New marketing plan urged for downtown Sylvania
6/18/2008A marketing plan to replace one that's more than 25 years old should be drafted before any development changes are made to downtown Sylvania, a City Council subcommittee has decided.
Mark Luetke, chair of the group, said decisions concerning parking, determining a good mixture of businesses, and other issues would be made on a more solid basis after a study is completed.
The full scope of such a plan hasn't been determined nor is there a specific time when the issue will be considered by the full council.
Nevertheless, Mr. Luetke said the city should update the data contained in the 1982 document.
Discussions concerning the downtown and other business-oriented sites in the city will continue to be the center of meetings of the economic development subcommittee.
The group, which is meeting every two weeks, was formed to give council members a closer look at city economic issues and to give the community an additional place to voice their interest in development.
The idea of creating an entertainment district in the downtown so more liquor permits would be available is being looked at by Jim Moan, the city's law director.
Any action on that will also likely wait for completion of a marketing plan.
Mr. Luetke said that a plan should detail things such as vehicular traffic, community income, and number of homes, and should give prospective businesses an idea of the consumers in the area.
It should also suggest to officials what types of businesses would be a good fit for the area and what the city might do in terms of recruitment.
Other city areas which will be discussed at future meetings are Alexis Road near Whiteford Road, the area of Alexis and Monroe Street, Sylvania Avenue and King Road, and Brint and McCord roads.
When the last site is discussed, the panel may include Brint and Main Street as a nearby center of business.