For over 25 years, AHA! New Bedford, in collaboration with 100+ programming partners, has been a cornerstone of New Bedford’s cultural and economic landscape, delivering dynamic, well-marketed monthly events that showcase the city’s diverse talent and creativity.
In the spring of 2025, AHA! received ARPA funding from the City through the New Bedford Economic Development Council, to expand our downtown services beyond the popular AHA! Nights on the second Thursdays of every month.
This included more programming such as managing the free Summer Sound Series concerts, boosting marketing efforts, and organizing clean-up and beautification initiatives across Downtown.
As part of this project, AHA! New Bedford was also asked to engage the community to understand their aspirations and priorities for a thriving downtown and to be part of a planning process to determine if these efforts and more should -or could- continue beyond the end of the grant funding in November 2026.
The planning effort has expanded into a project team that includes AHA! New Bedford, as well as Downtown New Bedford Inc., the City of New Bedford, and the New Bedford Economic Development Council, and consultants Ann Burke and André Leroux, with support from a Massachusetts Downtown Initiative Grant.
We want to be clear about what this process is—and what it isn’t.
Through this collaborative process, we’ll work together to envision what we want for downtown’s future, and from there, the right funding and implementation approach will emerge based on what the community identifies as priorities and needs. A Business Improvement District (BID) may be one option that surfaces, but it’s not a foregone conclusion—it’s one tool among many, and this discovery process will reveal whether it’s the right fit for New Bedford.
This is a collaborative discovery process to identify and prioritize the needs of our downtown community, so it remains an enjoyable place to live, visit, and do business. Your input is essential to this work, so please help us spread the word to your neighbors, friends, and co-workers.
We strongly encourage everyone to stay engaged by signing up for our email updates here.
We look forward to your continued participation and partnership and are excited to see where the process and discussions lead us.
Together, we can ensure that downtown remains vital, thriving, and true to what makes it so special.
Our most recent Town Hall Meeting was on Monday, April 27th
Did you miss the Town Hall? Or do you want to revisit the information presented?
The New Bedford Cable Access recording is now available!
You can download a copy of the slides here.
Community Feedback Workshop
During the meeting, participants had the opportunity to visit poster stations around the First Unitarian Church’s Tryworks Auditorium, where they could express their support or opposition to community-sourced actions in categories including parking, branding & marketing, services & amenities, and more.
They were given green, yellow, and red stickers to place next to the suggestions. A green dot means “strongly support,” a yellow dot means “slow down, let’s analyze,” and a red dot means “oppose.” In addition, participants were given sticky notes, index cards, and markers to write further comments on the posters. This information is captured in the file you can download here.
Immediate Next Steps
There will be two immediate next steps:
- The project team will create a “Downtown New Bedford” email list that includes everyone who has been involved and who wants to stay involved. This may take the form of a Google Group to avoid putting everyone’s email address in the copy field.
- The consultant team will assemble an advisory group to help them work through various scenarios and strategies based on the community feedback. The consultants will make a recommendation by the end of July on an action plan. Ongoing public commentary will be encouraged, and notes, presentations, and materials will be made available to the public.
Note: If you would like to schedule a time to talk with Andre Leroux, a consultant with the Massachusetts Downtown Initiative (MDI), or if you would like him to reach out to someone in particular, please email him at andre@leroux.solutions. You may also send him your written feedback at that address.
We look forward to your continued participation and partnership for a thriving downtown.
Previous Community Meetings
Did you miss our Community Meeting on September 30th?
Or do you want to revisit the information presented? The New Bedford Cable Access recording is now available!
Presentations
André LeRoux supports community efforts to create more livable, welcoming, and thriving places. A native of Worcester, he currently leads MassINC’s Gateway Cities Innovation Institute, where he hosts a network of leaders from 26 cities.
Prior to this, he spent more than 12 years as the executive director of the Massachusetts Smart Growth Alliance, a coalition of environmental, housing, and planning organizations. Andre shared how other cities have collaborated and have successfully managed their downtowns using various tools and resources.
Lizeth Gonzalez is the Director of Economic and Community Development at SRPEDD.
Blending her passion for public service, local planning and economic development, Lizeth leads strategic planning efforts that facilitate context-sensitive growth and development in the region.
She shared SRPEDD’s data on the state of downtown.
Downtown Statistics
MassInc Research
Commercial districts need a high volume of foot traffic to support thriving small businesses. Supplemental district management services can dramatically increase this pedestrian activity.
Read more in the MassInc report District Management for Downtown Vitality by Ben Forman, André Leroux and Elise Rapoza.
