Committee Seeks Solutions to New Canaan's Slump [Video]

Ladies shoes. According to the crowd gathered in Town Hall Wednesday night for the , what New Canaan needs is more shoes.

It was a spontaneous, light moment in an evening otherwise devoted to a serious topic for the town. The committee is searching for solutions that will enhance and revitalize the business district.

Committee chair John Goodwin introduced consultants from BFJ Planning and Urbanomics, who are helping gather and analyze information as part of the $75,000 study, which is being fully funded by a Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grant from the state of CT.

The committee recently finished a series of intercept surveys, conducted in and around town, as well as focus groups with residents and merchants.

Regina Armstrong from Urbanomics shared demographic data culled from the 2010 census that she said forms a baseline for the study.

She said there are 1,000 more teenagers and people in their early 20’s in town now, and 1,250 more people in the prime labor force and pre-retirement labor force than in 2000. That’s out of a total population of 19,738 residents. At the same time, the town has seen a decline in the number of children under 10 years old, and what Armstrong called the “young labor force,” people in the family formation years of 25 to 44 years old. She said 55 percent of households in town have incomes over $150,000.

 The committee shared a list of Questions for Discussion that is shaping its work:

• How do we enhace and /or revitalize Main and Elm?
• How do we best utilize the downtown area outside of Main and Elm?
• What strategies should be undertaken by merchants and by the Town for our merchants to be successful?
• What businesses should we encourage to enter New Canaan and how?
• How does our Downtown thrive in the Internet age
• How do we attract consumers from outside New Canaan
• Are current rent levels a challenge, and if so, how do we address the issue?
• How do we incorporate sustainability into our thinking/planning?
• Is the growth trend in restaurants positive or negative? How do we leverage or mitigate the trend?
• What parking initiatives should be undertaken to support revitalization?
• What planning and zoning initiatives should be undertaken to support revitalization?
• Are the recommendations consistent with, and in support of, our community values and the Plan of Conservation and Development?
• What are the opportunities with, and the role of: the senior living project, Metro-North terminus, mixed-use development?

Residents and merchants asked questions and offered suggestions, ranging from queries about the possibility of listing our downtown streets on the Main Street national register

"This is a beautiful town, but if we don’t change the attitude of the retailers it’s going to dry up like other towns around here," he said. "Even Sundays, when I walk up and down elm St., half the stores are closed. My second best day of the week is Sunday. I keep the doors open, I put the tent out. People keep telling me “I’m so glad you’re open.”

As for the shoes? Landlord , who owns the Elm St. building vacated in 2010 by Plaza Too, a woman's shoe store, said the shop closed because of business considerations at other stores in its chain. It was doing just fine in New Canaan, he said, selling more than $3 million in merchandise in its last year in town.

The committee will hold another public meeting in the fall, before it presents its recommendations to town leaders.