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Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Board of Directors Executive Officers Ron Charbonneau | Chairman Eddy Pybus | Vice Chairman Kellie Crossley | Treasurer

Staff Amanda Macdonald | Executive Director Miriam Zine | Marketing and Communications Manager Cortney Peters | Marketing & Social Media Coordinator Leah Ruscinski | Marketing & Communications Coordinator Jules Fazio | Graphic Designer & Social Media Assistant Jakob Cunningham | Digital Main Street Service Coordinator Wilika Wilson | Events Coordinator

Thank You for your Service Glen Sparks | Member of the Board, Secretary Kim Snyder | Member of the Board David D’Angelo | Member of the Board, Chair of Marketing

Happy Retirement Lori Albanese | City of Niagara Falls Special Events Ken Todd | City of Niagara Falls CAO

Our Vision To become an economic corridor and community space where energy, excitement, and diversity collide.

Our Values 1. Integrity 2. Accountability 3. Boldness 4. Diversity 5. Teamwork 6. Trust

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Message from the Chair The past year and a half have been incredibly tough on businesses and residents and that’s why it’s important to show gratitude and thank everyone for the strength and support that has been seen in Downtown Niagara Falls. With over 30 new businesses opening up during the pandemic, it is clear we didn’t let anything stop us. Through joining together as a community and enforcing health and safety protocols, we were able to pivot towards this new normal. Additionally, we hosted our first Christmas Market, which acted as a safe way to celebrate the holiday season. Beyond this, we held virtual events, and other in-person events with COVID-19 safety precautions in place, bringing attention and new foot traffic to the downtown core. We learned a lot through this experience, and I believe we are only stronger moving forward. During this time, our BIA was also able to rebrand itself and improve digital marketing efforts through a new website, improved social media content, a more consistent identity, and increased engagement. These efforts helped bring in new audience members that were able to see Downtown Niagara Falls in a new light and learn about all of the businesses’ specialties. Looking ahead, I am confident that Downtown Niagara Falls is in the best place it’s been in a long time. With plans for new businesses, a large Christmas market and other events, a strong sense of community, and a passionate BIA team, I think I can speak for the entirety of downtown when I say that I’m beyond excited for the future.

- Ron Charbonneau

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Highlights • Successful rebranding as well as more professional and consistent social media posts • Replaced all 60 banners with new branded banners • 56 Veteran banners hung up from mid-October to November 11th 2021 for Remembrance Day • 60 Winter banners to be hung up after Remembrance Day • Increased beautification which included 20 extra planters, bollards, string lights, and painted picnic tables* * all picnic tables were donated by Lowe’s with labour from Sea Cadets

• Increased Canada flags from 18 in 2020 to 39 in 2021 • Awarded two winners of the Win This Space competition - The Painted Turtle Pottery Studio and Bare Painless Laser • Successful grant for security gates to reduce risk during events and ease of road closures • Received $399,250 in grants and sponsorships • 31 Digital Main Street (DMS) grants awarded and seven in progress • Installation of security cameras

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Business Categories Downtown Niagara Falls has a variety of business categories that include “Professional,” “Shops & Boutiques,” “Food & Drink,” “Arts & Entertainment,” and “Health & Beauty.” Historically, Downtown has always had a lot of professional services, even being referred to as “the financial hub of Niagara Falls.” Today, a lot of professional services remain prominent but there has been an increase in other categories, making the area more experiential and unique.

Food & Drink Shops & Boutiques Arts & Entertainment Professional Health & Beauty

For full listing of businesses, check out www.downtownniagarafalls.com

Prospects We had seven solid prospects approach the BIA looking for property or lease availability. Of the seven prospects, two are restaurants, and the rest are a mix of professional services and retail. Three of the seven prospects are current downtown members. This is a great opportunity to promote economic development through encouraging new prospects to check out available properties in Downtown.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

New Members This year, we welcomed several new businesses to Downtown Niagara Falls, with 29 of the new businesses currently in operation. We held grand red ribbon cutting events to give them a warm welcoming into their new home. So far, each one has brought something unique and fresh to downtown and we cannot wait to see what is to come.

