The Ferguson Citywalk district in historic Downtown Ferguson has been a lively hub of commercial activity for more than a century. Situated on ten pedestrian-friendly blocks along Florissant Rd, Airport Rd and Church St, the district is home to a wide array of restaurants, specialty shops, art & music venues, interesting attractions, and quality service businesses....

While researching ideas on transforming downtown districts, I stumbled upon “12 strategies that will transform your downtown” and I was struck by #6: “The most successful downtown districts have many major functions (employment, residential, entertainment, shopping, etc.). A key ingredient for creating a diverse downtown district is to have major destinations that draw people to downtown for reasons other than employment. Many cities have pursued professional sports teams for this reason, but this approach only yields intermittent  benefits, because major league stadiums/arenas lie vacant much of the year.” I instantly...