Littleton DDA reports first-year programs, expands clean-and-safe services and budgets for growth

Jenny Starkey, representing the Downtown Development Authority (DDA), gave the DDA's annual report at a Littleton City Council study session, outlining 2024 activities, a 2025 operating plan and the DDA's revenue model.

The DDA said it serves a defined downtown district and uses a combination of a voter-approved 3-mill levy and tax-increment financing (TIF) to pay for programs that enhance the public realm. "We represent 5,600 employees in Downtown Littleton, almost 800 residential units, and 407 businesses," Starkey said, describing the district and the DDA's priorities.

Nut graf: The DDA reported a first-year focus on clean-and-safe programs, marketing and event support, and said it plans to expand snow removal and micro-grants for small businesses in 2025. Financial adviser Troy Berberg told council the DDA expects the TIF portion of revenues to grow as development continues, allowing more funds for reinvestment than the current operating levy.

Highlights and finances The DDA began a cleaning-and-maintenance pilot with a private contractor, CSG, to provide sidewalk and street sweeping, trash removal, pressure washing, graffiti removal, large-item pickup and snow and ice mitigation for the downtown core. The DDA logged the contractor's activity in 2024, including 2,200 hours of snow removal and 982 counted snow-related equipment uses (logged operations). "That property tax increment, the hope is that part of the pie will become the biggest," Troy Berberg said, explaining the DDA's expectation that increment revenues from new development will fund future capital work. Berberg also noted the DDA received ARPA support from the city in 2024 as a partnership that allowed the DDA to stand up programs in its first year.

Programming and outcomes The DDA launched branding, a new website, a holiday "Sparkle & Stroll" marketing campaign (49 participating businesses), a tree sponsorship program that raised about $47,500 in community sponsorships and grants, and influencer and PR work to boost downtown foot traffic. The DDA reported close collaboration with city public works, economic development and police to coordinate maintenance, snow removal and safety efforts; the DDA said it has a regular set officer for the district and plans safety-training programming for small businesses in 2025.

Budget and next steps The DDA's operating plan for 2025 increases budgets for cleaning and snow removal and anticipates more TIF revenue as developments move forward. The DDA said it is preparing a micro-grant program for small businesses and continuing to look for sponsored and grant funding for public-realm projects. Starkey told council the DDA is considering expansion of services into hot spots such as Little's Creek Trail as budgets permit.

Ending: Council members asked clarifying questions about service area boundaries, parcel-level coordination and how services are tracked. The DDA said it will continue coordination with city departments and return to council with updates as projects and budgets evolve.