Apsis Communications Bake. Frost. Repeat Bare Painless Laser BreakOUT Escapes Cowboy D’s Crazy Macaws Coffee Bar CUPE Divinity Social DJ’s on Queen Dominion Lending Flavors & Spices Garfield Gadgets intuitive La Noire Beauty Must Stash Fabrics

NeoLitic Paranthe Wali Gali Plush Imperial Ronnie Don’s Ice Cream Royal Recordings 7Even Stars Sharleez Bridal Shop Easy Rent to Own The Captain Quarters The Dominion The Painted Turtle Pottery Studio True North Cannabis Turtle Island Wonder Buds Value Buds

Farewell This year, we said farewell to five businesses. We thank them for the difference they made to our Downtown community and we wish them well in their future endeavours.

Divinity Social Monfreise Rum Cakes Moxie Total Health Personal Trainer Muthership Tattoo Parlour Nyte Rider

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Events This year, we hosted and assisted with many successful events, bringing foot traffic and attention to Downtown Niagara Falls. We received a $125,000 grant from the Government of Ontario, which allowed us to make all of this possible. From virtual events to socially distanced events, this year was a learning curve, but we made it happen with the help of grants, businesses, volunteers, guests, performers, and staff.

2020 Christmas Market

Movie Nights

In 2020, the Downtown Niagara Falls Christmas Market ran successfully, acting as a safe way to celebrate the holiday season despite the pandemic. There were 25,000 people who attended the market and were able to enjoy the local vendors and experiences while following all COVID-19 guidelines.

From summer and into the fall, we hosted outdoor movie nights every Wednesday on Queen street. Our inflatable screen allowed us to offer free movies to residents and visitors who wanted to bring a blanket and chair to enjoy the show, with popcorn and ice cream being sold by Cat and Monkey Events and Ronnie Don’s Ice Cream.

Cruising on the Q

Concerts

Cruising on the Q is a classic event on Queen Street. Every Tuesday night throughout the summer, car lovers would gather and share their old cars with the community. The car shows concluded with Super Cruise in September, with over 350 cars coming out, 50/50 draws, prizes, and cake.

We turned the street into a party for several Saturday nights throughout the summer, providing a stage and hiring local bands to perform outdoors. These concerts were free, and guests could enjoy food and drinks on Downtown patios, or sit at our picnic tables on the street to enjoy.

8 on the Q Cruising

2020 Christmas Market

Movie Night

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies

Season of the Witch

Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies were a focus for the BIA this year, ensuring we were properly welcoming all the new businesses to the area. The mayor of Niagara Falls, Jim Diodati, attended the ceremonies to give speeches, take photos with the business owners, and of course cut the red ribbons!

Cat and Monkey Events hosted the Season of the Witch, which consisted of several different events each week of October. These events included Halloween movie nights, tarot card readings, the Annual Witches Ball, a scarecrow contest, pumpkin carving, and more.

Games and Pianos This was an interactive year for us, as we offered chess sets and tables on the street, a giant life size Connect 4 game and chess board, as well as painted pianos. The pianos were painted by two talented local artists, Andrea Letourneau and Megan Jesik.

Other Events

Crazy Macaws Bike Night

Drag Shows

Every Thursday was bike night hosted by Crazy Macaws, where bikers and bike-lovers could gather to appreciate vintage motorcycles, enjoy live performances, and enjoy 50/50 draws – where the proceeds went towards the Ronald MacDonald Foundation. The BIA assisted with insurance, road closures, and equipment use, to ensure these nights were successful!

Nightmare on Queen Saturday Markets Outdoor Yoga Night of Art Foodie Fridays

Upcoming Events Santa Claus Parade This year, the BIA is taking over the Santa Claus Parade on November 13th. Guests can expect to see flashy floats, mascots, live entertainment, groups from the community and Santa of course!

