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HomeMy WebLinkAboutReport - Mail Packet - 3/5/2019 - Downtown Fort Collins Ambassador Program Summary 2016-2018AMBASSADOR PROGRAM SUMMARY 2016 - 2018 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY For the past three years, the Downtown Business Association’s (DBA) Downtown Ambassador Program has addressed ongoing challenges related to perceptions of safety and parking in Old Town. These on-the-street employees facilitated the DBA’s mission of advancing the vitality and prosperity of the downtown district by serving businesses’ needs and providing visitors and residents with hospitality and information; their helpful and friendly presence resulted in a more welcoming, safe and accessible downtown environment. Uniformed in highly visible branded orange shirts, the ambassadors walked the streets of Old Town Fort Collins 40-hours per week, rain or shine. They assisted patrons with directions, provided recommendations and gave answers per the “who, what, where and why” of our pedestrian-friendly shopping and entertainment district. The ambassadors excelled as “mobile marketers” who tastefully scanned the sidewalks to inform visitors of community happenings, special events and retail promotions. Their regular patrols also functioned as extra sets of eyes and ears on the streetscape, as the team of ambassadors actively communicated with merchants, business owners, police, DBA sta and the Outreach Fort Collins street team. By always making themselves available, and by keeping visitors informed of the pulse of downtown in friendly fashion, the Ambassador Program has become part of the fabric of Old Town Fort Collins. James Yearling DEPUTY DIRECTOR DOWNTOWN FORT COLLINS BUSINESS ASSOCIATION In 2015, the City of Fort Collins provided the DBA $25,000 per year over the next three years to launch a Downtown Ambassador Pilot Program, designed to combat ongoing challenges related to perceptions of safety and parking in the downtown district. In turn, the 2016 program ran Memorial Day through Labor Day with two full-time employees. In 2017, the pilot program was expanded to include a third full-time ambassador. In 2018, the program utilized three employees and also featured expanded hours of operations that included stang during the early evening hours. Over the course of three summers, eight Downtown Ambassadors assisted 11,650 guests and made 1,489 stops at downtown businesses. Outreach and engagement during the creation of the DBA’s 2015-2020 Strategic Plan revealed that the number one challenge to doing business in Downtown Fort Collins is “Parking.” The number two challenge is “Safety.” According to survey feedback and interviews conducted with community leaders, business owners, downtown residents, city ocials and the DBA’s 200-plus members, the perception of inconvenience and expenses related to parking is top-of-mind, followed closely by safety considerations, such as the increased observations of disruptive behaviors in the form of aggressive panhandling. With that in mind, the Downtown Ambassador program was designed to be welcoming and informative, but was also meant to serve as an on-the-street public relations eort directed toward addressing the negative perceptions – and misperceptions – regarding the accessibility and safety of the downtown district. Lastly, it should be noted that the City denied a continued funding oer to support the Ambassador Program during the 2019-2020 Budgeting for Outcomes process. BACKGROUND / 2 BACKGROUND METRICS: EXECUTION, OUTCOMES AND REACH In order to measure program eectiveness, note success and examine methods for continuous improvement, the Ambassadors tracked metrics during every shift, Tuesday through Sunday, encompassing a range of hours from 9:30am-7:00pm. Over three summers, the Downtown Ambassadors have provided thousands of referrals for shopping, eating, parking and entertainment to hundreds of downtown businesses, establishments, promotions and special events. Tracking categories included “number of guests assisted,” referrals by category, and specific business visits. METRICS: EXECUTION, OUTCOMES & REACH / 3 DBA DOWNTOWN AMBASSADOR PROGRAM METRICS: 2016, 2017, 2018 521 2,355 155 1,169 Total Miles Walked 2016 303 258 134 Total Guests Assisted Visitations to Businesses General Referrals Shopping Referrals Entertainment & Arts-based Referrals Transportation/Directions/Parking 47 17 N/A “Disruptive Behavior” Calls Received Police & Outreach Street Team Contacts Ambassador Program Compliments 2016 2,455 11,650 1,489 5,425 2,574 4,111 1,264 115 127 348 3-Year Total Dining Referrals 474 4,746 2017 825 4,937 575 2,292 1,283 2,231 