Last summer, the number of visitors — and their spending — climbed during a series of special events along the 16th Street Mall.

More people and different people stuck around longer, too, drawn to the live music, expanded patio seating, games and more.

To make that happen year-round, though, may take some trial and error — and possibly moving Regional Transportation District’s Free MallRide shuttle off 16th Street.

San Francisco-based Gehl Studio has been working with Denver planning officials and the Downtown Denver Partnership since 2014 to boost the “linger” factor of the downtown corridor, part of a $650,000 initiative to improve the mall experience.

In a report released Wednesday, Gehl said it will take many changes — ones that address infrastructure and activation — to truly revitalize the mall.

“We often hear if you just change this one component, that will do it. Here’s what we know — that won’t do that,” Downtown Denver Partnership CEO Tami Door said. “The mall’s far too complex, there’s far too many layers and they all intertwine with each other. We need to look at them piece by piece.”

“We will learn, and then we will make changes that are temporary, semi-permanent or permanent depending on what the data tells us,” she said. “We’re not afraid to fail. We’re not afraid to try things that may not work.”

That could include additional tests that move the Free MallRide off the mall and to dedicated lanes on 15th and 17th streets, physical changes to the mall environment to emphasize its distinct zones, and expanding activities to flow down streets that intersect the mall.

Gehl’s report includes dozens of recommendations aimed at providing different experiences along the mall, new transportation choices, lively edges between public and private space, and wider investment.

The report also lays out a process in which incremental improvements would be tested and then rejected, refined or permanently adopted, avoiding any “major changes that later prove to be unsuccessful.”

“This process is not a typical planning process where you have a public meeting, you talk about a number of different concepts and define a preferred alternative. It’s about measure, test, refine,” said Denver planning and community development chief Brad Buchanan.

“It’s very much an experiential process that’s defined and delineated by data. We find out what’s successful by how many folks show up and what they tell us when they’re in the experience.”

The first tests, focusing on the mall from Wynkoop Street to Civic Center Station, will begin this summer with an expanded Meet in the Street program, funded by the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District.

In its third year, Meet in the Street will return for five consecutive weekends this summer, starting June 25.

This year, though, the interactive pop-up events and community-led activities will happen Saturday and Sunday, as opposed to just Sunday. During Meet in the Street, the Free MallRide will also be moved temporarily to 15th and 17th streets.

According to the report, pedestrian counts increased 30 percent and 90 percent of businesses said they did similar or better sales than normal during the Meet in the Street events last summer.

The mix of people downtown also changed, with the share of women to men up 65 percent and the share of children to adults up 77 percent. The ratio of people “spending time” versus “moving through” increased 48 percent.

For the other nine weekends between Memorial Day and Labor Day, pilot programs and tests will continue — with shuttles running on the mall, Buchanan said.

“Any successful solution has to be successful for RTD and address the important role that the shuttle plays,” Buchanan said. “It’s simple to want to make this just about the shuttle. It’s not that. It’s very much about the complex and totally integrated experience of the space.”

The report recommended testing shuttle rerouting — possibly on Saturdays and Sundays for an entire summer — as well as keeping the free bus running on 16th Street.

Door said leaders don’t yet have a clear idea of what the most important opportunities and challenges will be.

“It’s very clear that a large population is on the mall because of the shuttles,” Door said. “How do we take that large population and cause them to stay longer, or cause them to go into a store and shop or dine or just experience the space in a different way?

“The challenge is right now, the infrastructure doesn’t really make that very conducive. You could relax in the median, but it may be a stretch to say that. You’re in a small narrow area and you’ve got shuttles going back and forth. Can you reap the benefits of the shuttle being there while also being able to adjust the infrastructure to reap the benefits of someone lingering?”

Emilie Rusch: 303-954-2457, erusch@denverpost.com or @emilierusch