Downtown Georgetown Assn.

Greetings, DGA!

This edition of the Musings is early, due to the change in the DGA office hours as announced at the meeting 3/25 (see below). As there was a lot of great information shared at the meeting, and we have some items that are time sensitive, we thought you might want to receive this a little early this time.

We had a great DGA general meeting. In case you were not able to attend, here are some of the highlights:

There was a presentation by SCORE about free guidance and consultation for small businesses: if you wish more information, check their website: http://www.scoreaustin.org
Paint the Town Red/Poppy Festival: Merchants on the Square and one block off in each direction can sign up to have poppies painted on your shop windows for free by volunteers: contact Karen Frost – 512-930-8545. If you want to vounteer to paint poppies, Karen would love to hear from you as well! There is also an artist willing to paint poppies for you for $5 per linear foot – contact: Nancy Brown – 512-869-7790. Poppies will be painted on April 10^th and need to be removed right after May 10^th. There will be more up-to-the minute Red Poppy Festival information presented at the April DGA meeting.
Event signage policies: We had a great presentation about temporary signage that is allowed during events. Remember to contact Code Enforcement with any questions you may have about displaying a banner or other temporary signage. A reminder that “A” frame signs need to be brought in each night as a heavy wind could render that sort of sign a danger to pedestrians not to mention damage to your sign.
There is a task force taking a look at the City UDC with regard to signage later this spring. You can follow that process on www.udc.georgetown.org if you are interested as there will be public meetings you can attend.
Friends of the Square revamp update: we were pleased to have some of our Friends of the Square in attendance this month! We are planning some enhancements to the program, such as a special “Friends Friday” shopping day each month to highlight the various discounts available to Friends members with their card and a revamp of Friendly Hours.
Special Guest: Mark Thomas, Director of Economic Development: Mark gave us a wonderful overview of the general economic climate and prospects for new businesses in the area. He reminded us we are all ambassadors for downtown in our shops. Often executives of companies will check out the downtown area. Comments by shop owners and others they meet could easily influence their decision in their consideration of Georgetown as a new site for their company. He encouraged us to keep a positive attitude as we interact with customers on a daily basis. You never know who is out there “kicking the tires” as they stroll downtown.
Bob Huntley announced new hours for the DGA office. Effective 3/29/2010, the office will be open Tuesday through Friday, 9AM-5PM. Please leave messages on our phone as usual, and we will be back in touch with you as soon as we return to the office.

We have updated information about the Georgetown Winery Initiative. John Marler and Karin Truxillo, co-chairs of the effort, notified us of the timeline for the process:

Next week, April 2 is First Friday and the theme is "Welcome Spring" in downtown Georgetown. Shops will be open from 6-8PM. The Palace Theatre is highlighting their newest production of "Harvey," during the evening with a special promotion at local merchants. The Williamson Museum is hosting the artist the 2010 Red Poppy Festival poster. You can meet the artist and have your poster signed!

We received a notice from Georgetown Winery this week about a fun tour: “Join us on April 18th, 2010: Chartered BusTour to Red Caboose Winery. www.redcaboosewinery.com. One bus will leave from Georgetown Winery and one bus will leave from Salado Swirl & Sip at 10:30am (sharp) on 4-18-10. They will arrive at Red Caboose Winery at approx. 12:30pm. Tasting 7 wines, 1 barrel tasting, lunch (fajitas) and (Blues Band) entertainment. Bus leaves at 4:15 to return to Georgetown at approx. 5:15pm. Cost: $ 55 per person. Only 55 tickets for Georgetown and 55 for Salado will be sold on a first come basis, advance purchase only.” If you are interested, you will want to contact Dan or Becca at the winery at 512-869-8600.

Cindy, the new catering director at the Monument Café is working with R.O.C.K for an annual fundraiser on April 10^th. She is seeking gift certificates to make a downtown Georgetown prize basket for their raffle. We know that many of you have a heart for this organization and all the wonderful work they do with kids. If you wish to help with this effort to pull a basket together, contact her: Cindy Harrington, cell # 512.630.5011. Thank you for your consideration of this request.