The Wichita community has completed its second phase of planning for the Downtown Wichita Action Plan (Action Plan)!
The Action Plan will serve as a roadmap to guide the next decade of development and programming in downtown Wichita. To build the plan, Downtown Wichita has partnered with urban design firm Sasaki to collect community input across three phases: Immerse, Ideate & Iterate, and Align & Act.
Phase 2 brought together more than 250 community members, business leaders, elected officials and cultural organizations to refine the “big ideas” for downtown’s development. Through an open house, stakeholder workshops, design charrettes and a pop-up event, individuals provided feedback on design strategies and overall priorities.
Here’s a snapshot of what the team learned in Phase 2:
Living & Working
Quality of Life
56% of Open House attendees said they want to live downtown in the future.
A grocery store was the No. 1 most requested new amenity. Specifically, the community expressed a desire that a store be developed in close proximity to housing and new developments like the Wichita Biomedical Campus℠.
Residents emphasized the need for a cleaner, safer and greener urban environment that’s well-connected to the Arkansas River.
Housing Preferences
While only 30% of the current downtown housing stock is available for ownership, two-thirds of Wichitans said they’d prefer to buy rather than rent downtown, highlighting opportunities for additional condominium and townhouse development in the city’s core.
Work + Third Spaces
Wichitans want to see more activity beyond 9 to 5, with “third places” like cafés, shaded outdoor areas and flexible public spaces that support human connection and collaboration.
Getting Around
Streets + Connections
Participants prioritized these key streets for upgrades: Douglas, Broadway, Emporia, William and English.
Community feedback emphasized the need for safer crossings, more shade and vibrant street-level activity, especially near the new Wichita Biomedical Campus℠.
Transit Improvements
There is strong support for improved bus service with more frequent, direct routes and better connectivity to destinations across downtown.
Landscape & Public Realm
Open Space
Participants want new family-friendly spaces and parks, especially in underutilized areas off Douglas Avenue, along with features such as farmers' markets and shaded areas.
Riverfront Reimagining
Wichitans envision the Arkansas River as an active public anchor with walkable, bikeable and shaded connections to key assets.
History & Culture
Creative Storytelling
The community wants to celebrate Wichita’s rich history with storytelling trails linking sites like Century II, the Keeper of the Plains and the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum.
Wichitans also expressed their interest in building a new performing arts center to bring more cultural programming to the heart of downtown.
The input gathered during Phase 2 is actively informing the next steps of the Action Plan. Click here to view the full Phase 2 engagement summary report.
Save the Date: Final Open House
The community is invited to the final Action Plan Open House on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, from 3 to 6:30 p.m. at Downtown Wichita, 501 E. Douglas Ave.
Outside the building, several parking spaces will be temporarily transformed into a mock streetscape, reimagining what Douglas Avenue could look and feel like if redesigned.
Inspired by a similar planning exercise in Austin, Texas and tailored for Wichita, this interactive streetscape demonstration will include creative activations to spark ideas and feedback.
Inside the building, attendees will learn how their feedback has helped shape the evolving plan. They’ll have an opportunity to build three-dimensional streetscapes to show how they’d like downtown to look in 2035.
This Open House will serve as both a summary of what’s been gathered so far and a final opportunity to directly contribute to the vision that will guide downtown development for the next decade.
