Knowledge Center
Policy and Advocacy
The urban place manager advocates for resources and policy in support of the successful management of equitable and inclusive urban places. Ensuring the success of a managed place requires identifying and implementing the appropriate policies representing the values, mission, and objectives of a place’s strategic plan. While seeking to maximize a user’s experience within a place, the urban place manager acts as a convener and facilitator for various stakeholders including, the private sector, local and regional government, community organizations, and everyone who interacts with the place. The place manager is tasked with the ability to win the trust and confidence of a diverse group of stakeholders, understand the issues confronting the urban district from a multitude of perspectives, and manage complex partnerships to focus on the district’s issues, projects and initiatives.
Case Studies (& Group Therapy) in Community Engagement
Case Studies and Group Therapy in Community Engagement provides a trust-based framework for sustained community partnership. Readers gain engagement stages, six operating principles, boundary-setting guidance and implementation cases. Outcomes include a community-led BID expansion, ongoing advisory structures and redesigned place-shaping events that broadened participation. Location: Charlotte, NC; Birmingham, AL. Organization: Earley Strategies; Charlotte Center City Partners; REV Birmingham.
We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!
Scalable Engagement – On a Nickle, Dime or Dollar
Scalable Engagement: On a Nickle, Dime or Dollar gives downtown organizations practical methods for engaging businesses, agencies and communities at different resource levels. Cases cover surveys, merchant outreach, coordinated planning, champion-building, grants and public-space advocacy. Outcomes include stronger retail. Location: Orlando, FL; Frederick, MD; Madison, WI; Houston, TX. Organization: Outside Voices; Downtown Frederick Partnership; Downtown Madison, Inc.; Downtown Houston+.
We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!
A New Standard for Community-Driven Engagement: Repairing the Past and Shaping the Future
DDP led an independent review and engagement process that reshaped a major infrastructure project around community priorities. The effort informed project revisions, strengthened trust and created a model for community-led planning and advocacy. Detroit, Downtown Detroit Partnership.
Read MoreCase-Making to Influence Downtown Decisions
Case-Making to Influence Downtown Decisions documents how downtown organizations in Wichita and Boston used pilots, data, branding, and research to influence members, cities, and investors. The resource outlines steps that repositioned BIDs as trusted economic partners and led to expanded services and leasing outcomes.
We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!
Advancing Places: Putting the Value of Downtowns to Work
Downtowns are evolving fast, and today’s leaders need clear insights to navigate what comes next. Learn from leaders and communities that have used The Value of U.S. Downtowns and Center Cities studies to shape their local strategies and efforts: downtown Houston and downtown Baton Rouge.
Read MoreIDA Issue Brief: Making Downtowns Safe for Everyone
Rising crime and perceptions of unsafe conditions are slowing downtown recovery by discouraging visitors and office workers and weakening regional economies. Key factors include reduced police staffing and increased organized “smash‑and‑grab” retail theft. Federal support, especially through flexible Byrne JAG funding, helps communities address crime and improve public safety. This Issue Brief was prepared for IDA’s April 2026 Capitol Hill Fly-In.
Read MoreIDA Issue Brief: Fighting Organized Retail Crime
Organized retail crime is fueling a damaging cycle in downtowns, driving store closures, reducing activity, and heightening fears about safety. Retailers report sharp increases in theft, losses, repeat offenders, and violence. These crimes raise consumer prices, strain workers and businesses, and undermine the vitality of downtowns and main streets. This Issue Brief was prepared for IDA’s April 2026 Capitol Hill Fly-In.
Read MoreIDA Issue Brief: Ending Homelessness
Homelessness affects all demographics and has worsened due to rising housing costs and the COVID‑19 pandemic. HUD reports over 770,000 people experienced homelessness in January 2024, an 18% increase from the prior year. Federal Homeless Assistance Grants are central to helping communities reduce homelessness and return people to stable, permanent housing. This Issue Brief was prepared for IDA’s April 2026 Capitol Hill Fly-In.
Read MoreIDA Issue Brief: Affordable Housing Conversions
U.S. communities face a severe affordable housing shortage—nearly 5 million homes—as prices and rents surge. At the same time, remote work has left significant commercial space underused, weakening downtown economies. Converting vacant offices to housing can ease shortages, support small businesses, and restore vibrant downtowns, but high costs limit feasibility without incentives. This Issue Brief was prepared for IDA’s April 2026 Capitol Hill Fly-In.
Read MoreThe Value of U.S. Downtowns and Center Cities: 2026 Trends Report
Since 2017, the Value of Downtowns research has demonstrated why strong downtowns are essential to thriving cities and regions, drawing on more than 150 metrics across 57 study districts. The 2026 Trends Report shows that downtowns continue to deliver outsize economic and cultural impact—concentrating 11% of citywide land value in just 2.2% of land, experiencing strong residential growth, and rebounding to 94% of pre‑pandemic visitation even as hybrid work reshapes daily activity. This
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