Economic Development and Placemaking: I help my clients make strategic investments to build better communities
- Evaluate development projects to ensure sensible, sustainable and consistent with community plans and strategies
- Bring proven placemaking strategies to build great places
- Drive opportunity and activity to local business community
- Facilitate connectivity and communication on both sides of public private partnerships
- Navigate government and community relations
- Raise community expectations
- Create a sustainable advantage for communities
Case Study: Waco Downtown Farmers Market
The Waco Downtown Farmers Market is one of the most successful economic development projects in downtown Waco. Operating weekly on Saturday mornings and seasonally during the week the market draws more than 100,000 visitors annually and over an estimated $1.1 million in sales a year for local farmers, vendors and makers.
Recognizing the desire and need for a local food scene in Waco, Chris McGowan pulled the founding team together to develop a local farmer’s market. He was instrumental in working local government leaders and the market team to develop an enabling local farmer's market permit ordinance, identify a site, develop a plan, create an organization, recruit vendors and launch the Waco Downtown Farmer’s Market in November of 2011. Today he remains an active member of the WDFM board of directors.
Today, the market is as much an exercise in economic development through placemaking as it is a place to buy locally produced agricultural products. The WDFM is widely regarded as a weekly community gathering event and is an essential draw for people into the downtown neighborhood.