BID saw changes, improvements in 2020

The Shawano Business Improvement District gave downtown business owners a report on how the community’s business sector has done during the pandemic and what it hopes to pull off during its annual meeting April 15.

Jennifer Hoffman, BID president, told the crowd at Stubborn Brothers Brewing Company that the coronavirus pandemic hit its stride in 2020 at about the time it was ready to do many of its events, such as its ladies night, which put the district in a pickle.

“A lot of events we budgeted for, we were unable to do,” Hoffman said. “We didn’t get to do some of the events we wanted to, which cut down on some of our events fees but it also did not allow us to have some of the incoming revenue we had planned on, as well.”

Despite cancelling, postponing or reorganizing a lot of events, Hoffman reported that a lot was accomplished in 2020. The ladies night in April 2020, for example, was done virtually.

“I think it was a complete success,” Hoffman said. “We had a lot of women who were involved and a lot of businesses participated. We received a lot of positive feedback from those businesses, so it was positive for them even though he had to do it virtually.”

Another thing the BID tried to bolster in 2020 was its social media presence, holding contests to get customers engaged and trying to bring more customer traffic to its website and Facebook page, according to Hoffman. A trivia contest allowed customers to learn a little bit more about the businesses.

“It got those customers back into our businesses once we opened back up,” Hoffman said.

The BID also worked to provide a little color to downtown in the form of adirondack chairs, which were distributed along the corridor. Hoffman said the BID seeks to improve upon that in 2021 with colorful benches to provide a respite for weary shoppers.

“The benches would mimic the adirondack chairs so that they would go with them,” she said.

The event that was altered the most was the downtown Christmas parade, as the extreme coronavirus case levels prompted the BID to flip the script, having the floats stand still while vehicles drove by. However, many of the roads were congested with vehicles at a standstill for an hour or more as a result, so BID officials reported the parade would be returning to its original style this year, with viewers watching moving floats.

“We obviously had a lot of people who wanted to come to the parade,” Hoffman said.

While the activity level downtown was drastically reduced, many business owners decided to spruce up their businesses via BID facade grants, which can be up to $5,000 with a match from the business.

“In 2020, we worked really hard with a lot of businesses and did give out a lot of grants,” Hoffman said. “A lot of improvements were made. We were able to get money from the RDA (Redevelopment Authority) to give out more grants.”

Hoffman noted the district was able to get an additional $30,000 from the Shawano Redevelopment Authority earmarked for facade grants in 2021, which she described as “exciting news.” She said that the facade grants can also be done to improve the inside of businesses.

“You can’t use it for a sewer system or to get inventory,” Hoffman said. “It needs to be to improve the look of the business itself, like carpeting.”

She added that business owners can’t be reimbursed for improvements they do on their own.

The BID is looking forward to a prosperous 2021, but officials warned that they’ll need the help of business owners to pull it off. Hoffman pointed to this year’s ladies night, which takes place April 28, as an example, and urged businesses to stay open later that evening to attract more customers.

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com