Niagara Falls Christmas Market After a successful Christmas Market in 2020, we are looking forward to hosting a bigger, more extravagant market this year. Running on weekends from November 13th until December 19th, it is anticipated there will be up to 50 vendors, over 30 light displays, interactive art displays, live music, string lights, glow swings, and more. We are partnered with Picks & Giggles, who will be working to scout out all of the artisanal vendors for the market. We are also partnered with the Winter Festival of Lights for this event, which kicks off on November 13th as well. Coming out of the pandemic, we are expecting over 100,000 people to visit the market and see what downtown has to offer!

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Beautification and Economic Development As a BIA, one of our main mandates is beautification, which helps Downtown become a more pleasant atmosphere for businesses, residents, and tourists.

Banners As part of our rebrand, we had branded banners hung up on the street with our various logos, serving as a reminder of our core values, identifying the area with consistency, and brightening up the street. These banners can be switched out whenever needed, allowing us to have the street themed a certain way depending on the time of year. From mid-October until after Remembrance Day, Veteran banners were hung up to honour Veterans who have some sort of connection to the Niagara Region. People were able to submit their information, photo, and donation towards the Royal Canadian Legion to be featured on a banner. After Remembrance Day, there are plans to hang up winter-themed banners in the spirit of the Santa Claus Parade, Christmas Market, and holiday season.

Scarecrow Contest During October, Cat and Monkey Events hosted a scarecrow contest, where people could create their own scarecrow and have it displayed outside their business. At the end of the month, the scarecrows were judged and the winner was awarded a $100 prize for the most creative scarecrow.

GooseChase Scavenger Hunt In the summer of 2021, we hosted a GooseChase scavenger hunt, which encouraged people to explore Downtown while completing challenges on the GooseChase app. Participants who completed all of the challenges were entered to win a $50 gift card to a Queen Street restaurant.

Storywalks Also in the summer of 2021, we hosted Storywalks, in partnership with the library. Story book panels were displayed in store windows, for children to take a walk down the street and scan QR codes to read the story. The story was changed three times throughout the summer and acted as a great way for families to explore and engage with the area. Children who completed the full story and unscrambled a secret code were able to stop by Ronnie Don’s Ice Cream for a free ice cream cone.

Other Other beautification efforts included hanging more Canadian flags on the street – bringing the count from 18 to 39, giving out flower baskets to businesses for them to hang outside, and putting out flower bollards. 10

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Murals

The Indigenous Ways of Knowing Leona Skye-Grandmond

This year was an artistic one, with several new murals being painted on the walls of the Downtown area. One very special and important mural was the mural above Third Space Café, painted by Leona Skye-Grandmond. Leona is a talented Indigenous visual artist and social activist who advocates for Indigenous victims across the country. She created this mural, titled “The Indigenous Ways of Knowing.” The mural conveys “all nations walking together, in parallel, with respect, compassion, and to reflect the diverse histories, cultures, contributions, sacrifices, and strengths of Indigenous Peoples.” Thank you to Leona Skye, who heralds from the Ojibwa tribe from Pic River and a member of the Turtle Clan, for her work honouring and recognizing Indigenous Peoples.

The “Wish You Were Here” mural was completed and unveiled in September 2021, beautifully painted by Elaine Wallis and her team, which included her niece and granddaughter. People can stop by to take photos with it and send them to their loved ones just like an old-school postcard! This mural is located behind Camp Cataract and Third Space Café. We also had seven small murals painted by local artists. These murals were removable, thus were able to be relocated to different areas of Downtown. Another beautification project was the muskoka chairs that were painted by local artists as well. These chairs were set up throughout the summer outside of the BIA office, and used during events. Thank you to all the talented artists!

Wish You Were Here Elaine Wallis 11

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Win This Space This year, the Downtown Niagara Falls BIA partnered with the Small Business Enterprise Centre to launch a contest where local entrepreneurs could be entered to win up to $15,000 towards the rent of a location in Downtown Niagara Falls. The top applicants attended educational workshops, submitted business plans, and presented their pitch to a panel of judges. Two contestants had such great ideas that they actually tied in points, so there were two winners: The Painted Turtle Pottery Studio and Bare Painless Laser.

