On Dec. 2 an anonymous commenter said:
“Could you possibly start a new post asking for ideas on how to attract or market O.C. to them? I'm thinking about a post just for that purpose. You could bring it up at a council meeting and tell folks with solid ideas to go to it. They would most likely be interney savvy!!”
So that is what this blog post is going to be all about.
I’d like to hear your ideas about marketing Oil City, attracting businesses and residents and overall improving our town.
And I mean real solid ideas with as many specifics as possible, not the “bring jobs” that we so often hear and that does nothing. We all want that, and so much more. What I want to hear as how we achieve all our hopes and dreams with as many details as possible.
For our downtown business district a similar “no-holds-barred” approach to thinking about crafting a new future is beginning with the Main Street Program. You can become directly involved in that as well, and I urge you to do so.
So, let’s hear what you come up with.
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15 comments:
You could market Oil City to retired or soon-to-be-retired people as either a place for a second home or as a place to live all year round.
There are livable houses in Oil Ctiy that can be had cheaply, from the perspective of someone who has lived in a large metropolitan area.
Retirees would presumably bring their incomes with them and would have disposable income for eating out, recreation, etc. Retirees would probably not have children in the local schools,
What about starting a directory of local trades people who would know how to work on older houses? The housing stock in the city is old, but for some people that is part of its charm. Older houses often need work and it would be good for residents to know who could do it without changing the atmosphere of the house. That's not exactly the right word, but I think you know what I mean.
One thing Oil City needs is better coverage for high-speed Internet. There are people who can live anywhere so long as they have Internet access. I have visited the city and been surprised to find there is not highs-speed access everywhere.
A director of local trades people who know how to work on older homes, and have the interest, is a great idea. Even greater because it doesn't cost anything. It is something that can be put together to help market our grand old homes to those people who have the means to maintain them.
I've hard a lot about improving and increasing high speed internet within the city. I know DSL is not available everywhere. The question becomes how do we get it, and who (how) pays for it. Lets think about that.
At to the first commenter, do you think it would be possible for our realtors to cooperatively come up with a solid marketing strategy to target nearby metro areas?
A lot of individuals and companies thinking about moving consult www.citi-data.com. There are hundreds of comments about Oil City, many negative. It would cost nothing to set up an account there and join the few making positive comments about Oil City -- if 20 people did that, we'd have a good showing and maybe influence somebody's decision!
http://www.city-data.com/city/Oil-City-Pennsylvania.html
I had not heard of that Web site before, and from one you say, it is critically important to have a positive presence there.
So, not only is that a good idea, I think it's a must do.
I have a bit of a reputation as a smart alec and some of these ideas will cause uproar, but I am 100% sincere about them.
I think we need to build on the success of Joann and, more importantly, embrace the idea that when my daughter brings her children to Oil City in 2050, they city will look much differently than it does now.
I keep a big notebook of all the different ideas I’d like to see implemented in Venango County. These are some that might help answer the question how and to whom we market the area:
Richard Florida’s data suggests there is a relationship between welcoming attitudes and urban success. MPR had an interview that said, in part, “ Florida says there's no cause-and-effect relationship between a gay population and high tech. He says the gay population is simply a marker for a diverse environment that fosters creativity and innovation - key ingredients for success in high technology. He says a story he heard from venture capitalist Don Valentine, one of the original investors in Apple Computer, illustrates the economic importance of a tolerant culture.
"Steven Jobs came into his office wearing flip flops and patched blue jeans, and a beard and long hair, and he said, 'I didn't care what he looked like. I was going to fund this guy because he had a great idea.' Try that in Pittsburgh or Cleveland or Rochester, or maybe even Minneapolis or Chicago," says Florida. "Those people couldn't have gotten in the door. It's not that gays and diversity equal high technology. That's not the point. But if your culture is not such that it can accept difference, and uniqueness and oddity and eccentricity, you will not get high tech industry."
San Diego marketed a poor, crime-ridden neighborhood with interesting houses to gay couples. The strategy helped to transform the Azalea Park section of the city into a gay enclave with a strong housing market.
Utica, N.Y., welcomed refugees from Southeast Asia, Africa and from the Balkans, especially Bosnians, to counter population loss and suburban sprawl. At Project SHINE: Central New York, college classes located at the Utica BOCES ACCESS Site, and the Adult Learning Center at MVRCR. College students work one-on-one or in small groups with adult learners for two hours each week for ten weeks. They provide a much needed service to the Utica area by assisting adult learners in English and Citizenship preparation. We could provide a similar environment with the cooperation of CUP.
