Over the next year, Downtown Vision Inc. plans to incrementally add smaller, ongoing events to continue to attract people, and keep them coming back, Downtown.
DVI, the not-for-profit organization designed to build, improve and promote Downtown, held its annual meeting Thursday at River City Brewing Co. on the Downtown Southbank.
Terry Lorince, DVI executive director, told the group of Downtown stakeholders and advocates about the organization’s accomplishments in the past year.
Those included promoting events such as the First Wednesday Art Walk each month that attracts 6,000-8,000 people, she said, although the event has brought in an average of 9,000 people the past three months.
“It’s a driver,” she told the group of around 150. “We need to do more of them.”
Lorince said that was “the vibe and goal” of DVI’s efforts to attract people Downtown.
In addition to beautifying Downtown in areas such as litter pickup and graffiti removal, Lorince said the organization is partnering with businesses and advocates, including residents, to capitalize on successes. One example she gave was working with bars within the urban core to make the area a destination.
Her presentation included pictures of bars full of people as well as overall activity. She said advocates hoped to see Downtown patronized to that extent every day.
JAXUSA Partnership President Jerry Mallot told the group that Downtown is a “real opportunity” and has been underappreciated. He said there’s been a national trend of people moving back into denser areas and downtowns.
“That’s what we want here,” Mallot said.
Mallot and Jacksonville Civic Council President Don Shea are Mayor Alvin Brown’s economic development strategy team. Their goal is to evaluate and recommend reforms to the City’s economic development efforts, which include Downtown.
Eliminating “needless regulations” to expedite companies to expand and relocate to the region is one of the goals.
Mallot said Brown has been an economic development and Downtown advocate.
Mallot said Brown met with an executive of a large New York-based company, which he did not identify, within the past three weeks to make the case for expanding to Jacksonville. Brown was in New York to meet with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
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