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Top Issues Councils

The IDA Top Issues Councils are a strategic research initiative that brings together industry leaders to produce research briefs on the top urban issues identified by IDA members. Each council is led by a chair, comprised of place management professionals sharing their expert knowledge, and supported by both IDA staff and the IDA Research Committee.  Those selected to serve on a council contribute their expertise to the growing body of knowledge on the place management industry and provide meaningful tools and information to IDA members.

Are you an expert in your field? IDA’s Top Issues Councils address a selection of the most pressing issues facing downtowns and city centers. This year’s Top Issues Council briefs cross a variety of topics that UPMOs face.  Applications to join the 2024 Councils are now closed.

To be eligible for a Top Issues Council position, the applicant must be an IDA member. Further guidelines can be found on the application. Questions? Contact Cathy Lin, AICP, Director of Research, at cathy@downtown.org.  

  • Mental Health of Ambassadors: Exposure to various critical incidents—from witnessing violent crimes to managing human waste —can and does significantly influence ambassadors’ wellbeing. Organizations must recognize the importance of considering ambassadors’ mental health when developing programs and policies to support these invaluable workers. How are UPMOs providing adequate resources, mental health support, and training to address the emotional well-being of ambassadors? 
  • Inclusive Urban Place Management Organizations: Diversity, equity, and inclusion have become priorities like never before in the work of urban place management organizations. What best practices are UPMOs setting to embed DEI in all parts of the organization, from governance to staff to programming?   
  • AI for UPMOs: The possibilities of artificial intelligence (AI) seem endless, and also overwhelming! How can AI begin to apply to the work of UPMOs, whether it be in organizational management, marketing, outreach, placemaking, and more? This Council will be particularly exploratory to narrow down ideas for how UPMOs can use AI, and what to consider in employing this new technology.  
  • Investing Downtown: Investing in downtown in the face of high interest rates, unfavorable capital markets, and generally uncertain economic futures is challenging. What are creative ways that UPMOs work with the real estate community and other potential investors to tell the story of their district?  
  • Social Media/Digital Marketing: The story of your district is constantly evolving, especially in this recovery period. How do UPMOs use an authentic voice across different platforms to connect with different groups and tell a unified story about the evolution of downtown and the urban district?  

This year’s Top Issues Council Briefs focus on the innovations in programs and services that many UPMOs provide.

Changing Environment for Ambassadors  

  • The Ambassadors Council explored how ambassador job responsibilities have expanded, work culture has changed and new technologies have become more critical to improving operations and responding to changing community needs. The brief is available on IDA’s publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 
  • IDA would like to thank Block by Block for their generous support of the Ambassador Council. Block By Block is a one-stop solution for safety, cleaning, hospitality, landscaping and social service outreach programs for improvement districts. Through our passion for downtowns and urban areas we harness our creativity and draw upon best practices to create highly effective programs. We’ve built a mindset and a culture designed to continually enhance our customers programs. To learn more, please visit www.blockbyblock.com.

Middle Housing 

  • The Missing Housing Council studied how UPMOs can advocate for updating local housing policies and zoning codes to allow for more varieties of housing. Middle housing, in particular, can deliver big benefits for a downtown and urban district’s economic viability. The brief is available on IDA’s publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 

Scalable Innovations in Placemaking 

  • The Scalable Innovations in Placemaking Council examined approaches to placemaking for organizations and communities of all sizes. The report brief shares ideas for creating small-scale installations, using technology to identify needs and develop programming (such as with AR), and spurring placemaking from the private-sector. The brief is available on IDA’s publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 

The pandemic and its lingering effects have forced UPMOs and other downtown stakeholders to view the city through a different lens. This year’s Top Issues Council report briefs focus on innovations in programs and services that many UPMOs provide.

Evolving Homeless Services

  • The Evolving Homeless Services Council explained the importance of supporting homeless services to increase individual and public health and safety. The brief offers examples and resources to help place managers launch or enhance services addressing the chronically homeless in their communities through counting high mortality rates, addressing escalated behavior, bridging the services gap and advocacy. The brief is available on IDA’s publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 

Inclusive Entrepreneurship 

  • The Inclusive Entrepreneurship Council explored successful methods UPMOs have used to support inclusive entrepreneurship by improving capital readiness, easing access to commercial spaces, and developing programs for business retention and sustainability. These strategies represent a renewed focus on clearing paths to property ownership and wealth generation for underrepresented groups to help close a significant economic gap for the entire center city. The brief is available on IDA’s publications page. All Top Issues Council report briefs are free for IDA members. 
  • In January 2024, the Inclusive Entrepreneurship Top Issues Council report was chosen for publication in the Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal by Henry Stewart Publications. Congratulations to the Inclusive Entrepreneurship Council!

