^ Good convo going!
This aesthetic/welcoming issue is key and local stakeholders should have been focused on this over the years as opposed to these big silver bullet ideas, But I also feel some optimism as well as some huge dead zones are finally getting redeveloped and while not everywhere in the CBD and along WashAve will be exactly vibrant, downtown should soon be a lot more stitched together with occupied buildings and a more pleasant environment. With all the new projects and increased population coming I'm hopeful we can see a couple of good retail announcements this year ahead of the actual completion of things. Also, developing a retail strategy would be helpful but I don't know if anyone downtown is working on that... Cleveland and Detroit were served well with ones that have helped out significantly. You gotta plan for it!goat314 wrote: ↑Jan 06, 2018I think creating a better aesthetic environment downtown would help. The outdated streetscapes and hideous parking garages don't create a welcoming environment. What's the good in eating downtown if aesthetically it's no more appealing or adventurous then eating in a parking lot in the suburbs. Also, adding more residential density and tourists (hotels) will also make downtown have venues open later, but I actually think we are slowly moving towards a critical mass downtown. We may be 10-20 years away before downtown gets that "vibrant" feel. Right now, I just don't think downtown is the destination it needs to be. How often do families just say, let's go downtown and hang out, if it's not going to a sporting event or City Museum? In many cities you will see families just walking around downtown on a nice day, but I think a lot of that goes back to downtown just feeling voided and dated in many areas. It's not a welcoming environment outside of Washington Avenue.
