Guest column by Nancy Maciel: Downtown Association developing programs to help Gilroy businesses
“Remember, where you spend your money really does matter.”
By Nancy Maciel
Nancy Maciel
The Gilroy Downtown Business Association’s mission is to “foster community by creating a unique and vibrant downtown that encourages and promotes economic growth and sustainability through advocacy and marketing while respecting the downtown history.”
As an organization, we exist to create a strong, vibrant, and welcoming downtown. And we do it because we know that a great downtown is essential to a thriving community.
The job of any volunteer-run organization like a downtown association is not easy. There are a multitude of obstacles that we must deal with every day as do most of our downtown merchants. Without the downtown events that fund our organization since March of 2020, it has been a financial challenge for us, like the multitude of other nonprofits that serve our community.
While we normally give out awards for exceptional business owners and supporters, this year we wanted to recognize a new category. It recognizes the amazing efforts that downtown businesses owners made to keep their doors open and serve our wonderful community during the past nine months of COVID-19 lock-downs. Our new award Making Lemonade out of Lemons resiliency awards will be announced at our Feb. 3 virtual mixer where recipients will be recognized. Each of the awardees epitomize the proverbial phrase’s meaning of “encouraging optimism and a positive can-do attitude in the face of adversity or misfortune.”
Like most small businesses, our nonprofit organization has had to pivot our activities during 2020. At the very beginning of the pandemic, the Gilroy Downtown Business Association responded to the crises by creating a new website, the Gilroy Faves Gift Cards (www.gilroyfavesgiftcards.com). It gives those businesses with no website or online presence a place to sell gift certificates putting real dollars back into the businesses pockets. The Gilroy community responded, and we distributed more than $10,000 to merchants in 2020 alone.
We created an inspiring video to give hope, as the pandemic began. Viewed more than a million times, our video won second place in the contest and a much-appreciated cash prize.
We created a private Facebook group to stay in communication with downtown property and business owners and we used our social media platform(s) to promote outdoor dining, take out, and curbside pick-up.
Our executive board, Gary Walton, John Taft, and Jose Montes, have kept busy with assisting downtown businesses get the last unreinforced masonry building off the city’s URM list. They helped downtown businesses apply for federal PPP loans, and for city funded patio furniture, parklets and city grants and continue to stress the importance of helping downtown businesses with needed awnings, heaters, and parklets and community support for all our local businesses in order that they might survive the winter months.
More recently, we created “Where’s Gil and Roy,” a program to draw people to downtown Gilroy during Small Business Saturday through Dec. 28. We had eight businesses participate and gave away eight prizes.
Our big plans for Gourmet Alley were shared with our partners, and more recently with the city council and the community during a study session on Jan. 11 that was well received by the council and the public. For those who have not seen the presentation we will present a shortened version at our Feb. 3 mixer.
Even though we have been unable to have any of our most beloved events since March 2020, our organization has continued to put out American flags in our downtown to celebrate national holidays, and decorate for the holidays. While our most popular event, the Christmas Parade, had to be canceled this year, we had Santa and Mrs. Claus join us for a virtual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony.
Yes, 2020 was a year filled with darkness and angst. But we continue to believe there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Our community remains strong and resilient despite what we all have been through. Thank you for loving local and being the great community you are. By continuing to shop in-person, online and ordering food for either on-site dining or takeout, you will help downtown Gilroy and other local businesses through the winter months.
Remember, where you spend your money really does matter.
Nancy Maciel is the executive marketing and event coordinator with the Gilroy Downtown Business Association.