for parking, meaning places will need to be creative in addressing their transportation needs.

Consider Other Methods of Transportation

Making transit, walking, and biking safe and convenient increases the connectivity and attractiveness of a place. In 2023, 78% of Americans said they would be willing to spend more to live in a community where they could easily walk to parks, shops, and restaurants.

Approaches such as complete streets can make an area safer to walk around, increasing foot traffic. Services such as micro-transit can increase connectivity between towns.

Making the Most of Existing Parking

Too much parking can make an area less inviting to pedestrians and decrease feelings of vibrancy. Too little parking can be frustrating for visitors and make visits downtown less likely.

To address this, places can look at policies and design to find the right balance. Waiving or lowering parking minimums for buildings can decrease the required parking need, while encouraging shared uses between different types of businesses can decrease the demand.

Shared parking is primarily done through agreements between adjacent uses or creation of a parking management district. Better design, such as having street parking in strategic locations or clear signs directing drivers to existing parking lots, can reduce frustration without making an area feel more car centric.