03-07-10 Kiel's Request + Downtown Fresno belongs to the Central SJ Valley

A couple of blogs ago, I asked for some input on how to improve this web log.  I know that it is too much like a meeting schedule.  I also know that I don't want to make the blog into too big of a project.  Imperfect as it might be, it's still 45-60 minutes as it is.

Kiel Famellos-Schmidt (http://www.archop.org/ and http://www.gardenfresno.com/  ) made a good suggestion  He wanted to know more about the thoughts, ideas, vision, the WHY as opposed to the WHAT.

So every once in a while, like on a Sunday or on a vacation day, I'll write about the WHY or the HOW.

Downtown Fresno functioned as the regional downtown for the whole Central San Joaquin Valley.  This is normal for the downtown of a regionally-sized city.  Downtown Fresno was a place where people came to get things that their smaller communities couldn't provide.  Some of these were more tangible like clothes, movies or banking.  They also got less tangible things like the feeling of being in a big, vibrant place with different people than the ones they saw every day.

People from Fresno's satellite communities called it "going into town" or going to town." This simply meant that they were going to downtown Fresno.  With everyone from the region going in to one place to get things, that place could offer more things.  The more things that the place offered, the more reasons there were to go there.

When the tangible attractions like retail, movies and banks scattered from downtown to everywhere else, we also lost the intangible benefit of having a common gathering place.

Our region has grown in population.  There are about 1.6 million people who live within a 45 minute drive of downtown Fresno.  The freeway system has been built, and all roads meet near downtown Fresno.  There is no other place in our area that has such easy access to such a large population.  This market is unserved by an urban gathering place, a fun entertainment center that showcases our culture, and gives us a shared experience.

Downtown Fresno belonged to the Central Valley.  It served the whole Central valley, not just Fresno.  To revitalize downtown Fresno, it should again.

The other benefit for the Central Valley is that their proximity to a healthy, vital downtown Fresno enhances their image too.  If someone said that they were from Macksburg, Oregon.  You'd look at them blankly and then they'd say, "about 45 minutes from Portland and you'd say, "cool."

That should be a measure of our goal.  When people say they are from Reedley or Kerman or Coarsegold, they should proudly declare their proximity to Fresno.

What can downtown provide now that many of the attractions have left?  A vibrant urban experience.  Some people want a vibrant urban experience.  There is no other city in our region big enough to provide this experience.  No other place in the Central SJ Valley has the big buildings all packed together in one dense space to provide the setting for a vibrant urban experience.

Do we have anything in downtown that draws people from our whole region?  The Grizzlies, the Fuego, Selland Arena, Club One Casino, ArtHop and the Saroyan Theater do currently.  What else could be added to strengthen this mix, to add to the draw from the surrounding communities?