Making it easier to invest in Downtown Wilmington

The new Downtown Development District plan to encourage investments in properties in downtown areas of Wilmington, Dover, and Seaford is getting better.

Administrators with the Delaware State Housing Authority are proposing a series of changes to the program that will, among other things, lower the minimum qualified investment threshold from $25,000 to $15,000.

Click Here to learn more about this exciting program.

I appreciate all that the state of Delaware is doing to encourage people to live, work, play, and invest in our downtown.

Marty

A meeting you don't want to miss

Back in February, I was part of the group that announced the new Downtown Development District plan - designed to encourage investments in our downtown area.

On Friday, August 21, there will be a meeting to go over the plan, including some changes that make it easier to participate.

I would encourage everyone to take some time and attend this meeting.

Hope to see you there.

Marty

More good news about starting a business in Wilmington

The good news about Downtown Wilmington continues!

Just days after being named one of the top cities for starting a business by Entrepreneur Magazine, we find out that Wilmington has been named a winner of the U.S. Small Business Administration's first ever "Startup in a Day" contest which carries a $50,000 prize to support business development.

Mayor Dennis Williams, Wilmington Economic Development Director Jeff Flynn, and Small and Minority Business Office Manager Denita Thomas all deserve kudos for their work in making this happen.

Marty

P.S. You can click here to see the full press release about this award.

Wilmington Named A Top City For Business

Have you heard about this? Wilmington, Delaware has been named as one of the top cities in the country for starting a business by Entrepreneur Magazine!

I'm just going to quote from the article:

In the study, analysts reviewed 463 cities with populations from 50,000 and 100,000 to find some of the best climates in the country for entrepreneurship.

The analysis looks at business environment, reviewing average revenue per business, the number of businesses, and the percentage of businesses with paid employees. Researchers also studied economic factors like annual income, housing costs and unemployment rate data from the U.S. Census.

Careful review of these factors drove cities like Alpharetta, Georgia, with a population of approximately 60,000 to the top of this list. Other top small cities include Redmond, Washington and Wilmington, Delaware.

You can read the full article by clicking here.

It is great to be recognized for all of the incredible things happening here in Downtown Wilmington!

Marty

Downtown is thriving!

The July issue of Out & About magazine includes a great article about the life and activity we're seeing in our Downtown.

Here's just a couple of excerpts:

By the end of August, BPG will be renting apart­ments in the three build­ings of its Market Street Village: 838 N. Market, the former WSFS Bank head­quar­ters; 839 N. Market, over the Walgreen’s store; and 6 E. Third St. Many of the new res­i­dents are expected to be teachers and staff mem­bers at three charter schools opening this fall: Delaware Met at 920 French St.; Great Oaks in the Community Education Building, 1200 French St., and Freire, in the former Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Delaware head­quar­ters on West 14th Street. Depending on income levels, res­i­dents of Market Street Village may be able to rent a one-bedroom unit for about $800 a month. The 150 units in these projects should add about 200 res­i­dents to Market Street.

...

By next spring, Scott Morrison and Joe Van Horn, part­ners in the Chelsea Tavern and Ernest & Scott Taproom, expect to open their third restau­rant on Market, which helps explain why the brew pub/barbecue spot at 827 N. Market will be named 3 Doors. The other reason: it’s also three doors up from Chelsea.

Chelsea itself will be get­ting a new look as Buccini/Pollin tears down 817 N. Market, effec­tively dou­bling the width of the pedes­trian pathway between Market and Shipley streets, cre­ating an area that will be known as Chelsea Plaza. The remod­eled Chelsea will have win­dows and an entrance opening onto the plaza, where it will have an out­door seating area. Across the way, 815 N. Market will be repur­posed as home to sev­eral mini-shops that will also open onto the plaza.

Click Here to read the complete article.

All of us at Downtown Visions are excited to be a part of this growth.

Marty