3 5 D O W N T O W N Placemaking and Programming The new placemaking initiative of Downtown Wichita is aimed to program underutilized parks, plazas and open spaces in the district as a means to increase community engagement and vibrancy. A recent example and success story is the Pop-Up Park (121 E. Douglas) that the Downtown Wichita organization, in collaboration with multiple community partners, completed with grant funding from the Knight Foundation Fund at the Wichita Community Foundation in 2015. What was an eyesore known as the “hole on Douglas” is now a vibrant public space activated each day with food trucks drawing hundreds of people to the space over the lunch hour. Due to the success of the Pop-Up Park, Downtown Wichita, through the leadership of the SSMID Advisory Board, committed to stakeholders to carry out additional placemaking initiatives to help activate multiple locations. The first major project was announced in the second quarter of 2017, Gallery Alley, which transformed an underutilized alleyway off of Douglas Avenue into a pedestrian-oriented space that can be utilized for outdoor dining and activated with unique events like Final Friday each month. The Knight Foundation Fund at the Community Foundation provided the grant funding for the project. Additional projects and programming will take place throughout 2017, many activating underutilized spaces in the district. People First Pilot Project The People-First Pilot Project was designed to decrease the street footprint, increase the pedestrian right of way and add vibrancy to Downtown Wichita through the addition of temporary seating, barriers and painting. A volunteer group coordinated efforts to install the pilot project along Main Street between the Douglas and William intersections near High Touch Technologies and INTRUST Bank in Downtown Wichita. This pilot project was funded by the Knight Foundation Fund at the Wichita Community Foundation; other project partners include Health ICT, Bike Walk Wichita and the City of Wichita. The pilot was up during the annual River Festival, which exposed many visitors and Wichitans to the impact that temporary interventions in streetscape can have on design perception. Bicycle Fix-It Repair Station Downtown Wichita partnered with the City of Wichita to install a bicycle repair station at the intersection of Douglas and Topeka. The station was well received and has paved the way for additional stations to be installed throughout the community. Downtown Wichita acted as the fiscal sponsor for the installation and is responsible for maintenance. IMAGE ENHANCEMENT