Pittsburgh’s nonprofit agency The Cool Space Locator (http://www.coolspacelocator.com/) scouts the city and helps small businesses locate affordable office and work spaces in vacant and underutilized buildings.
Again, partnering with CUP-Venango we could copy Yale University’s success in encourages its employees to buy homes in the city by offering them cash rewards. The inducements have helped to create a stronger, safer neighborhood around the university.
When OC finally is able to right-size its housing market, there’s going to be some empty green space. Philadelphia works with neighborhood organizations like Philadelphia Green to clear and seed vacant lots and create community gardens, parks, greenhouses and even farms. A university study concluded the city's "greening strategy" has helped to raise property values.
www.pennsylvaniahorticulturalsociety.org/ phlgreen/index.html
The Alliance to Conserve Old Richmond (VA) Neighborhoods www.richmondneighborhoods.org serves as a clearinghouse for information on vacant homes with historic value or unusual potential. Its open houses and renovation workshops have helped to save dozens of distinguished homes and buildings.
Any of these ideas, I think, are implementable in Venango County ( I know you're focused on OC, but I'm a regionalist)
I have to believe the internet is the first place many people go to for information on a place to visit. We need someone to take the iniative (I would if I had the skills) to put a very big, inviting picture of Oil City on the City's website with the words to click on saying "Visit Beautiful and Scenic Oil City" and have big pictures and a list of things to do: Shop the various antique and used to be new shops (people LOVE them); stay at the Arlington Hotel and enjoy the only riverside swimming pool; ride the bike trail and kayak the river; tour the museum, visit the historic National Transit building, Oil City Library, Latonia Theater, and take a Victorian Home walking tour; eat lunch at a unique coffee shop diner,ride the OC & T train and eat dinner at a cozy hometown restaurant; stroll through Hasson Park Rhoddie trail, try out our specialty playgrounds, hike a historic trail at Oil Creek State Park; cross-country ski the bike trail along the scenic Allegheny, go tubin' and warm up in a Hot Tub suite at the Arlington Hotel; Ride the placket boat and enjoy a picnic lunch by the river at the Marina. The possibilites are endless but tourists need someone to give them ideas. Have a description, picture, and details under each activity and offer coupons from participating shops, restaurants, hotel, bike rentals, etc. This would be a good project for Take Pride in O.C. or another such group.
You could then put simple brochures at rest stops, travel information kiosks, etc. and direct tourists to the site.
I agree with the above comment. An uncluttered, interesting, and useful website is essential to this city! When I travel, I always try to find out about the town I am going to using the web. If a site is confusing, cluttered, and poorly done I find I look elsewhere for info. Like the above commenter suggested, promoting all of the wonderful opportunities this city has in a way that makes people want to experience them as well as know how to go about finding these things once they get here is essential!
I has taken me years of living here to fully appreciate all the area offers. If people just drive straight through the city on 8 or 62 they are likely to miss the beauty the city offers and keep on passing through.
A lot of city's websites have a page that promotes the local eateries, another page for recreation, a page for lodgings, etc... the current OC page has some of this info but presents it in a sporadic manner. I agree that lots of pictures (perferably professional, like Jerry Sowden's) that really show how amazing the region would help people to desire to see these places in person.
I believe we can do this - the web is typically the first place people look for this kind of information.
John,
I noticed that the Howling Dog Cafe has not opened its door this week and has For Sale signs posted on most of its windows. Is this going to hurt the Arts Revitilization project? The Howling Dog was the poster store for how the project was a success and now its gone.
On that note we lost the Health food store on the South Side and the Pizza place by Genovas, the original Italian resturant that was downtown, and am hearing other grumblings, is anything being done to stem the loses?
On the Howling Dog.
The owner ran into difficulties, which many would say are largely of his own making and not a reflection of the downtown, etc.
He did a marvelous job renovating the building and bringing an interesting and viable business to the northside. I believe others see opportunity in the business.
Only time will tell.
It is always a struggle for small businesses, and the economic climate only makes that worse. The city and our economic development agencies are doing every thing possible to keep existing and attract new businesses of all types. It is a struggle.
John
John,
I have always believed that to market a downtown,the downtown must have a commercial identity. Once upon a time it was thought to be through antiques now it appears the arts are what we are going to go with. If that is so then the artist need to get out of the Annex and get into store fronts, its not like there isn't a variety of store fronts to fill.
Like another post on this site that told of the people who came from Pittsburgh only to be disappointed because nothing was here. People want some bang for the buck they paid to get here, and when they don't get it they leave never to return and worse tell others about it. I think you would have to admit the problem is not because we don't have enough signs, its because as of now we ARE a two (one the Howling Dog closed) stop for the arts.
