What COVID-19 Means For Downtown and Main Street Retail (Part I) – Will This Be Nasty, Brutish and (Mercifully) Short? Or Fitful, Fragile and Partial?
We are still freaking out. And understandably so. For the community of professionals and stakeholders who are devoted to the management and well-being of Downtown and Main Street districts, these are scary times indeed, for the reality is that we do not quite know what we are going to find once some sense of normalcy resumes.
However, as someone with a great deal of experience in feeling anxious, I have learned to put my faith in two basic truths. One, just because we fear something does not make it so. And two, the best way to deal with uncertainty is to take action.
In this spirit, the following offers a first stab at my thinking on whether, to what extent and in what respects our fears might be well-founded, then proceeds in an upcoming Part II to outline how municipalities, BID’s and their various partners will need to act in response.
Obviously this is a moving target — I fully realize that some of what I say might no longer apply two weeks from now and will have to be updated. Consider it, then, as the first step in what will undoubtedly be an iterative process.