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New five-year plan hopes to improve Downtown Corpus Christi experiences

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Posted at 4:48 PM, Sep 23, 2021
and last updated 2021-09-24 05:13:10-04

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Spending the day in downtown Corpus Christi can be a fun-filled event with local bars, eateries, and a walk on the Bayfront available to visitors.

The Downtown Management District now is hoping to enhance that experience for you with its new five-year improvement plan.

Alyssa Mason, the executive director of the Downtown Management District, said the new plan hopes to revitalize the waterfront and its parks as well as bring in new restaurants and places for people to live.

The DMD has been incentivizing businesses and housing complexes to come downtown and especially occupy vacant buildings with reimbursements and rebates. They started doing that in 2016.

“There’s a lot that goes into developing an ecosystem in which new businesses can open and be supported," Mason said. "So it’s not just about incentivizing new businesses which we have been doing since 2016, but also developing the whole system around it that helps businesses be successful."

Mason said that this new plan builds upon the revitalization plan that they had in 2014, and will also include wider sidewalks and more lights and safety features on the streets.

“It builds on our previous strategic plans and our overall area development goals for the downtown area. It really is a collaborative effort so it’s not just the downtown management district, it’s the city and other entities across our community really work with us,” she said.

The DMD put out a survey earlier this year to get input from residents about what they want to see downtown and Mason said they will be looking for feedback again in the near future.