Page 11 - BusinessWest April 4, 2022

erate Downtown.”
While noting the downtown area is
“very walkable” and has solid enter- tainment anchors, the report also pointed out that Greenfield took a big- ger economic hit from COVID than other communities. According to the plan document, more than 70% of downtown businesses said they lost money in 2020 and in 2021, and two- thirds said they were still far behind their pre-COVID levels of business.
Foot traffic also suffered as 97% of the local merchants said fewer people visited their businesses. MJ Adams, the city’s director of Community and Economic Development, said the community is in many ways a place of necessity because it serves as a hub for Franklin County and attracts people
in from surrounding towns for the YMCA, the John W. Olver Transit Cen- ter, and other regional assets.
“Greenfield is not a place you happen to go, it’s a place where you are drawn to. Once here, it’s our job to help people make the best use of their visit to downtown.”
“Greenfield is not a place you hap- pen to go, it’s a place where you are drawn to,” Adams said. “Once here, it’s our job to help people make the best use of their visit to downtown.”
One idea to bring more people downtown involved blocking Court Square in front of City Hall to create a pedestrian-friendly area with the adja- cent town common. Tried for the first time last year, the effort was framed by Wedegartner as a pilot project that received positive reviews from people who enjoyed the weekly farmer’s mar- ket as well as the opportunity to relax at bistro tables and Adirondack chairs with eats from nearby food trucks. The only negative feedback came from some residents who couldn’t find parking near City Hall.
“We learned that people who have lived here for years did not know we have an accessible parking lot behind City Hall,” Wedegartner said. “This year, we’ll adjust the plan to make sure people know about all our parking.”
City staff spent so much energy
to establish the space last year, they couldn’t give much thought to what programs could be offered there, Adams noted. “This year, we’re doing it the other way around. Now that peo- ple have seen the space, they are ask- ing us when they can use it this year.”
Out and About
Indeed, a public open space was
among the recommendations from the “Deliberate Downtown” report, which suggested this would be a good way to encourage more foot traffic downtown. According to Letourneau, this is not the first time the open- space idea has been suggested.
“We found plans from previous administrations that discussed closing off the Court Square area dating as far back as 1985,” she said.
The Court Square space now oper- ates from May to November, and once she can find the budget for it, Wede- gartner wants to redesign the area,
Greenfield
Continued on page 14
Greenfield Mayor Roxann Wedegartner says Main Street will undergo much change over the next five years.
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BusinessWest
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
APRIL 4, 2022
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