Williamsburg Downtown

Vibrancy, Design &

Marketing Plan

Presentation to The Economic Development Authority & City CouncilDecember 14, 2015

PRESENTATION OVERVIEW

• Introduction: Team, Market, Mission

• The Retail Trade Area

• Overview of the Market

• Market Fundaments

• Retail Placemaking

• What we have Heard

• Immediate Next Steps

• Questions

ABOUT OUR TEAM

• Downtown Development

• Retail Marketing & Branding

• Urban Planning & Design

• Seasoned Professionals Who Have Worked

with Communities, Retailers & Policy-Makers

Econsult Solutions

Group Melvin DesignCo-Project Principal

Catherine Timko

Project Director

Ethan Conner-Ross

Project Director

Adam Tecza

Co-Project Principal

Robert Melvin

Project Advisor

Peter Angelides, PhD

Project Associate

Sara Woolf

Planning AssistantResearch Analyst

WHAT’S AT STAKE

• The Importance of Place and of a Strong

Downtown

• Keeping Downtown Attractive for Visitors

AND residents

• Drawing in Investment

• Engaging the Community

PROCESS

Phase 1: Project Kick-Off

Phase 2: Downtown

Analysis

Phase 3: Outreach &

Selling Priorities

Phase 4: Plan

Development

Phase 5: Revision & Deliverables

• Kick-Off

Meeting

• Online

Presence

• Review of

Regulations• Physical

Conditions

Analysis• Retail Tenant

Mix Analysis• Analysis

Synthesis• EDA

Presentation

• Online Public

Outreach• Targeted

Stakeholder

Meetings

• Placemaking

Recommend-

actions• Retail Tenant Mix

Recommend-

actions• Draft Design

Standards +

Draft Plan• Draft Marketing

Strategies• Implementation

Matrix

• Online Public

Outreach• Targeted

Stakeholder

Meetings

The Retail Trade Area

The Retail Trade Area

The Retail Trade AreaThe Retail Trade Area

The Retail Trade Area

The Retail Trade Area

The Demographics

Demos

Williamsburg Population CitywidePrimary Trade Area (custom)

Regional Trade Area (12 mile

drive time)

2010 Population 14,068 66,924 89,837

2016 Population 14,956 72,830 97,884

2021 Population 15,398 78,233 105,260

Rate of Change 2016-2021 0.58% 1.44% 1.46%

Median Age 2010 24.5 42.0 40.7

Median Age 2016 24.9 43.7 42.2

Median Age 2021 36.3 45.2 43.3

Percent of Millennials (20-34) 201638.8% 19.8% 19.8

Percent of Pop Over 65 2016 15.3% 23.4% 21.4

# Households 2016 4,857 28,395 37,471

2016 Avg HH size 2.18 2.39 2.46

# Households 2021 5,945 30,565 40,338

2021 Avg HH size 2.18 2.4 2.47

Average HHI 2016 $76,822 $102,345 $95,780

Avg HHI 2021 $81,310 $111,144 $103,655

2016 % of Pop w BA or Higher 58.50% 50.40% 55.60%

2016 % of Pop w Graduate Degree25.30% 24.70% 21.80%

2016 % of Civilian Employment 95% 96.4% 96%

2016 of Civilian Employment 63.4% 66.3% 65%

The Audience

72,830

8,000

47,951

28,395

TARGET AUDIENCE PRIMARY TRADE AREA

Residents Students Workers Households

The Demographics

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Cumulative

Silver & Gold

Golden Years

College Towns

Exurbanites

In Style

Williamsburg, VA Tapestry Analysis 2016

Regional Trade Area Primary Trade Area Citywide

The Demographics

$-

$20,000

$40,000

$60,000

$80,000

$100,000

$120,000

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

Citywide Primary Trade Area (Custom) Regional Trade Area (12 MilesDriving)

Comparison of Household Income 2016-2021

2016 Average HHI 2012 Average HHI

% of HH Income over $100K % of HH Income over 100K

The Retail Market

Williamsburg Retail Marketplace

CitywidePrimary Trade

Area

Regional Trade

AreaDemand

(Retail Potential)

Supply

(Retail Sales)Gap

Leakage

Factor

Total Retail Trade and Food & Drink $194,704,268 $ 357,597,737 $162,893,468 -29.5

Total Retail Trade $175,585,239 $268,015,575 $92,429,336 -20.8

Total Food & Drink $19,119,029 $89,583,162 $70,464,133 -64.8

Primary Trade Area

Demand

(Retail Potential)

Supply

(Retail Sales)Gap

Leakage

Factor

Total Retail Trade and Food & Drink $1,557,381,022 $1,249,409,815 $307,971,207 11

Total Retail Trade $1,406,606,463 $1,070,247,800 $336,358,663 13.6

Total Food & Drink $150,774,559 $179,162,015 $28,387,456 -8.6

Regional Trade Area

Demand

(Retail Potential)

Supply

(Retail Sales)Gap

Leakage

Factor

Total Retail Trade and Food & Drink $1,912,550,903 $2,754,860,757 $168,690,146 4.6

Total Retail Trade $1,726,892,737 $1,519,944,338 $206,948,399 6.4

Total Food & Drink $185,658,166 $223,916,419 -$38,248,253 -9.3

The Retail Market

Primary Trade Area

The Retail Market

Index of Williamsburg Retail Expenditures

CitywidePrimary Trade

Area

Regional

Trade Area

Apparel 105 130 122

Women's Apparel 106 135 125

Entertainment & Recreation 99 132 124

Fees for Sports 97 144 129

Food 104 132 121

Food at Home 103 128 120

Food Away from Home 105 131 123

Bakery Products 103 128 120

Alcoholic Beverages 109 134 125

Mortgage Payments 84 137 129

The Retail Market

Major Retail Centers Market Fundamentals

Williamsburg Hampton Roads

Retail Vacancy 7.6% 6.2%Average Asking Rents $15.36 $13.70 Range of Asking Rents $10-29.01 $8-21.00 Total Inventory 8+ Million SF 102+ Million SFUnder Construction 72,175 SF 608,730 SF

* Thalhimer Q2

Merchants Square New Town Shops on MainSettlers MarketWilliamsburg Premium OutletsWilliamsburg PotteryWilliamsburg Market Center601 Merrimac Trail

The Retail Market

The Retail Market

Thalhimer 2016Q2

The Retail Market

What We’ve Heard To Date

• Certain retail properties have a strong regional draw, pulling from

as far as Richmond and Norfolk

• Tourism and visitors to the market represent a significant portion of

the customer base including time shares

• Tourism spending outpaces other areas in VA yet declining at CW

• Student population is very targeted in their spending habits

• New Town has a higher retail occupancy than appears• Certain non-food related tenants are underperforming – largely

due to competition and lack of traffic

• “Bigger” box spaces increasingly difficult to lease

• Inconsistencies in hours of operation of downtown businesses

• Limited nightlife in downtown

• Downtown is bigger than the planning area

• “We love coming here, we do it every year”

Immediate Next Steps

• Stakeholder Interviews

• Finalize Data Collection & Analytics

• Brand Void Analysis

• Review of Best Practices

THANK YOU

Econsult Solutions1435 Walnut Street 4th Floor

Philadelphia PA 19102215-717-2777

www.econsultsolutions.com@econsultsolutns

Questions?