The Painted Turtle Pottery Studio The Painted Turtle Pottery Studio is an independently owned business currently operating out of St. Catharines and Welland. Guests at the studio will get to experience a creative atmosphere that offers pottery and canvas painting, clay building, glass fusing, board art, and more. Susan and William Wilkinson are the owners and they love to help people to create memories and art. Their cheerful and familyfriendly environment allows you to unwind and unleash your creative side.

Bare Painless Laser Proud owner, Shannon Lapointe, is a regulated health care professional who opened her own laser hair removal and skin rejuvenation business on the side of her career just over three years ago. This prize money will allow Shannon to purchase her own laser rather than renting, expand her services and operational hours. Shannon will be offering new services such as dermal fillers, Botox, pelvic floor strengthening, and more.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Marketing and Social Media @downtownniagarafalls

@DTniagarafalls

@downtownniagarafalls

@DowntownNiagaraFalls

Downtown Niagara Falls

Digital Presence In the past year, we were able to increase followers across all channels by producing more professional photo and video content, engagement, consistent posting, and small business introductions. Our professional videography commercials helped us to leverage businesses’ offerings in a visually engaging way on social media. We were able to increase followers on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter – and we created a TikTok account which we are currently working on.

+ 1,750 Followers on Instagram

+ 1,600 Followers on Facebook

Social Media Takeovers

Passport Program

Another new initiative for our social media was “Takeover Tuesdays,” where we allowed local businesses to login to our Instagram and Facebook and take over our story for 24 hours. Businesses introduced themselves, told their stories, showed their products, built awareness, and brought us through a “day-in-the-life.”

In the spring of 2021, we created a passport program, where people could visit participating restaurants to be entered in a contest. We had 12 restaurants and cafés agree to be put on the passport for people to visit. Participants were required to visit eight of the 12 businesses to receive a sticker and be entered into the contest. The winner received a gift card from each of the locations! Since the restaurant industry has suffered a lot during the pandemic, this was a great way to promote the local restaurants and encourage new customers with an incentive.

If you’re a Downtown business owner and would like to do a social media takeover with us, please email info@downtownniagarafalls.com

Summer Wallpapers Our in-house photographer took a variety of vertical photos in Downtown Niagara Falls for phone wallpapers to download. We promoted these wallpapers on our social media, website, and newsletters for people to choose from. We look forward to offering more wallpapers in the future for Christmas and other special times of the year, so that people can keep a little memory of Downtown in their pocket!

Instagram and Facebook Lives We took advantage of this relatively new feature of Instagram and Facebook, which is the ability to share a livestream with your followers. We used this feature to document red ribbon cutting events, mural unveilings, concerts, and other events, in order to engage virtually with our audience in real-time, which was especially important during the pandemic.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Instagram Guides

Important Days

Instagram guides are perfect for sharing favourite recommendations, products, tips, and posts in a simple format. We used this new feature to categorize businesses to check out in Downtown, such as hair salons, patios, cafés, beer, and french fry ‘go-tos’.

Aside from celebrating and posting about National days and holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc., we also recognized important days such as Juneteenth, Pride Month, and National Indigenous Peoples Day through our social media channels. We also acknowledged and made statements about issues including but not limited to, racism, political injustices, sexism, and homophobia.

Updates with Eddy Our Vice Chairman, Eddy Pybus, was nice enough to assist us with regular video updates on social media letting people know the latest updates and upcoming promotions and events. We filmed Eddy talking about each of the updates and posted these video clips on social media for businesses, residents, and tourists to see.

