Free water at the Downtown Salt Lake Farmers Market

Downtown Salt Lake City Saturday Farmers Market provides free water, which makes sense in a hot climate. They are smart in having procured "a water sponsor""

This market is run by the Downtown Alliance, the business improvement district in Salt Lake City. In my opinion it's one of the best outdoor farmers markets in the U.S. The Downtown Alliance, which also runs the GreenBike bike sharing program, is particularly good at breaking out event or program activities so that they can bring in sponsors to help defray the cost. For example, with the bike share program, a local health system is the "helmet sponsor" and provides free bike helmets to new members.

Seattle Streetcar starts running on the First Hill route

One of my jokes about the debacles (which kill me) of the creation of streetcar service in DC is that DC and Seattle started planning for streetcars at the same time, in 2003, but Seattle's first line opened in 2007, while DC's single line will open finally in February 2016.

This past weekend, Seattle opened its second line, connecting Pioneer Square and the International District to Capitol Hill ("75 years later, streetcars return to Capitol Hill," Capitol Hill Seattle).

In March, the Sound Transit Light Rail extension to Capitol Hill will become operational, so the streetcar will expand the intra-city catchment area of the new transit station.

Although oddly, the streetcar stops one block short of the station, although there are plans to extend the line to the station and beyond.

Also see "STREETCARS ARE ABOUT TRANSIT, just in a different way from how most people are accustomed to thinking about it," for discussion on the difference between intra-city and inter-city transit systems.


Right now, riding is free, but soon enough the line will start charging fares.

It's a bit odd that the two lines aren't connected, but there is planning underway for the "Central City Connector" to link them. Construction could start on this segment of Seattle's streetcar trackage next year.

The new line would have opened more than one year earlier, but there were problems with the manufacturing of the cars, which led to significant delays ("Almost ready to ride: tours of delayed First Hill streetcar line begin," Seattle Times

I am impressed with the strong graphic treatments used on and in the transit shelters for the streetcar line.



Including the map graphics.


Currently, Seattle doesn't allow advertising in bus shelters and elsewhere in the public space, although they are aiming to change this ("Seattle plans to declutter street furniture with private help," Seattle Times), and in the interim they were looking to sell sponsorship of streetcar stops, although it's not clear that they have sold any.

Note that based on the article about "street furniture" and the peer examples listed, I expect that Seattle will make the same kinds of mistakes that DC did with its "bus shelter" contract, which limits the upside for the city in terms of being able to integrate innovative programs over time.

DC's Diverse City Fund

DC's Diverse City Fund will announce their second round of grants today. I make the point often that DC has a pretty weak array of civil society organizations.  This fund provides a way to support ground-up, civic, and grassroots efforts.  It's a community fund supported by individual contribution.  Other cities have similar projects, e.g., Pittsburgh's Sprout Fund funds innovative, creative small projects.

From the DCF website:

MISSION STATEMENT


The Diverse City Fund works to nurture community leaders and grassroots projects which are acting to transform DC into a more just, vibrant place to live. Through our grantmaking, we identify, support, and connect people in communities of color who are engaged in change work.


We support the development of community-level social change by funding projects that have less access to traditional funding sources.


——–


The DC Fund came about with a vision to support community projects and leaders working to bring about justice in Washington DC. We want to see a city as rich in its present diversity as in its history, grounded in respect for the work that has brought so many neighborhood institutions into being, and with a readiness to support a new generation of community leaders.


Our support will come in the form of small grants to projects powered largely by volunteer labor. Smaller, volunteer-driven community initiatives have few options for funding, but it is often these very projects that work to build institutions by and for communities with the least access to resources. Ultimately, we envision the DC Fund as a glimpse into the political and historical context for citywide social change, as well as a place to foster community among fund supporters and put a spotlight on less visible community-level projects.

Social justice fundraising conference: August, Oakland California

From the people who produce Grassroots Fundraising Journal:

 

Join us August 10-11 in Oakland for Money for Our Movements.
It's not your typical fundraising conference.

August 10-11, 2012 | Oakland Marriott
Workshops and facilitated discussions now online—click here to check them out and save your spot!

Create More Powerful Partnerships & Sponsorships (WBJ seminar)

Friday, June 15  |  12-2 p.m.  |  Tower Club, Tysons Corner
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Sorry about the late notice on this, I don't seem to have noticed this before.  The Washington Business Journal is putting on a seminar on sponsorship development, featuring Gail Bower, author of How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times.  (I'm not familiar with her work specifically, but generally people like she are well worth learning from.  I have seen presentations by Sylvia Allen and have her book, which is well worth it.) 

From email:


If you sell sponsorship, Gail will show you how to expand beyond the generic gold, silver and bronze packages and re-imagine more powerful partnerships. If you’re on the corporate side, buying or implementing sponsorship, learn ways to improve how you execute sponsorship so you know you’re deriving a solid ROI from your investments.

You’ll learn:

• What today’s economic climate means for sponsorship.
• The impact for your organization.
• What best practice marketing-driven corporate sponsorship looks like.
• Why sponsorship is an excellent strategy in our media-saturated marketplace.
• 3 ways to improve your partnerships immediately.

But the WBJ seminar, while it costs $99, includes a copy of Gail's book, lunch, and a year's subscription to the paper, more than paying back the cost of going.  Too bad I already have plans...

-- Registration