Why Downtowns Matter

​Why Downtowns Matter
by Lori Henderson, PCDA Executive Director
 
When I think back about the memories I have about places I have lived, I rarely think about a vast empty parking lot on the busiest retail corridor in town.  Now, granted, I come from a small town and parking lots were a temporary respite while we were cruising (yes, I’m that old).  But the cops would always run us off no matter what we were doing, so the stay in that parking lot was brief and we moved on to another spot until they found us again.  Most of my memories of the places I have been involve the house where I lived, the school I attended and then the downtown district.

From parades when I was little, either marching in them when I twirled baton those two years on the late 80s, riding in them for homecoming , watching the band and the classic cars go by or covering my ears when the firetrucks drove past, sirens wailing.  And then taking my kids to those parades and covering their ears, too, and making sure they didn’t get run over going after that stray sucker on the street.

Coming from a small town, there were festivals downtown that offered baked goods, antiques, games and prizes and all manner of wares that our moms sold like Avon and Tupperware.   Cakewalks, people.  I was always game for a cakewalk. 
Downtown was where I walked after middle school to find my mom at the bank where she worked.  She would give me a buck or two and I would walk down to the drug store for a pop or whatever little thing I could afford with my $2.  Downtown is where I saw my first movie with a boy (that did not go well) and where I worked at the grocery store when I was in high school.  Downtown is simply where things happen.  Things that mold you into the person you are today.  Things that make lifelong memories and where you want more memories to be made.  A connection.

Economically speaking, a vibrant downtown makes for a vibrant city but also serves as a hub for commerce.  We pay our bills downtown.  Grandparents mail packages to their grandchildren downtown.  My husband is gonna buy me that ring I really want in the jewelry store downtown, I just know it.

As I got older, I started to notice more detail about the downtowns I enjoyed.  The architecture and the dates at the tops of the buildings, giving you a little glimpse of history and possibly sparking a google search about what once was.  The deterioration of a building well over 100 years old, and the immediate longing to be able to stabilize it for future generations.  In Ponca City, it’s the brick streets, the Poncan Theatre, our beautiful City Hall or our library that happens to be packed with amazing art and, yes, books, too.  Honestly, too many details to mention.  Do you know how many brothels we used to have way back when?  Answer – more than you realize!

And we still have fun things to do downtown like Main Street Ladies Night, Ice on the Plaza and Crazy Days.  We still have parades for the rodeo, Veterans Day and Christmas, and my kiddos still love going to them even though they are getting older.  Hundreds of people work downtown, we shop downtown, we eat downtown.  I make it a point to take my family downtown.  Because I want them to have those same fond memories I had growing up, even though they are growing up in quite a different age than I did way back when.  And if we’re smart about, and we take care of the downtown we know and love, we will have it for generations to come.  Our downtown really does serve as the heart of the community and downtown Ponca City definitely has a special place in my heart.

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