Face Behind Business & Beyond Business With the help from our in-house photo and video staff, we were able to create social media campaigns that showcased business owners in a personal light. For Face Behind the Business, we took photos of business owners or employees in front of their business and wrote a description of who they are, their position, how they got started. For Beyond Business, we filmed interviews with business members or employees and asked them about their passions, advice, and life lessons. These campaigns allowed us to put a face and personality behind these businesses and connect with audience members.

Video Commercials We largely focused on video content this year throughout all of our social media channels. We recognized that videos grab peoples’ attention, drive engagement, and personify the Downtown Niagara Falls brand. With an in-house video team, we created 36 videos showcasing the street in a new light, local businesses, and events. Short video commercials for social media generally cost about $1,000 a piece on the lower end of the scale. Knowing this, we can assume we saved roughly $36,000 by having our own inhouse video staff. These videos included reels, stories, TikToks, and IGTV. Along with this, we used a state-of-the-art drone for some of the videos, which helped elevate a new perspective of downtown that most BIAs cannot show without the proper technology. Highest views on a reel:

5,251 views

Flowers for Fathers Valentine’s Day Contest To celebrate Valentine’s Day, we partnered with Ferrero Rocher to give away 100 boxes of Ferrero Golden Gallery Signature Chocolates. Businesses that committed to participating created a Valentine’s special of some sort. People who arranged a curbside pick up of the special would take a photo of it, email it to us, and post it to social media to be entered.

For Father’s Day, we created a unique campaign where we surprised fathers in Downtown with flowers to celebrate their special day. The idea behind this campaign was that only mothers tend to get flowers on Mother’s Day, so we wanted to make fathers feel special too. It was nice to see the smile on their face when they received such a unique gift. We posted photos on our social media, encouraging people to do the same for the special father in their life.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

National Days

Radio Commercials

A new fun and engaging initiative we did for social media this year was celebrating National Days such as National French Fry Day and National Beer Day, among many others. For example, for National French Fry Day we tried french fries from every restaurant in Downtown – we compared them and rated them as saltiest, crunchiest, thickest, etc. This was filmed in an informal IGTV video and posted to a blog as well. For National Beer Day, we did a photoshoot with beer and wings from restaurants on the street and created an Instagram guide to showcase all the different places people can check out for beer. We tagged each restaurant, so people would know where to go!

In May, we introduced music to the street, so people can enjoy their time walking around. We also created radio commercials which backed our core logo messages of downtown being flavourful, stylish, innovative, and authentic, which played through our street speakers periodically.

OBIAA “I Believe” In the spring of 2021, OBIAA encouraged BIAs across Ontario to participate in an “I Believe” social media campaign to show belief and strength in our local communities. For this campaign, we created signs and reached out to several different businesses in various industries in Downtown. Business owners who agreed to participate held one of the signs outside of their business, while we took a video clip of each and combined them with a voiceover in the background. This initiative put a lot of faces to our business categories and showed community support.

Digital Main Street We had 31 businesses receive the $2,500 Digital Transformation Grant provided by Digital Main Street and the Ontario Government. These grants are used to improve the overall digital presence (website, social media, digital marketing, technology, etc.) of downtown businesses. “One of the biggest obstacles we face as a small business is money to advertise. I was able to use part of the money for advertising, the rest will go to Instagram and Facebook posts.” - Cheryl Vanditelli, Queen Bean Café.

Social Media Workshops As part of DMS, we also offered social media workshops to business members who were looking for a bit of extra help and advice with their digital presence. This involved sitting down with the business member or employee and discussing possible improvements, teaching them about new features, new social media apps, hashtags, photography, SEO, etc.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Website Rebrand In March of 2021, we launched our website rebrand which included securing a new domain, logo, brand colours, website design, and identity. The BIA has been actively using this website to post blogs, press releases, event listings, updated descriptions, hours, and photos of businesses in Downtown.

44k views March 2020 - Present

1m3s

average engagement time

Top Users by City: 1. Niagara Falls 2. Toronto 3. St. Catharines 4. Hamilton

Our main logo and name is, “The Authentic Downtown” with alternate logos to represent the different categories of downtown – flavourful, stylish, eventful, and innovative. These variations are used to show the diversity of downtown.

