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Committee reviews draft placemaking survey and funding options for downtown projects
Summary
The committee reviewed draft placemaking survey questions intended to guide downtown projects, discussed distribution methods (QR code, mailer, online), recommended refining questions and timing, and noted a downtown facade reserve of about $158,000 with $20,000 currently committed.
The New London Economic Development Committee reviewed draft survey questions aimed at gathering resident input on downtown placemaking and discussed how the city would use the results.
Chad presented a set of high-level multiple-choice questions intended to encourage completion and added two open-ended prompts for additional ideas. Committee members urged clarity about the survey’s purpose and follow-up: ‘‘If we put out a survey, what are we gonna do with the information? What are you guys looking at? What do you wanna gain from this survey?’’ Chad said, asking the committee to clarify the intended next steps.
Committee members recommended balancing quick multiple-choice items with options to rank preferences and an open comments field. One member suggested a postcard with a QR code to increase response rates; Chad said he planned to distribute the survey through multiple venues (online, mailer, community partners) to increase reach. Committee members also raised whether the city would use the results to inform capital-project requests or to hand findings to community partners such as the arts league, Lions Club or developers.
On funding, Chad said the downtown/facade economic-development reserve currently showed about $158,000, but roughly $20,000 was already committed to approved facade grants that have not yet been completed. ‘‘So that amount of money about $20,000 earmarked already for projects that have been approved… out of that $158,000 take off 20,000 right now for potential projects,’’ he said.
The committee asked staff to refine the questions, propose distribution methods and return with a concrete plan and timeline for releasing the survey.
What comes next: staff will refine the questionnaire, confirm channels (including a potential QR-code postcard), and present a game plan at the next meeting for approval and possible inclusion in the city’s capital request process if site-specific work or consultant hiring is recommended.
