Bill Fulton, a city council member for Ventura, California, offers an insider's view on adoption of the city's downtown retail and office strategy. The consultant's report.
"Last night, the council gave the green-light for the 'Downtown Retail and Office Strategy'. This marks the first time that we have had a game plan not just for downtown real estate but for downtown business – based on our understanding of why people go downtown, what they buy, and what businesses are doing well there."
..."Focus on arts-related offices. There's considerable evidence that arts-related office-based businesses are congregating downtown, mostly because of the arts and culture scene. Drawing more of them is a good idea. But there are lots of other businesses – known in the economic development business as the 'creative class' – who like to be in artsy areas too. These include design professionals, software companies, entrepreneurs, and consultants who engage in a lot of creative work and like to be in a creative environment."
The second link also includes a link to download a PDF version of the agenda item and the Retail & Office Market Analysis and Business Development Plan for Downtown Ventura report produced by The Community Land Use and Economics Group, LLC (CLUE).
FULL STORY: The Downtown Strategy
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