Another focus with our new website was to increase Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Through expanding the word count on each page, adding keywords and key phrases, and adding external and internal links, we ensured our website is SEO friendly. This helps Downtown to rank on Google, increasing the odds of being seen organically by end-users. We were also able to get the Downtown Niagara Falls website to be featured on the Niagara Falls Wikipedia page as an external link. 16

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Communications This year, we heavily focused on ensuring we had strong communication with our businesses, property owners, residents, and tourists.

Email Marketing

Job Board

Since June of 2020, we have sent over 320 newsletters through the email marketing tool, Mailchimp. With the ability to target different audiences, we send specialized newsletters to different segments – including business members, tourists, and residents. These include monthly newsletters, upcoming event information, governance updates, COVID-19 updates, surveys, and road closure notices, which are constantly ongoing.

A recently new feature of our website is our job board, where we can help businesses with their hiring process by posting their jobs and linking people to the application process. Businesses can easily submit their posting through our job board submission page, and we do the rest of the work for them!

Text Notifications Through SlickText, we were able to send out text notifications alerting businesses, residents, and tourists of upcoming events and promotions. We advertised signing up for text notifications through social media and through our newsletters. This is a relatively new initiative of ours, but we have successfully sent out 33 text notifications to a wide audience since late June 2021.

Property Postings To entice property owners, we regularly post the properties that are for sale or lease in Downtown through social media and newsletters.

Proclamation We are excited to announce that the tree that is located in our Downtown core at City Hall has received a proclamation to be named the official Niagara Falls Christmas Tree. We cannot wait for the official tree lighting after the Santa Claus Parade!

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Earned Media

Blogs

In preparation for our 2021 Christmas Market, we’ve been communicating a lot with our followers, businesses, residents, and the media to raise awareness. We were lucky enough to be featured in an article by Narcity (840K followers on Instagram) and an article by BlogTO (813K followers on Instagram), expanding our reach drastically. These articles were completely free of charge for us, since these companies showed an interest in our market and chose to spread the word themselves.

Since the launch of our new website in March 2020, we have put out over 30 blogs to increase web traffic, raise awareness, educate people, and to familiarize people with the businesses downtown. Some of our blogs included, “Patios to Visit Downtown,” “Places to get Coffee in Downtown,” “7 Hair Salons to Check Out,” “Christmas Market Sneak Peak,” “Halloween Photo Ops,” and more.

Aside from the Christmas Market, we have been featured in several newspapers and media outlets including iHeartRadio, Insauga, St.Catharines Standard, Niagara Falls Review, Niagara This Week, HTZ-FM, and more. We regularly send out press releases with updates and details to a list of media contacts, and we often receive interest and shares of these articles. This earned media acts as a free and effective way for us to reach new audiences both in the Niagara Region and beyond.

One blog series that we recently started is called “A Deeper Look into Downtown,” which will showcase stories of business owners, to show who they are as people and what their challenges and successes were with opening their own business. If you’re a Downtown business owner and want to be featured in one of these interview-style blogs, please email info@downtownniagarafalls.com.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Grants Sponsorships and grants remain a vital aspect of BIA projects, and we continue to grow with these opportunities year-over-year. With the BIA’s commitment to staffing via the levy, the BIA is able to apply, manage, and implement these additional projects and programs, taking advantage of municipal, provincial, and federal funds.

Sponsorships & Grants 2020: $12,770.92 CIP Funding $20,000 Digital Main Street $8,123.73 Event Sponsorship

= $40,894.65 Projected Sponsorships & Grants 2021 Year-to-date: $15,000 Federal Tourism Grant for Christmas Market $35,000 Marketing and Promotions Grant for Christmas Market $125,000 Provincial Grant for Christmas Light Purchase $42,000 Digital Main Street Grant $35,500 Santa Claus Parade Sponsorships $115,000 Student Wage Grants $5,750 CIP Funding $1,000 Various Sponsorship $25,000 In-kind Sponsorship

= $399,250 19

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Community Improvement Plan (CIP) A Community Improvement Plan (CIP) is a tool that allows a municipality to direct funds and implement policy initiatives toward a specifically defined project area. These CIP grants encourage revitalization and development in the Downtown area. Property owners and tenants located in the City’s Downtown Community Improvement Project Area can apply for grants and loans under a number of programs. There have been 93 applicants since the start of the program and we highly encourage taking advantage of these grants.

