Program Aims To Boost Foot Traffic For Downtown Restaurants, Retailers
Sep 17, 2020, 11:54 PM | Updated: Sep 18, 2020, 3:20 pm
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Dozens of people gathered downtown Thursday for the debut of the new Downtown SLC Open Streets program, which is aimed at boosting foot traffic for the area’s restaurants and retailers.
Northbound traffic shut down for pedestrians between 300 South and 400 South before 6:00 p.m. as restaurants expanded their patio service along Main Street’s wide sidewalks.
Downtown Alliance executive director Dee Brewer said street performers will also pop up for performances from Exchange Place to City Creek in the coming weeks.
“What are our goals?” Brewer explained. “They’re pretty modest. We just want to bring 2,000 new people downtown each weekend. We want to see spending at restaurants and retailers, who are hit particularly hard by the pandemic.”
While the event is geared toward making downtown more inviting, organizers urged people to continue to wear masks and socially-distance during their visits.
The event will continue to run from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. every Thursday, Friday and Saturday through Oct. 10.
Brewer said while the COVID-19 pandemic added relevancy, business leaders have been toying with this idea for far longer.
“I think the genesis is in what we’ve seen successfully in Santa Monica and Denver and Montreal and cities across the country that have very popular walking boulevards and promenades,” Brewer said. “We’re excited to do that here in Salt Lake.”
Brewer said the hope this will become a long-term event that will resume next year.
“The weather is great, it’s a great time to be distanced downtown and enjoy the city,” Brewer said.
