Midtown Business District Launches Initiatives to Support Local Businesses

The Midtown Business Improvement District (BID) is launching a number of new initiatives this summer, targeted towards supporting local businesses and welcoming visitors and consumers back to the retail corridor following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Midtown BID was established in 2017 to support Midtown commercial property owners and businesses in collectively planning, funding, and implementing projects and programs. The BID is a special taxing district that utilizes its funding to support investments in business support, placemaking, and maintenance, marketing, promotion, and activation. Since its creation, the 9-member board of directors has been laying the groundwork for some bigger projects – many of which went on hold during the pandemic.

In June, the Midtown BID rolled out a number of new initiatives and teased other projects and programs underway.  One such project is the new Midtown BID Website and Social Media; the Midtown BID has rolled out a complete update to their website at www.midtownfc.org. The site now features a searchable business directory, which provides information about every business in the Midtown BID via a map that allows you to search for businesses by category, then find their website and contact information. The site also now features a Midtown calendar of events and a news section. And, for the first time, the Midtown BID is on social media, with a listing on Facebook at @FCMidtownBID.

Also, in the works is the ‘Midtown Bound’ BID E-Newsletter. The BID’s monthly e-news brief will share information about projects, programs, events, and more happening within Midtown Fort Collins, produced by the Midtown Business Improvement District (BID). Those interested in receiving more information about Midtown can sign up on the BID website.

Another project underway is the Midtown BID Wayfinding and Signage Program. One of the Midtown community’s priorities to form the BID was to welcome branded Midtown signage and wayfinding in order to establish a clear identity for the district. Earlier this year, the Midtown BID partnered with local design firm One Tribe Creative to begin the process of designing – and identifying potential locations for – new branded signage for the corridor. In the coming months, they will be working with the City of Fort Collins to establish the process for placement of the signs. By year’s end, their first new signage should be close to being placed.

And finally, the Foothills Mall’s summer concert series is back and better than ever with the local Maker’s Market, and this year the Midtown BID is a proud sponsor. Everyone is invited to grab their lawn chairs, blankets, and dancing shoes for this free, fun, family-friendly community event in the heart of Midtown. The event will take place every Friday from June 18 to September 24 and will feature local artisans and bands from all over Northern Colorado. As part of the Midtown BID’s sponsorship, BID businesses can sign up to have an on-site presence at one of the Friday events in one of two Midtown BID 10×10 tents.

In November 2020, the Midtown BID welcomed Jamie Giellis as part-time Executive Director. Jamie has more than 20 years of experience working with Business Improvement Districts via her company Centro Inc. In fact, Jamie worked with Midtown on a number of planning efforts dating back to 2010 and helped form the BID in 2017. Jamie has worked with more than 50 BIDs around the US (and the world!) and comes to Midtown after a successful 5-year run helping to establish, manage and grow the RiNo Art District BID in Denver. To get in touch, you can email her at [email protected].

Over the last few months, the Midtown BID Street Team has also been going door to door to local Midtown businesses to understand their concerns and needs. In the coming months, the Midtown BID will be working to launch some specific programs aimed at creating collaborations between local Midtown businesses, driving visitor traffic to the corridor, and creating interesting opportunities to explore the district. The BID is developing a number of collaborations with local community partners to undertake programming, events, and more.

To stay up-to-date on all Midtown happenings, visit MidtownFC.org for events and news, sign up for the monthly newsletter, and follow Midtown on Facebook at @FCMidtownBID.