Happenings in the Heart of the Bull City
August 2022
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- News
- Event Highlights
- Biz Briefs
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- Ambassador Stories
- Clean & Safe Stats
- Meetings, Trainings & Forums
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Welcome Alexandra Benson, DDI's New Placekeeping & Events Manager! |
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I am very happy to announce that Alexandra Benson has joined DDI as the new Placekeeping & Events Manager.
In this critical role, Alexandra will focus on placekeeping initiatives, public activations and event strategies for the organization. Placekeeping – sometimes known as placemaking – is about transforming public spaces to strengthen the connections between people and these places.
Alexanda brings a wealth of experience to the role. Prior to joining DDI, she worked with the City of Durham's Cultural and Public Art Program to support equitable public art processes, evolving cultural policy, capacity building for artists, and a festival and special event grant funding program. Her portfolio of work includes municipal-led cultural and public art programming, community-informed placekeeping, grassroots arts advancement and reflecting on power and privilege as it relates to the creative sector.
Alexandra graduated from Salem College with a Bachelor of Arts in Arts Management and Communication, and from North Carolina State University with a Master's of Public Administration (MPA).
We are thrilled to have her on the DDI team!
Nicole J. Thompson
President & CEO
Downtown Durham, Inc.
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Downtown Durham Social District Update
The ordinance required to get a social district up and running in downtown Durham is still being vetted by city staff. The earliest the social district could be approved by City Council is September 19. Once approved, there will be a 30-45 day lead time in order to create and install necessary signage. So the earliest the downtown Durham social district could become operational is late October or early November. As we work through this process with the city, please continue to share your support or thoughts about the district with DDI, city staff and elected officials.
If you own a downtown business and have not done so already, please also take a moment to complete the preliminary opt-in/opt-out form indicating whether you will participate in the social district.
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PASS THE AUX @ BORICUA SOUL • AUGUST 19 |
Free live hip hop in the heart of the American Tobacco Campus, every third Friday!
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FOSTER STREET BLOCK PARTY • AUGUST 28 |
Join Durham Central Park and surrounding businesses for a Foster Street Block Party!
Cool people. Cool stuff. Live music.
• Ben Lassiter Band (11 a.m. - 3 p.m.) at Durham Central Park
• Little Red Birds Painting/Music Duo (11 a.m. - 3 p.m.) inside the Durham Food Hall
• Alcohol provided by The Glass Jug
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ALLEY TWENTY SIX'S 10TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER • SEPTEMBER 8 |
The downtown Durham cocktail bar and restaurant was one of five finalists in this year’s Outstanding Bar Program in the James Beard Foundation’s annual restaurant and chef awards. Alley Twenty Six was the first North Carolina bar or restaurant nominated in this national category. Executive chef Carrie Schleiffer has designed a menu to pair with tastings of the cocktail bar’s most popular drinks, including the Mexican Herbalist, Alley Cocktail and more.
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Small Plates Crawl
Every Thursday night, visit participating downtown restaurants and bars for a special menu! Some venues will highlight a special small plate, others will offer discounts and some will provide pairings from their bar. Visit durhamsmallplatescrawl.com for more info and a list of participating restaurants.
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The Mix at Durham Station
Start your Third Friday off right! GoDurham and DDI present The Mix with music from DJ Piddipat, 3:30-6:30 p.m. at Durham Station on August 19.
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Third Friday Art Walk & Gallery Crawl
Visit galleries and other art venues downtown and beyond on August 19 and every third Friday of the month! Find a complete list of Third Friday events, and submit your own, at thirdfridaydurham.org.
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This month's featured artwork:
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Biz Briefs highlight important information for businesses in the Downtown Business Improvement District. Items are curated by the DDI Director of Business Engagement, Tiffany Bashore. Contact Tiffany for more information about anything included in this section or for assistance, questions or concerns about starting, running or growing a business in downtown Durham.
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DISCOUNTED ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITY IN DDI SECTION OF DURHAM MAGAZINE'S DOWNTOWN ISSUE |
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Each year, Durham Magazine produces an issue dedicated to featuring downtown Durham stories. This year, we've partnered with the magazine to market downtown businesses by helping to sponsor a special DDI section. Durham Mag is offering a discounted rate for businesses that advertise in our section.
Rates:
¼ page – $750
½ page – $1,325
Download this document for more information about Durham Mag and the special offer. If you’re interested in participating, please let me know by Friday, August 19 to reserve your ad space.
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EVENT: GREATER DURHAM CHAMBER OF COMMERCE MID-YEAR ECONOMIC OUTLOOK, PRESENTED BY BANK OF AMERICA |
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The key to ensuring businesses benefit from our growing economy is understanding its drivers and opportunities. Join the Chamber on Tuesday, August 30 at 1:15 p.m. to learn more about Durham’s economic development efforts and how we all are sharing in the growth.
This program features a keynote from Bank of America economist, Joseph Quinlan, an update from a stakeholder in a local project, and a discussion from a workforce development panel.
The event is free and open to the community with a ticketed reception to follow. Ticketed reception will feature networking opportunities not available during the program, appetizers, and an open bar.
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The Traffic Report Calendar lists events and happenings that may affect foot traffic and/or parking. It includes road closures and major events happening downtown.