Commercial Building and Façade Improvement Grant Program To promote the restoration and improvement of the facades of commercial and mixed-use buildings and promote the maintenance and physical improvement of existing buildings and properties.

Revitalization Grant Program To provide financial incentive to help offset the increased property taxes that result from the rehabilitation of downtown residential and commercial properties.

Residential Loan Program To provide a 0% interest loan to promote the: conversion of non-residential buildings to residential use; upgrade of existing residential buildings to meet building code, fire code and property standards by-law; and construction of residential units on vacant properties. To find out more, email: info@downtownniagarafalls.com.

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Safety and Security Initiatives Initiative: When to Call 911

Initiative: Security Cameras

Since we are a busy urban area, there may be instances where you or your staff may witness an unpleasant or disruptive behavior, in which case 911 should be called.

Five new security cameras have been installed in Downtown, ensuring protection of the residents, business members, and tourists.

Initiative: Witness Impact Statements Initiative: Needle Program If you or your staff need a contact for needle clean up, or support for vulnerable populations, please contact Positive Living Niagara directly or visit www.positivelivingniagara.com.

If you or your staff witness an illegal or unpleasant activity in Downtown Niagara Falls, we encourage you to document the occurrence and submit it to the Niagara Regional Police Department (NRPD).

Governance The bylaws and new constitution were created in late 2020 by the Board of Management and governance committee. These bylaws were approved by council and we stress the importance of checking them out at www.downtownniagarafalls.com. The Board of Management recognizes the importance of creating a strategic plan for long term visioning. The 2022 Strategic Plan has been successfully created, please see separate document.

GO Station Transit Hub Zoning Bylaw* The City is initiating an amendment to its Zoning Bylaw in order to implement the GO Transit Station secondary plan. This zoning bylaw update is meant to support transit supportive development and the creation of walkable neighbourhoods with a mix of uses, a variety of housing choices, and new employment opportunities. With anticipation of increased foot traffic because of the GO Station, the zoning bylaw will help to accommodate this. The policies of the Secondary Plan support a transit supportive neighbourhood with: • A mix of commercial and residential uses at a variety of heights so there are more people living and working within the downtown

• A mix of new uses and community facilities

• More housing opportunities with a range of housing needs including affordable housing

• Cycling facilities, linkages and new active transportation connections

• An enhanced pedestrian environment that supports a walkable urban setting

• Preserved access and viewing opportunities of the Niagara River

• Improved transit connectivity • Improved streetscapes with public realm enhancements 21

• An attractive built form that complements the form, scale and character of the community

*The final zoning bylaw is pending approval as of October 19th, 2021

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

2022 Budget The Downtown Niagara Falls BIA and Board of Management are committed to offering the same or increased services in 2022 compared to 2021, within the cost-of-living adjustment following the COVID-19 pandemic. Please note that the portion of grant revenue may be significantly more or less in 2022; however, these numbers are based on semi-guaranteed arrangements and are therefore budgeted for accordingly. The corresponding expense line would be eliminated if these arrangements were unavailable via the provincial and federal governments. There will be a more detailed discussion at the Annual General Meeting on November 4th, 2021, at 4:00 p.m. Please note that vaccine passports are mandatory. There is a virtual option for those who are unable to attend the in-person meeting. Please RSVP to info@downtownniagarafalls.com. The BIA thanks over 50 respondents for their participation in the annual BIA survey, which assisted in the budget creation. The BIA also thanks all the committees for their hard work and dedication in 2021. We encourage anyone interested to join a committee in 2022!

