The Downtown Project: Next Steps

Downtown Grimsby Market Analysis and Action Plan
The Grimsby Downtown Improvement Area (DIA), the Town of Grimsby, the Grimsby
Chamber of Commerce, and the Niagara Regional Municipality retained the consulting firm
Urban Marketing Collaborative (UMC). UMC’s task has been to engage in a retail commercial
market assessment and Action Plan. This engagement is part of a larger Community
Improvement Plan (CIP), which is being conducted for the Downtown. The work is sponsored
as part of both the DIA’s and the Town’s sustained effort to improve upon Grimsby’s vital retail
commercial centre.

The purpose of this final report is to present a comprehensive retail commercial market strategy
for the Downtown. This report, the Market Analysis and the Action Plan discuss the
development of retail in Grimsby, in addition to the relevant strategy required to put the
recommendations into action.
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Downtown Existing Conditions Report
This “Existing Conditions Report” is the first document that will be produced as part of the Downtown Grimsby CIP process: the second document will be the Downtown Design Plan for Grimsby that will outline the design direction and guidance for the area; and the third will be the final CIP itself. The purpose of the Existing Conditions Report is to establish the framework that will guide the preparation of the Downtown Design Plan and the final CIP document.
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Capital Study
The Downtown Revitalization Steering Committee of Grimsby has been focussed on bringing renewal and regeneration to Grimsby’s unique downtown. They have had strategies, plans and legislation drafted in order to make significant progress in Downtown Grimsby’s renewal. Part of the work identified included the preparation of a Downtown Grimsby Capital Plan.
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Master Plan
The Downtown Master Plan provides the overall design strategy for improvement to Downtown Grimsby. It outlines the recommended design treatment for a number of elements within the downtown area, including buildings, streetscapes, utilities, parking, gateway features,
signage, and heritage assets, among others. It deals with both public sector (Region and Town) and private sector improvements (property owners and business owners).
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Community Improvement Plan
The Study Area for the Downtown Grimsby CIP (see Figure 1) is the “Central Core Area” designation from the Town of Grimsby Official Plan. This area is generally bounded by Brierwood Avenue in the west, the CNR railline to the north, Robinson Street to the east, and Gibson Street to the south. As part of the CIP process, the existing conditions within the Study Area, and those properties immediately surrounding, were assessed to determine those areas most in need of improvement, in order to identify a recommended Community Improvement Project Area.
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Design Guidelines
The Design Guidelines provide specific guidance to the design and development of projects within
Downtown Grimsby, from both the public and private sector. The design guidelines express the
expectations during the development review process and are intended to facilitate high quality urban design within Downtown Grimsby. They provide “mid-level” guidance for design, operating between the general policies and principles of the Town of Grimsby Official Plan and the specific details and plans of the development review process, including Site Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment applications.
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Background Documents

Blueprint for action
“In 20 years, Downtown Grimsby is the vibrant, attractive, clean, busy, inviting, safe, pedestrian friendly heart of our town. Our entire community has a vested interest in making it the destination people choose to shop, live, work, play and stay.”

The Downtown Revitalization Steering Committee determined that the key to realizing this vision would be to develop an Action Plan that represented the aspirations and addressed the concerns of the all stakeholders, specifically the business community and residents of the downtown. At the same time, the
Action Plan had to be attainable and realistic.
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Energizing Niagara: The Wine Route
The purpose of this Study is to develop a strategy to energize Niagara’s Wine Country communities. A variety of economic development opportunities have been identified to stimulate investment. A number of community infrastructure improvements have been identified to enhance Wine Country as a recognizable place and destination. These two components are interrelated and combine to create a long term vision and coordinated strategy for public and private sector investment and community enhancement.
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First Impressions - Presentation
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Character Study
Establish Urban Design Guidelines and Policies for built environment with respect to both public and private structures. These will also serve as a guide for future development and redevelopment within the study area.
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Official Plan (current)
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Official Plan (review)
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