We have all heard for the last few years that the arts is meant to be ONE part of the puzzle, and I have waited for other parts of the puzzle to be identified but lets face it the arts are the only piece to the puzzle. So get the arts into the community, not in the incubator that is the Annex. Form a panel and check the business plans of the artists, pick the two or three best and make a deal with the store front owners to lease the space for a nominal amount.
A chicken egg will hatch in an incubator but will die if it is left in it.
John: I am hearing great things about the Main Street progam and feel like it could be the ticket for the downtown. I am buried with other obligations but hope to get involved in the future. I actually worked with another City on theirs. A lot of the comments on this blog will be addressed by Main Street.
One big determination in a business' success is the OWNER. You can have all the traffic in the world but if the owner is shakey the business will be also. Unfortunately, O.C. has a history of attracting unstable business owners. It takes a special person to build a market. There's another failure on the South side looming and it too involves owner issues.
The key to our success will be attracting a stable, financially secure, experienced investor/developer. Even Main Street will need that.
So here is my question, and it's not necessarily directed at you: What is anyone doing to contact potential developers and investors?
You have said it before, it is not the City's responsibilty, but you have been addressing it (fortunately). It has largely been left up to the ORA. That was the point of consolidating the Oil City CDC into the ORA. Are they proactively meeting with potential developers? If so, who are they? How often? One a month? Two a year? We have heard virtually nothing from them the last year since they picked all the low hanging fruit left behind from their predecessors.
If this consolidation was the way to go then someone from the City needs to hold them accountable. After all, the city invests their economic development dollars with them.
You can't expect the ORA board to do it for you. Group think takes over these organizations and everyone is reluctant to be critical. They should be readily able to report to the City who they have met with the past quarter, year, etc. I'm concerned that they are waiting for prospects to call them. That is not going to work. If they are meeting with several developers a month, that's great and they should keep up the good work! The next question would be, what is their success rate? Why were they or weren't they effective?
They have more resources than ANY organization and yet we are hearing nothing. Their newsletter is now covering two months and is virtually all tourism related.
Accountability for how tax payers dollars are spent IS the City council's role. Marketing Oil City is key to our success and shouldn't be up to volunteers on Main Street. It should be happening now. Lastly, sending out thousands of fliers isn't the answer, beating the streets, working contacts and networking is.
"San Diego marketed a poor, crime-ridden neighborhood with interesting houses to gay couples. The strategy helped to transform the Azalea Park section of the city into a gay enclave with a strong housing market."
I am totally against any form of descrimination, but I am also totally against marketing public space to a group based solely on what they do in their bedrooms. That's ridiculous.
Quoting someone and knowing nothing about their credentials isn't helpful either.
Let's raise the bar and market and encourage development based on an individual's financial stability and net worth. That's the kind of transplants we need. Hardworking, creative individuals with an established income. Not people barely getting by looking for a cheap place to live.
The last couple of comments are worthy of serious thought and discussion, and also some response.
“The key to our success will be attracting a stable, financially secure, experienced investor/developer. Even Main Street will need that.
So here is my question, and it's not necessarily directed at you: What is anyone doing to contact potential developers and investors?”
I would have to agree that we need stable, financially secure, experienced investors/developers.
However, we also need to encourage and support those with entrepreneurial spirit, but might not yet have a track record. The risks are high, but the successful ones are often the home-run hitters.
Marketing and developing the downtown business districts is an interesting process, and something of a comes first the chicken or the egg conundrum.
Certainly we want and need to move businesses and jobs into the downtown as quickly as possible, but it might also first be helpful to figure out what will have the greatest likelihood of success, create the best mix and result in a critical mass for mutual support. What we are doing with the arts is a part of that, but only one part.
I suspect the Main Street Program process will go a long way toward finding the right mold for our downtown so that we have long-term success. It won’t be easy. We also must recognize that business districts have to be dynamic creatures changing with times and needs.
In reference to holding the ORA accountable, I would hope we are doing that. There are real limits. It is a very competitive world. Also understand that the ORA is making it possible for our Main Street Program to become a reality in a fast track process that is a unique approach. They are playing a huge role in Main Street and committing significant resources.
It is true that ORA probably has more resources to bring to economic development than anyone, which is as it should be given their mission. But those resources are frightenly limited. Economic development in Venango County is sorely under funded, even in comparison with many other similar counties in Pennsylvania. And let’s not even begin to talk about the funding in other states.
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