The Budget Process:

Revenue:

May - Survey created and approved by committees and the Board

Non-Levy *grants, sponsorships, other: $185,000

June - Members survey sent to membership

Levy: $406,604

July and August - Committees meet multiple times to review membership input

Total = $591,604

Start-of-September - Committees form draft budget requests and send them to Finance and Audit

Expenses:

Mid-September - Finance and Audit forms recommended budget

Students from Grants: $211,000 Administration, Human Resources & Other: $163,504 Events: $60,100

End-of-September - Board makes adjustments and approves budget

Marketing and Promotion: $33,000

November 4th - AGM for discussion

Beautification, Economic Development & Maintenance: $124,000

End-of-November - Board approves budget to go to council December - Budget sent to council for ratification

Total = $591,604

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Residents Research Method In the month of July, a survey was distributed to residents and tourists through email and social media. The BIA encouraged responses to help gather valuable information about the direction and future of downtown. The main goals of the survey are as follows: 1. Assess the strengths and areas we can improve in Downtown Niagara Falls. 2. Identify existing or emerging opportunities for future growth. 3. Determine specific priorities for how living, playing, and working in Downtown Niagara Falls could be enhanced.

Number of Visits Downtown Per Year

Which amenities do you use in Downtown Niagara Falls? 1. Dining 2. Entertainment 3. Special Events

Favourite Downtown Niagara Falls Events?

How has COVID-19 impacted you coming to Downtown Niagara Falls?

1. Saturday Markets 2. Concerts Low/minimal impact

3. Christmas Market 4. Santa Claus Parade

Medium/moderate impact High impact

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

Business Owners, Employees, and Property Owners Research Method In the month of July, a survey was distributed to business owners, employees, and property owners through email, social media, printed flyers, and mail. The BIA encouraged responses to help gather valuable information about the direction and future of downtown. The main goals of the survey are as follows: 1. Assess the strengths and areas we can improve in Downtown Niagara Falls. 2. Identify existing or emerging opportunities for future growth 3. Determine specific priorities for how living, playing, and working in Downtown Niagara Falls could be enhanced.

Businesses with online presence:

Influence to keep business or property downtown: 1. Affordable business rent

Yes

2. Business improvement grants

or loans

3. Atmosphere

Influence to establish business or buy property downtown:

Types of businesses that would enhance downtown:

1. Affordable property purchase

1. Retail

2. Affordable business rent

2. Accommodations, travel & tourism

3. Atmosphere

3. Catering, restaurants, food services

Annual Report June 2020 - October 2021

A Year in Review The past year has been unforgettable. Despite setbacks and challenges, the businesses and residents of Downtown Niagara Falls have come together to build a stronger community. Here are some of the biggest accomplishments and highlights of the year: • Welcomed over 30 new businesses • Gained over 1750 new followers on Instagram • Gained over 1600 new followers on Facebook • Conducted a successful rebranding • Hosted several new events including our first Christmas Market • Win This Space

• Ensured health and safety protocols were being followed • Increased beautification with banners, planters, bollards, string lights, picnic tables, and more • Security gates mitigated issues • Cameras installed for community safety • DMS grants

Looking Ahead As we reflect on our strengths and weaknesses of this year, we can begin to look ahead at the future and come up with ways to enhance Downtown Niagara Falls even further. • Welcome more businesses to Downtown • Continue to build our social media and other marketing efforts • Host our biggest Christmas Market yet • Host Santa Claus parade • String lights to be hung • Arches to be painted dark blue in 2022

• In the process of trademarking of “Downtown Niagara Falls” • Strategic Plan published • Movie nights, concerts, bike shows, Canada Day, car shows • 2022 Food Guide • Updated gateway signage

• 2022 Winter Passport We also recognize the importance of increased traffic due to the Go Station being located so close by. We look forward to using this to our advantage to encourage more people to stop by Downtown Niagara Falls and see what it has to offer.

We are incredibly excited for what this next year will bring.