417 42 81 159 2,451 2018 1,109 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT & PARTNERSHIP SUPPORT This public-private partnership Ambassador Program was made possible through financial support from the City of Fort Collins, sponsorship pledges from the private sector and partnerships with social service providers, local non-profits, business owners, Colorado State University and Fort Collins Police Services. Specifically, UCHealth, Odell Brewing Company, and Kaiser Permanente came to the table as sponsors. In addition to the financial commitment from the community, the quality of the program and the eectiveness of ambassadors’ day-to-day interactions were driven by coordination with downtown stakeholders, businesses and partners. Before ambassadors hit the streets, they each completed a one-week experiential “crash course” hosted by, and in conjunction with, business owners, our local Visitor’s Bureau (Visit Fort Collins), Colorado State University’s External Relations sta, the Fort Collins Downtown Development Authority, Police Services and DBA sta. This cumulative week of walking tours and orientation-based trainings covered key downtown destinations, public amenities, historical facts, community happenings and plenty of behind-the-scenes experiences of restaurants, popular retail locales, breweries and general “spaces and places” of our historic district. The ambassadors were also directed to visit first-floor businesses to enjoy firsthand the breadth, width and quality of our district’s business mix and independent retailers. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT & PARTNERSHIP SUPPORT / 4 COMMUNITY IMPACT In addition to sharing promotional messages and helpful information to visitors, the ambassadors also played an important supplementary role in helping to fill a void in the realm of public safety and services related to issues such as aggressive panhandling and disruptive behaviors. The ambassadors’ regular presence and proactive observations helped Police Services accurately direct and allocate resources and provided business owners with a civilian point of contact, as opposed to calling a phone tree or dispatch operator at the police station, which sometimes also results in a costly bill to tax payers. As part of this eort to bridge the gap between police and emergency personnel and the general public, the Ambassadors worked closely with the Fort Collins Police Department and the Outreach Fort Collins Street Team, a Fort Collins-based team of social service professionals whose primary objective is to build relationships with those experiencing homelessness in an eort to connect them with services. Together, the ambassadors and Outreach Fort Collins sta actively communicate to reduce tensions if disruptive behaviors arise that may aect business operations or the visitor experience. Nick Verni-Lau, Director of Outreach Fort Collins, stated the following regarding a call from an Ambassador during a shift in summer of 2017: “Garrison called to us today regarding a brewing situation. At the time of the call, there was no pressing need for us to respond immediately, but he let me know what he was observing, as he thought it might be a good idea to check on these individuals. It couldn't have been better or more appropriate. His proactive call gave our sta an idea of the situation before it got out of control and I firmly believe that it prevented a potential fight, emergency response, or disruptive scene. I would also like to echo that this isn't the first time the Ambassador team has made appropriate calls to us. Compared to last year, the team's understanding, utilization, and communication with Outreach Fort Collins has gone above and beyond.” COMMUNITY IMPACT / 5 PROGRAM SUMMARY While successful in 2016, 2017 and 2018, the future of the program is uncertain, as the City denied a continued funding oer to support the program as part of the 2019-2020 Budgeting for Outcomes process. The DBA wishes to continue the program and hopes to garner adequate private sector support. Ultimately, the Downtown Business Association has been eective in implementing an innovative, positive and public-facing solution to address the business district’s biggest challenges, Parking and Safety. The Ambassador Program has provided a strategic advantage for the retailers and members within our district and continues to help propel the DBA’s mission of advancing the vitality and prosperity of the Downtown Fort Collins historic business district. PROGRAM SUMMARY / 6 Photo credits: Tim O’Hara, Cover, pg. 1 Chris Fuller, pg. 6 DOWNTOWN FORT COLLINS BUSINESS ASSOCIATION STAFF 4,358 759 1,964 988 1,622 713 26 29 189 1,821