Mayor Joanne Yepsen, Saratoga County
\nChamber President Todd Shimkus and a
\nrange of business and civic leaders joined
\ntogether to announce that the city will host
\na conference entitled “Experience Saratoga
\nSprings – How to Create a Vibrant Downtown”
\nin April.<\/p>\n
The two-day conference, April 3 and 4,
\ninvites economic developers, city planners,
\ndowntown business association leaders,
\nchamber executives, and others from
\naround New York state, New England and
\nbeyond to learn first-hand how Saratoga
\nSprings has become one of the most vibrant
\ndowntowns in the U.S., Chamber officials
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The conference is being organized by the
\nSaratoga County Chamber of Commerce
\nwith help from a wide range of local organizations
\nsuch as the mayor’s office, the City
\nCenter, and the Saratoga Convention and
\nTourism Bureau.<\/p>\n
Conference attendees will have the choice of three unique “experiences” where they will stay overnight in one of three different hotels, dine at select local restaurants, visit with several retailers and meet with different local leaders depending upon the experience they select.<\/p>\n
The Spa-Set Experience will focus on how cities can attract upscale residents, tourists and development to their downtowns.<\/p>\n
The Saratoga Adventure Awaits experience will explore how cities can attract younger professionals to live and visit their downtowns. The Saratoga Community Experience will delve into the details of how local people can rebuild their downtowns one project at a time through public-private partnerships.<\/p>\n
“Our city is now recognized as one of the most vibrant in New York state and the nation,” said Yepsen. “Throughout my tenure as an elected official in Saratoga Springs, I have hosted a great many officials from other communities and I’m often asked, ‘So, how did the city become so successful?’ My hope is that this event can help answer that question. I look forward to welcoming everyone who attends this conference and to rolling out the red carpet for them. This is going to be a fun and productive event for all those involved.”<\/p>\n
The cost for attendees to participate in one of the three experiences ranges between $750 and $950 per person, according to the Chamber. The package price includes an overnight stay, all meals, taxes, and tips.<\/p>\n
The Chamber will organize attendees into small groups of between 12 and 20 people for these experiences and a personal escort will be assigned to each group. The escort will not only help attendees to find their way to and from the locations, but also to make sure that all of their questions are asked during these tours.<\/p>\n
The conference does include a few general assemblies for all attendees in the Saratoga Springs City Center. The first panel presentation will have local experts talking about attracting visitors, meetings, tourists and conventions to a city, as well as how to host festivals that bring people downtown all year long. The second general assembly for all attendees will feature presentations on best practices for attracting developers and private sector investment to revitalize a downtown.<\/p>\n
“We’re not going to teach how to create a vibrant downtown from a podium, but instead we’re going to take attendees into our stores, restaurants and new downtown living options,” said Shimkus. “Attendees will explore and experience the city’s nightlife, parks and vibrancy at the ground level and meet directly with the people who have actually invested in making our city’s downtown vibrant.”<\/p>\n
More information can be found at www.expericencesaratogasprings.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mayor Joanne Yepsen, Saratoga County Chamber President Todd Shimkus and a range of business and civic leaders joined together to announce that the city will host a conference entitled “Experience Saratoga Springs – How to Create a Vibrant Downtown”…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[57,69,102,115],"class_list":["post-14500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news","tag-business-news","tag-events","tag-ny-state","tag-saratoga-springs"],"yoast_head":"\r\n