CHAMPAIGN — As city staff look back on 2024 and plan for 2025, Economic Development Manager TJ Blakeman said last year’s Downtown Entertainment Pilot Program saw a lot of success.

“More than 20,000 visitors attended Market Street events, we had outstanding special events, our live-music grants were a hit with businesses and patrons, and (Executive Director) Kelly White at 40 North tells us that last year’s Friday Night Live was the best they have ever had,” he told The News-Gazette.

And yet, the old adage is true: There’s always room for improvement.

Blakeman wrote in a report to the city council that after gathering extensive feedback on the pilot program and evaluating the outcomes, staff recommend it continue in 2025 but with modifications — such as changing the scope of the city’s programming.

“To minimize staffing and financial impacts, a key approach will be activating the downtown area on various days and times through smaller but impactful events to maximize accessibility and encourage consistent foot traffic to all establishments, including daytime retail,” Blakeman said.

His report included several programming proposals for 2025, including:

• A partnership with the Land Connection to “enhance” its existing Tuesday farmers market, which runs from May to October.
• A Thursday lunchtime concert series from May to September on the new Neil Street plaza stage.
• Continued support for Friday Night Live, live-entertainment grants and the special-event sponsorship program.
• A retooled version of the Market Street concert series.
• The creation of a permanent Festival District downtown from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays so that there is less confusion for visitors about when participating businesses are allowed to sell alcoholic beverages that can be enjoyed off premises.

These proposals were created by city staff with “a great deal of input” from the community, including event attendees and businesses, Blakeman said.

He added that city staff would like the council’s direction on the creation of new positions to support downtown programming and manage “new public spaces,” such as the Neil Street Plaza that is currently under construction.

Furthermore, staff suggest that the city hire a private firm to help maintain such spaces, clean public sidewalks, engage with homeless individuals and serve “as ambassadors to visitors to the center city districts.” It’s recommended that $800,000 be budgeted for this expense.

The cost of the recommended programming proposals for 2025 and continuing the temporary project specialist position through the end of 2025 is a little over $400,000, Blakeman said.

The annual cost of creating a permanent position to oversee all future programming and management of public spaces would be approximately $90,000.

In addition to presenting the proposal for 2025, Blakeman’s report also looked back on the outcomes in 2024.

“The 2024 programming included a new Market Street Entertainment District with the Market Street stage, a one-hour extension of Friday Night Live, creation of new Festival Districts, Live Entertainment Grants, changes to the Special Event Sponsorship Program, and overall marketing of ‘The Beat,’” Blakeman said.

The Market Street Entertainment District exists between Main Street and University Avenue. The area was closed to vehicular traffic during certain weekend hours from late May to October.

“Those times fluctuated, but because of the proposed stage setup this year, we are working hard to minimize those closure times and any impacts on businesses,” Blakeman told The News-Gazette.

The city built a stage at Taylor Street and organized late-night concerts by live bands and DJs on Fridays and Saturdays.

Blakeman said that the venue “experienced rapid growth and popularity, with attendance peaking at 1,738 visitors on the night of July 20th.”

As turnout increased, the city made some changes based on comments from downtown businesses and residents, including limiting entry to those 21 and older, shifting programs to Saturdays only, ending at midnight instead of 1 a.m., and contracting members of First Followers to help staff entry points.

The city found that the changes decreased attendance to “manageable levels,” Blakeman said.

In his evaluation of the entertainment district, he said attendance indicated a “strong demand for this late-night programming,” and survey data showed that people “felt safe and secure.”

However, he noted that the district required significant staffing, with over 30 individuals needed to manage the area at its peak.

“This staffing demand posed logistical challenges and financial strain, with the cost per event calculated at $11,000,” Blakeman said. “Another issue is that as downtown Champaign becomes increasingly residential, the compatibility of large-scale, particularly late-night events, with the neighborhood’s character becomes challenging.”

City staff are proposing that the city could “reimagine” the Market Street concert series in 2025 and hold the events from 8 to 11 p.m. on the first and last Saturday of each month from May to September.

The proposal also includes moving the event stage to the north end of Market, facing south, “to alleviate bottlenecks and minimize street closures and business impacts,” Blakeman said.

City staff are suggesting “a more open plan” so that attendees can engage more easily with surrounding businesses and not just those within the entertainment district area.

Business stakeholders “expressed concerns that the Market Street stage drew business away from other establishments and that the programming felt disconnected from the broader downtown area,” Blakeman said. “Additionally, street closures negatively impacted some Market Street businesses, with several citing reduced foot traffic.”

The city council will discuss the Downtown Entertainment Pilot Prgram during a 7 p.m. study session today so that staff can receive direction on how to move forward.

“There were a lot of great lessons learned that helped inform this year’s proposals,” Blakeman told The News-Gazette. “This is one of the benefits of a pilot program. It allows us to try various ideas to gauge impact. 2025 will be another pilot program year to modify existing programs and try new things.

“Overall, our goal is to continue driving traffic from the entire community to our terrific downtown and further strengthen the area.”