Downtown group explores First Friday options

Although city officials have expressed an interest in beginning a series of First Friday events downtown this year, it’s not yet clear what, exactly, that might entail — though Joe Grano has some ideas.

Grano, the president and founder of marketing company Next-Mark, appeared at the Aug. 3 Downtown Improvement District meeting to discuss plans for an event series in the heart of the city. For months, the DID has discussed creating pedestrian-focused gatherings inspired by events held in places including Lakewood Ranch on the first Friday of each month.

DID board member Chris Voelker reached out to Grano because she was impressed with his work on the Sol of the Circle series on St. Armands Circle. As a result, the DID hosted Grano at its Aug. 3 meeting and voted unanimously to approve a three-month, $14,400 contract for Next-Mark to develop plans for First Fridays.

Grano intends to return to the DID board next month with a more detailed proposal based on stakeholder input, but on Aug. 3, he shared two potential directions for a First Friday series. The first concept was to hold a “decentralized” event, with downtown split into four quadrants with distinct themes.

“​​One might be classical music on Palm,” he said. “One might be country music on the south part of Main Street, one might be rock ‘n’ roll, one might be Caribbean.”

The other option, Grano said, would be to host a centralized event built around a closure of Main Street or another downtown street. Although the DID’s discussion of First Fridays originated with a proposal to close Main Street to vehicular traffic on the weekends, board member Ron Soto said some downtown merchants voiced opposition to a street closure. Multiple speakers at the Aug. 3 meeting expressed a similar sentiment.

“We do not want a street closure,” said Harmoni Krusing Bens, the owner of Lotus Boutique on Main Street. “I can’t (stress) that enough.”

Grano is not the only partner the DID is considering as it prepares to launch First Fridays. The group also heard a presentation from Laura Kresl, whose Pro It Out marketing company has led the DID’s advertising over the past year. Kresl is scheduled to return to the board next month to share a detailed proposal for potentially incorporating First Fridays into the services the company provides for fiscal year 2022.

During the DID’s discussion on Aug. 3, multiple speakers identified businesses that close before the evening hours as a potential hurdle for hosting vibrant nighttime events focused on creating traffic for merchants. Board member Eileen Hampshire said she thought the events would act as an incentive for businesses to stay open later, which would help the DID’s goal of bringing activity downtown.

“If we do get a really successful First Friday, people — they’re not stupid,” Hampshire said. “They’re going to see the wisdom of being open.”