Downtown group outlines year-round vision, alley project for Chelan

CHELAN — Historic Downtown Chelan Association Executive Director Aimee Sheridan told the Chelan City Council early in February that the organization’s focus is less about hosting events and more about creating what she described as “250 days of activity” downtown each year.

That activity, she explained during the association’s annual report at the Feb. 3 workshop, includes everything from outdoor dining and live music to lighting, flowers, promotions, cleanup efforts and design work that help make downtown more engaging well beyond the peak summer season.

“We have a vision of a welcoming, inclusive, clean, safe and active downtown Chelan,” Sheridan said, describing the association’s final year under a five-year transformational strategy built around the national Main Street four-point approach.

While many residents associate the association’s work with the long-discussed infrastructure project, Sheridan emphasized that the strategy has always been broader, focused on economic vitality and quality of life for residents as much as visitors.

From flowers and lights to alley improvements

Sheridan walked council through the design and placemaking work the association undertakes each year in partnership with the city.

That includes seasonal flower baskets — more than 60 in past years, reduced to 50 this year as costs rise — lighting investments such as restringing bridge lights and maintaining decorative building lighting, and coordination with Public Works on small but visible improvements.

One of the most tangible upcoming projects is an effort to improve the alley that connects Woodin Avenue to Riverwalk Park near a lift station. The association has set aside $100,000 to work with the city on making that corridor safer, more attractive and more reflective of Chelan’s character through design, art and storytelling elements.

“We want people moving toward Riverwalk Park to get more of a sense of Chelan versus just this ugly alley,” Sheridan said.

Clean, safe and connected

Sheridan also described a program that pairs downtown cleanup with support for local nonprofits. Volunteer crews from nonprofit groups sweep sidewalks, pull weeds and pick up debris downtown, and the association makes a $200 donation back to the participating organization for each effort.

The association has also helped create a merchant text group that acts as an instant phone tree for safety concerns such as shoplifting, and hires a downtown ambassador during peak season to provide a friendly presence and help visitors navigate the area.

“We try to enhance what the city does, not duplicate it,” Sheridan said, noting frequent coordination with city department heads, Public Works, and the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office.

Partnerships and promotions

Sheridan credited strong partnerships with the Lake Chelan Chamber of Commerce, Lake Chelan Arts Council, Chelan Museum, Chelan Library, Lions Club and local merchants as central to the association’s work.

Rather than leading every promotion, the association now works more as a coordinator, helping merchants align window displays and campaigns for shoulder seasons such as Halloween, when the association’s “skeleton crew” decorations helped spark wider participation from businesses.

The group is also working with the Arts Council toward a state-designated creative district in downtown Chelan, which could open access to additional arts funding and help formalize how public art is selected and placed.

Funding through the Main Street tax credit program

Sheridan highlighted the role of Washington’s Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program in supporting many of these efforts. Through the program, businesses and donors can contribute to the association and receive 75 percent of their contribution back as a state B&O tax credit.

That structure has allowed the association, which operates with two full-time staff and one half-time position on a $260,000 annual budget, to build surpluses that are reinvested into downtown projects. Those have included the purchase of Big Belly trash units for the city and the funding set aside for the alley improvement project.

“We don’t just choose projects in a silo,” Sheridan said. “We talk about it with merchants, the community and the city.”

Encouraging locals downtown

Sheridan shared data from a Washington Main Street study showing that only about 14 to 18 percent of purchases in downtown Chelan came from local zip codes, depending on the time of year. With economic uncertainty and wildfire smoke always a possibility in summer, she said encouraging residents to see downtown as a place they belong is increasingly important.

“We really need locals to support downtown because they want to be there,” she said.

Sheridan closed by thanking the city for its partnership, from watering flower baskets to collaborating on design guidelines and infrastructure planning, and said patience is often required as long-term projects take shape.

“We’re getting there, one step at a time,” she said.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media