Between Jan. 15 and 18 2007, Downtown Helena will be critiqued by Roger Brooks, a consultant with Destination Development, Inc. of Olympia, WA. Brooks' visit is sponsored by Helena's Downtown Visioning Partnership, who are proponents of keeping Last Chance Gulch blocked by the notorious "Walking Mall".
Mr. Brooks' company, Destination Development, Inc., is primarily involved in developing "branding" for communities. This "branding" basically involves creating an advertising theme for the community, complete with logos, signs and props. Destination Development also devises marketing plans for communities, and suggests to local governments how best to implement the consultant's vision of what the community ought to be.
Here is Destination Development's Tourism Plan for Enumclaw, WA, complete with new horse logo.
Here is the package they are assembling for the city of Moses Lake, WA.
What Mr. Brooks will suggest for improving Downtown Helena is still a mystery, but considering that the Downtown Visioning Partnership is sponsoring his visit, it seems safe to assume that breathing life back into Last Chance Gulch by unblocking it will not be part of his creative vision. He might have some cute logo ideas, though.
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Yeah, logos are always worth a good 25K or so out of a city's treasury. The reality is that downtown shops cannot compete with the big box stores, because folks buy based on prices and the ability to park their cars close to the store. And look at the stores they have downtown. Mainly boutique type businesses, not generally high traffic type businesses anyways.
About the only thing that is appropriate to the downtown is a combination of strong mixed-use zoning for business and office at street level (with subsidized gallery space) and apartment living above, and perhaps artist studio rentals. Downtown is not about a hopping commercial experience...that has already located down to Custer and Montana (such that it is). Downtown is about history, tranquility, and aesthetics. Opening or closing the street ain't gonna do diddly.
The most lively part of downtown is "the hippie block", where the Firetower and Aunt Bonnie's is located. Subsidize (taxes and rents) the walking mall areas as space for artists, galleries, and living space, and that will attract traffic. So much of the history was obliterated, preserve what is left.
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