Parking & Mobility

  • The Parking & Mobility Council explored curbside management, mobility hubs, land use and policy, and parking management and how UPMOs can take direct action and advocate with partners for equitable and thriving districts. These strategies for placemaking investments, paired with an emphasis on multimodal mobility can help create better streets, more vibrant urban places, and permanent economic benefits. The brief is available on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 

Bold Placemaking

  • The Bold Placemaking Council examined how placemaking has evolved since the onset of the pandemic, particularly in the areas of expanding UPMOs’ role in placemaking for economic development and reclaiming public spaces for people. Public spaces need to serve more needs than ever before, whether it’s keeping struggling restaurants afloat by replacing curb space with patio seating or acknowledging the demands of community by relinquishing public spaces for commemoration and protest. The brief is available on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members. 
  • In January 2024, the Bold Placemaking Top Issues Council report was chosen for publication in the Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal by Henry Stewart Publications. Congratulations to the Bold Placemaking Council!

Sustainability Council

  • The Sustainability Council examines how to integrate the principles of sustainability and resilience into the work of UPMOs. The report makes the business case for UPMOs to invest in sustainability and resilience measures by highlighting the economic, environmental and social benefits. Future reports from this council will provide specific approaches, tools and case studies to advance sustainability and resilience efforts in districts. The first report, Sustainability & Urban Place Management, is available on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

The 2019 Councils explored the following topics and release reports with meaningful tools and case studies for place management organizations.

Housing Attainability Council

Municipal Partnerships Council

This year brought together 45 members serving on the following six Councils to write reports with sharing case studies, resources and solutions.

Economic Development Council

Inclusive Places Council

Nighttime Economy Council

Parking Management Council

Place Branding Council

  • The Place Branding Council explores the features that make downtowns and urban spaces unique among others – those quirky spaces and interesting places that define an urban experience. Best practices, lessons learned, and surprising tips can assist planners in defining strategies for physical manifestations of their community’s cultures in public spaces in a powerfully authentic way. The report, Place Branding: Best Practices and Strategies to Brand and Market Your District, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Urban Mobility Council

  • The Urban Mobility Council explores the role place management organizations play in planning and implementing projects that improve connectivity in city centers including public transportation, bike infrastructure, transportation network companies and autonomous vehicles and how UPMOs can assist with transportation projects at every level – working with the community, government entities and transportation agencies. The report, Urban Mobility: The Role of Urban Place Management Organizations in Prioritizing Connectivity, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

In 2017, over 50 IDA members served on six Councils, each authoring a guidebook for sharing trends and recommendations.

Alley Activations Council

  • The Alley Activations Council explores a problem that urban place management organizations can creatively and efficiently address – the activation of alleyways and so-called micro-spaces in central urban cores or downtown districts. The report, From Dumpsters to Biergartens: Case Studies in Alley Activations, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Bicycle Improvements and Policy Council

Diverse Retail Mix Council

Homelessness Council

  • The Homeless Council explores comprehensive approaches in addressing the issue of homelessness for urban centers across the world. While the policy approaches are not simple, the council advocates for a declaration of four principles for urban place management organizations to use which inspire engaged and active urban centers. The report, Homelessness in Urban Districts: Principles & Implications for Place Managers, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Safety and Security Council

Urban Parks Council

  • The Urban Parks Council explores the definition of a great urban park, how it works, and how it is funded. The Council addresses how current and potential park stakeholders can advance collaboration and capacity building within the management of an urban park to maximize benefits, while equitably and intelligently sharing costs and responsibilities to create dynamic, thriving spaces that are accessible to all. The report, A Practical Guide to Great Urban Parks: How to Benefit from and Finance your Urban Park, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

In its inaugural year, 47 IDA members and industry experts collaborated on the following six Councils and produced reports with meaningful tools for IDA members to use in their daily work.

Authenticity Council

  • The Authenticity Council explores elements and practices that contribute to the authenticity of a place, geared towards benefiting the daily work of city builders, planners, place managers and community leaders. The Council aims to help stakeholders understand the fundamentals of their downtown and recognize the characteristics that build authenticity. The report, Maintaining Authenticity of Place, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Commercial Development Council

  • The Commercial Development Council provides an overarching view of the evolution of commercial development throughout the past fifty years. The Council explores the role of urban place management organizations in attracting commercial investment and recommends solutions, tools and resources for UPMOs. The report, Attracting Commercial Development: Tools and Case Studies, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Downtown Residential Council

Partnerships for Place Management Council

  • The Partnerships for Place Management Council explores how place management organizations utilize public-private partnerships (P3) as a method to advance city-building goals by leveraging the unique expertise and strengths that partners have. The report, Partnerships for Urban Place Management, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Pedestrian Improvements Council

  • The Pedestrian Improvements Council explores the pedestrian experience through the lens of education, planning, enforcement and technology. The Council addresses challenges and provides case studies and potential paths to follow to created successful pedestrian facilities. The report, Prioritizing Pedestrian Improvements, is available for purchase on our publications page. All Top Issues Council reports are free for IDA members.

Public Spaces Council

Serving on an IDA Top Issues Council provides an opportunity for an engaged leadership role within IDA; to have your work recognized and published; to share expert knowledge; to connect with fellow practitioners; to expand your network; to learn more in depth about a topic relevant to your work; and to contribute to the growing, relevant body of knowledge on the place management industry. IDA Research also accepts your ideas for future Council topics. Contact IDA’s Research Department to learn more about the Councils.

To view a comprehensive list of IDA Research publications click here