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2008-12-04  ALPHARETTA AND ROSWELL REVUE & NEWS | Alpharetta: Growing downtown
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| | by Bob Pepalis | | |
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| | | Kathy An Kessler, owner of The Galérie, and Economic Development Coordinator Christopher Jones look over the city’s Downtown Facade Grant program guidelines. (click for larger version) | |
December 03, 2008
ALPHARETTA – An economy that at best is stalled has Christopher Jones, Alpharetta's economic development coordinator, taking small steps to help the city's downtown grow.
And those small steps will pay big dividends in the long run, Jones said.
"I've taken [on] other communities in metro Atlanta, and I've seen great results by being consistent," he said.
One of those steps is the Downtown Facade Grant program. In the program, a business owner can receive a grant matching their investment up to $1,500 to make improvements to business fronts – or the back side of the buildings.
New awnings, new signs, paint and perhaps more major exterior work on structures not compatible with the prevailing architecture of downtown Alpharetta could be funded through the matching grant program. The program requires the business owner to match the grant.
And the Downtown Facade Grant doesn't have to be a one-time project. Business owners can apply for one grant each year. The application will be reviewed first by city staff and then by the Design and Review Board.
"It's just that easy. It's a very simple process," Jones said.
Since he was hired by Community Development Director Diana Wheeler, Jones has made sure the arbors installed by the city in downtown are repaired and repainted. In addition, several park benches have been fixed or replaced by the Public Works department. Street signs and poles have also been replaced.
Every month Jones plans to work with the Downtown Alpharetta Trade Association on areas in which collaboration is wanted.
The city wants local residents to feel that this is their downtown, too, he said. The Community Development department is reaching out to the business community's office parks to let them know downtown is here, and what services it offers.
Alpharetta is lucky that is has a successful development community with corporate business and retail growth, Jones said. Much of those growth areas, such as Old Milton Parkway, work on their own with no other help needed.
Downtown is a niche business area, requiring the city to work on an individualized basis. After the next 18 months, Jones expects residents will see a difference there.
It requires developing relationships with the merchants, but also developing them with potential merchants and developers who may be interested in downtown.
Oft-cited traffic and parking problems many times are really management issues, said Jones.
"Traffic is here to stay. There's no getting around it," he said.
Simple answers include having merchants park in the rear or on municipal lots, to free spaces up front. Just adding parking signs directing motorists to lots helps. Convincing visitors and customers to park a block away from their destination will expose them to other businesses they might otherwise never frequent, he said.
"And it's worked hundreds of years that way," he said.
Jones is challenged with finding a way to slow traffic on Ga. 9, a state highway, so people realize downtown is there.
"Our downtown is different than downtowns we see in Roswell and Norcross. Some things are the same, but issues are very different," Jones said.
 View images.
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Reader Comments
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Fluff
December 07, 2008 | 11:24 AM
This article is all fluff, no substance. This seems like a public relations piece from Alpharetta. This is not news. What is really going on in downtown Alpharetta?
Tom, Alpharetta
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