Subscribe to the calendar or view it online for the most up-to-date information.
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DOWNTOWN VISITORS: July 2022 |
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DDI has begun using new technology that extrapolates the number of unique visitors and visits to downtown based on cell phone data. The figures below include those who remain in the area for a minimum of seven minutes. Residents and employees are removed. The data can be filtered for smaller areas, and comparison figures are available for previous months or years. Contact Rebekah Mixon to request a custom report.
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▶ American Tobacco District
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268,800
Visits
39,968
Average Week
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177,000
Unique Visitors
Saturday
Busiest Day
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5,710
Visitors Per Day
7-8 p.m.
Busiest Hour
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87,700
Visits
13,458
Average Week
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59,600
Unique Visitors
Saturday
Busiest Day
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1,923
Visitors Per Day
12-1 a.m.
Busiest Hour
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181,900
Visits
24,523
Average Week
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108,600
Unique Visitors
Saturday
Busiest Day
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3,503
Visitors Per Day
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Busiest Hour
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186,000
Visits
26,239
Average Week
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116,200
Unique Visitors
Saturday
Busiest Day
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3,748
Visitors Per Day
7-8 p.m.
Busiest Hour
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41,800
Visits
5,234
Average Week
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23,400
Unique Visitors
Friday
Busiest Day
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755
Visitors Per Day
12-1 p.m.
Busiest Hour
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▶ Government Services District
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128,000
Visits
16,710
Average Week
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74,000
Unique Visitors
Friday
Busiest Day
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2,387
Visitors Per Day
10-11 a.m.
Busiest Hour
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64,800
Visits
8,897
Average Week
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39,400
Unique Visitors
Saturday
Busiest Day
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1,271
Visitors Per Day
6-7 p.m.
Busiest Hour
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The following businesses recently opened or closed in downtown Durham. |
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Music Store
124 E. Main St.
Contact: Chaz Martenstein
Restaurant: Pan-Asian
506 E. Ramseur St.
Contact: Giorgios Bakatsias
Performing Arts
506 E. Ramseur St.
Contact: Derrick Ivey
Personal Services
105 W. Morgan St.
Contact: Renae Beck
Ice Cream
900 W. Main St.
Contacts: Fergus Bradley & Mark Cromwell
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Restaurant: Mexican
Contact: Charlie Deal
Bulk Groceries
Moving outside BID
Contact: T.M. Land
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Mid-Summer Ambassador Team Update: August 2022 |
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Erik Nystrom, Clean and Safe Operations Manager
It usually happens to me at this point in the middle of the summer every year – that moment when I realize that working, living and playing outside in a convection oven starts to wear on me. After living in the Triangle for more than 20 years now, my body has long since acclimated to the long, hot and humid summers that are normal for us here. But it still starts to get a little old as we round the corner to Labor Day. Being a native of Southern New England, my wife and kids and I take an annual summer vacation to Cape Cod – my old summer stomping grounds. The time away allows me to refresh and recharge my batteries, and it gives me new energy to start looking ahead to the busy autumn season downtown.
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As my team and I start thinking and planning ahead now for the fall and winter months, we have been using the brief, relative slowdown of mid-summer to conduct some new training and refresher training for the entire team. Over the last few weeks, your Ambassador Team has received training in: conflict resolution and de-escalation tactics, crowd management skills and best practices, as well as annual health and safety training. The team enjoys not only the training and content, but also a brief break from the heat! I’ve included a picture of one of the recent training sessions, and a pic of the team working on grass cutting.
Please reach out to us if you need any assistance. Your Ambassador Team is always ready and happy to help! Be safe, stay cool and enjoy the last part of summer.
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Downtown Durham's dedicated Ambassador Team provides much needed clean and safe services. From sweeping and cleaning the streets, to providing directions for visitors, to jumpstarting car batteries, our ambassadors are here to help. Have questions? Just stop one and ask. Need to submit a service request? Call 919-682-BULL (2855) or submit a request online.
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Clean and Safe Service
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Brickwork Laying (Square Feet)
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Trash Bags Collected
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Graffiti Removed - Paint
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Graffiti Removed - Stickers
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Customer Service (Directions, Battery Jumps, Etc.)
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Panhandlers/Outreach/Social Service Referral
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June 2022
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0
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9220
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20
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180
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33
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52
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Sep. 6, 19
Aug. 18, Sep. 8, 22
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Regular Meetings: 1st & 3rd Mondays at 7 p.m.
Work Sessions: Two Thursdays prior to Council meetings
at 1 p.m.
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Aug. 22; Sep. 12, 28
Sep. 6
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Regular Meetings: 2nd & 4th Mondays at 7 p.m.
Work Sessions: 1st Monday at 9 a.m.
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Downtown Durham, Inc.
307 W. Main St. • #102
Durham, NC 27701
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This newsletter serves the businesses, residents and property owners
We're grateful for their support of DDI and downtown Durham.
We also thank the City of Durham for entrusting DDI to provide the BID services
that keep downtown Durham a clean, safe and vibrant place.
Want to know if an address is within the BID?
SHOP LOCAL!
Support downtown businesses with the SpendaBull gift card.
Your feedback on this newsletter is welcome.
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For up-to-the-minute information on happenings in the heart of the Bull City:
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