Most city residents like their downtowns, a recent global Gensler Research Institute survey found. Whether those same residents regularly go downtown and spend time there is another story.
In North America, 73% of city residents surveyed said their central business district offers “a great experience,” yet only 40% said they go downtown at least once a week and just 30% said they linger there.
“Downtown is treated as a destination for purpose-driven visits, not leisure-driven ones, with residents more likely to come for a cultural event or errand than for dining, walking, or socializing,” Gensler said.
The cost and availability of parking are some of the major downtown pain points cited by residents surveyed, with only 24% saying their downtown’s cost of parking is “very good” or "excellent" and 30% saying the same of parking availability. More than half rated access to public transit as very good or excellent.
“People aren’t staying away because they dislike their downtowns. They’re staying away because the pull isn’t strong enough, the friction is too high, or both,” Sofia Song, Global Cities Research Leader at Gensler’s Research Institute, said in a statement. “There aren’t enough reasons to go — or enough reasons to linger once they’re there.”
The Gensler report breaks downtown visitors into four categories: reluctant visitors, errand runners, special-event visitors and enthusiasts. Globally, most downtown visitors sit in the "reluctant” category.
In North America, 47% of downtown visitors fall in the reluctant category, 23% as errand runners, 17% enthusiasts and 13% only visit for special events.
“The strategic goal should not be to simply increase total visits, but to move residents up the engagement ladder, converting Reluctant Visitors and Errand Runners into Enthusiasts,” the report says. “This requires creating conditions that make people comfortable arriving, give them reasons to explore, and reward them for staying.”
The survey also found that the more time a resident spends downtown, the more positive their experience is likely to be.
“Long-stay personas (Special-Event Visitors and Enthusiasts) report dramatically better experiences, irrespective of how often they visit,” the report states. “A longer stay gives visitors the opportunity to move beyond simple tasks and truly engage with their CBD.”
Some U.S. downtowns do better than others in achieving a “stickiness” factor that keeps visitors around. Gensler researchers combined frequency and length of visits by city residents to determine the top 10 “stickiest” downtowns in the U.S.
Visitors who perceive their downtown as vibrant look for five key attributes, according to the report: After-hours activities, attractiveness, activities and events, good lighting and a sense of personal safety.
“Make it attractive, and people will be more inclined to slow down and walk around,” the report says. “Make it safer and better lit, and visitors are likely to stay longer.”
