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Downtown Gig Harbor, long the envy of many other small waterfront downtowns, is finding itself in dire need of its own economic makeover |
Gig Harbor’s picturesque and quaint downtown has long been an attraction for visitors, but behind the scenes many merchants have struggled to grow their customer base. Various attempts have been made to create a revitalization plan, and now that new commercial centers and chain stores are taking shoppers to other areas of town, the city is paying close attention to its downtown, and looking for way to boost its vitality. Gig Harbor North has been booming, with Costco being the latest store to open, while on the other side of town, Borders Books opened doors in Uptown Gig Harbor recently, and several other small chain shops are on the way.
“I think there’s quite a bit of anxiety with downtown merchants because of Costco and other Gig Harbor North and Uptown businesses coming online. But …when people think of coming to Gig Harbor, they think of the harbor,” says Mayor Chuck Hunter.
The city recently hired Rod Stevens, a consultant with Bainbridge Island-based Spinnaker Strategies, to make an overview presentation on various strategies that may help revitalize the waterfront. Spinnaker said Gig Harbor is among the few cities that have “such a dramatic sense of arrival, where you literally come down the hill to the harbor.” Despite the striking scenery, historic structures and Gig Harbor’s sense of connection to its waterfront and history, however, he feels the area lacks an anchor that would create a gathering place. He said the city should focus on making downtown essential to local residents first.
“If the city makes this place work for local residents, tourists will recognize this authenticity of place and will follow residents there. All places compete for people’s time, money, attention and loyalty, and the downtown needs to have essential or anchor uses that draw locals there on a regular basis.”
The city is budgeting to hire Stevens next year for more in-depth work, according to Hunter, who hopes to see a business plan in place to draw people in.
“…I think we’re very aware that downtown businesses do struggle, and we want to do whatever we can to help create a healthy business climate downtown,” Hunter says.
In addition to budgeted capital improvements downtown next year, the city is supporting efforts to create a Main Street association. The City Council was expected to pass the 2008 budget at the end of November that included a proposal for $35,000 in seed funding for the new organization, and another $35,000 in matching funds.
Main Street is a nationwide program that was pioneered in the 1970s by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as an approach to commercial district revitalization that combines historic preservation with economic development. It has four aspects: organization, which builds consensus between various stakeholders; design, which works to enhance visual qualities of downtown; economic restructuring, which is focused on economic strengthening; and promotion, focused on marketing the area.
“It’s a question of being on the same page. We may not know what page that is today, but at least we’ll be reading from the same book,” says Steve Lynn, owner of Water to Wine shop who is chairing the exploration committee. “The Main Street approach can help solve issues — look at the size of a problem, define the scope of the problem… and come up with solutions.”
Paul Kadzik, a city councilman and downtown resident, said it takes $105,000 to get the program started, including for an executive director’s salary and recruitment. With the city poised to contribute $70,000 for the first year, the rest of the funds would come from dues and sponsorships. The state Legislature has also created incentives for businesses to support Main Street programs by taking a 75 percent Business & Occupation tax write-off. The tax incentive can be claimed the year following the donation, but it’s not guaranteed: The state capped the total statewide allocation at $1.5 million and the approval is given on first-come first served basis.
The Gig Harbor Waterfront Retail and Restaurant Association voted recently to disband at the end of this year in favor of creating a Main Street program. The association had about 80 members, and Lynn said they expect that number to be much higher once the Main Street association is official.
The exploration committee has been working on obtaining 501(C)3 status and registering with the state; to be an officially designated program, however, it has to undergo an application process through the state’s Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development. Currently the state has eight communities with official Main Street recognition, including Bainbridge (the Bainbridge Island Downtown Association), though many others use the approach and methodology.
The Washington Main Street Program has a three-tiered system that also includes startup level and downtown affiliate level. The city of Port Orchard is an affiliate.
According to the National Trust, “every dollar a community uses to support its local Main Street program leverages an average of $40.35 in new investment,” and nationwide commercial districts participating in the program have generated more than $17 billion in new investment, with a net gain of nearly 250,000 jobs.
“It’s hard to argue with its success,” Lynn says.
Ironically, downtown merchants didn’t always embrace the idea. About six years ago, a highly controversial project called Forward Together looked at downtown changes, proposing design solutions such as one-way parking. At the time of those discussions, longtime Gig Harbor resident Phillis Olson made a presentation to Gig Harbor City Council suggesting the idea of Main Street. In her letter to the council, she wrote in 2001: “This program brings benefits to all; local residents, property owners, city government, retail owners, service business owners, financial institutions, preservationists, county government and utility companies. Wouldn’t it be beneficial to bring all these people together to make a plan for prosperity in Gig Harbor? Our downtown needs attention.”
Her suggestion was brushed aside, and one waterfront retail association member said the merchants have considered Main Street, but would only use it as a last resort. “People were negative about what I said,” Olson, a former president of Old Town Business District in Tacoma, told the Business Journal in an interview in November. “It’s one of those things that eventually come around. It will help a lot.”
Lynn feels the city’s support will lend the local program credibility, because Main Street is built on public-private partnerships. Kadzik says, “The city is very optimistic this will help downtown… Our downtown is pretty good… What we need to do is make sure it stays as good as it is or gets better. It’s not an urban renewal project, it’s a preservation project.”
Stevens, who has been a vocal participant in Bainbridge’s Winslow Tomorrow (and points to that process as an example Gig Harbor should avoid), says cities’ attempts to build strong downtowns is a growing trend. “This is not unique to Gig Harbor. When you have commercial malls open away from downtown, it takes the commercial core away from downtowns. It’s not new, though it’s new to Gig Harbor, and downtowns have to redefine themselves,” he says.
The best way to do that is by making them central gathering places year-round for local residents, he suggests. The trend to revitalize downtowns “is true for both older places like Port Orchard, Bremerton, Gig Harbor and Bainbridge Island as well as newly developing places like the suburbs east, north and south of Seattle,” he says. “People are hungry for the energy that one finds in civic places. They spend a lot of time alone at work, in their homes, or shopping at the local center, and at some point they want to go out and have other people around them, without this being a shopping mall. Downtowns provide this.”
For Mayor Hunter, the idea of a strong downtown goes yet further. He says it’s the key to making the city overall an attractive place. “One of the things I’d like to work on next year personally is making Gig Harbor a good place to be (for companies) and to relocate,” he says. “If we have a healthy downtown, it will complement what we’re doing in the rest of the city.”
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