Revitalizing/Redevelopment of any town/city will face some rather heart felt fears and difficult challenges, i.e. fear of losing their heritage, economic challenges, infrastructure issues, job opportunities, climate impact, and community resistance, to name a few. While these fears and challenges are real, and should never be dismissed, discounted or ignored, they should be addressed. They can best be addressed when the plans are developed, with the following focuses are kept in mind: there must, and City need to
Focus on Embracing the Heritage and Local Identity of the Town/City: Do not try to change who you are, every town must define what makes them unique. It does not matter if it is the history, culture, architecture, or natural beauty focus of the town/city, keeping a focus on your heritage and local identity is very important; it is what makes your town/city unique.
Focus on People Over Cars: I do understand the need for roads and parking, but those needs to be second to people. Created green spaces, parks, trails, green-belts and make sure the plan centers on making the city/town has a pedestrian-friendly downtown area. For example, is there enough room for cafes and restaurants to have outdoor seating, and enough room for people to walk by?
Focus on Innovative Strategies: Innovative strategies, such as digital infrastructure based on Smart City initiatives, centers on meeting the needs of people. Digital infrastructure investment and be expensive and even taking small steps in the process will help.
Focus on Addressing Blight: Blight is a complex issue influenced by various factors, including economic decline and lack of investment in infrastructure and will always lead to a decreased quality of life for residents and negatively impact local economies due to lower property values and reduced tax revenue. You will need to increase infrastructure investment by looking at the condition of roads, sidewalks, vacant lots, abandoned buildings, empty malls, warehouses, and vacant lots and reimagined them as apartments, open air markets, possible event spaces, business hubs, and even as possible low rent spaces for new businesses.
Focus on Developing Strong Partners: To sustain small town/city redevelopment you need a solid base of community partners, i.e. community partners, business partners, County and State partnerships. While town/city staff will play an important role, no plan should center on only government voices. Success will only come when local leaders, businesses, and residents partnered on a shared vision and real investment.
Focus on Current Businesses and Entrepreneurship: This means you need to think past franchise development, large outlet malls, big-box outlets, focus on the current businesses, and developing new “home-grown” businesses. Take a deep dive into town/city ordinances, policies, and permitting fees and ask yourself, are business friendly. Many towns/cities have “outlawed” ordinances, overbearing policies, and fee structures Closing: limiting economic growth. Some tows/cities outlaw food trucks, not realizing many food trucks eventually open store front businesses.
Focus on Destination Tourism Based on Arts, Culture, and Events Central Should be the Heartbeat: Develop well planned, and well-advertised festivals, like food festivals, music festivals, art festivals. and cultural festivals. Encourge public art on buildings [University Place in Lincoln NE hires artists to paint historic and cultural murals on the sides of buildings]. This will not only help develop community excitement, but it can give your small town/city a hook to attract visitors, investors, and entrepreneurs, and develop destination tourism.
Focus on Pushing the Plan: Promote development opportunities at all times. If elected officials, city leadership and staff, are not promoting the plan, it will never happen. Communication is crucial for retaining current residents, encouraging new people to move there, or former residents to return. When people see change happening, it can excite them to be part of the change.
In Conclusion: Once the community revitalization/redevelopment plan is developed, the tow/city needs to gather incites from the community. The communities input, option, and suggestions are vital to any plan. When you hear the voices of the community changes should be made to address their ideas – you may be surprised at what the community sees, and you may have missed.
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