Visitors stepping off the Green Line at Central Station or heading to downtown St. Paul’s Rice Park, Hamm Plaza or Landmark Plaza will be joined this summer by something a bit out of the ordinary — greeters.

With funding from the Knight Foundation and private backers, the St. Paul Downtown Alliance plans to launch a temporary downtown stewardship program this coming summer that includes community activities, art projects and full-time staff to pick up trash, coordinate with businesses and offer walking directions.

There’s even grants of $500 to $10,000 available for performances, beautification efforts and youth activities.

Applications are due April 15.

“We’re just going to roll it out for a couple months with a small staff,” said Downtown Alliance president Joe Spencer. “This is a very small sort of sample.”

The Downtown Alliance will work with Block by Block, a national organization that operates business improvement districts, to deploy staff to two priority zones: a two-block area around the Central Station Green Line platform and the adjacent bus stops on Fifth and Sixth streets between Minnesota and Cedar streets; and the Hamm Plaza, Landmark Plaza and Rice Park areas.

Spencer said the effort is a pilot program intended to help research the potential for a “downtown business improvement district.”

Improvement districts, or service districts, can take several forms.

With a focus on greening, cleaning and safety, Minneapolis charges special assessments to its commercial property owners downtown and uses the money to patrol 120 blocks through both added law enforcement and street ambassadors.

During the recent reconstruction of Nicollet Avenue, representatives of the Minneapolis “Downtown Improvement District” participated in weekly construction meetings and met with impacted businesses to keep them abreast.

Through new property fees, St. Paul could follow a similar path, though no final decisions have been made.

“It’s something that has been talked about for a long time to explore the feasibility of,” Spencer said. “This is a good way to get a little taste of what an improvement district feels like. We know that many, if not most major cities across the country have an improvement district. Duluth has one, Rochester has one, Des Moines has one. It has been successful in other places. We’re going to take a look and see if we like some of the services that it offers.”

Spencer said that “cleanliness, safety and vibrancy” are top priorities for business owners and patrons like.

In a written statement, the Downtown Alliance said it is accepting proposals for “projects that bring vibrancy and activity” to the two priority zones this summer. Applications are due April 15, and projects must take place between June and August. Funding from $500 to $10,000 will be awarded. Related Articles St. Paul district reports enrollment drop as pandemic moves school online

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The stewardship program is funded by the Knight Foundation, John and Ruth Huss, and Dr. Lowell Hellervik. More information is online at stpdowntownalliance.org.

Co-chaired by St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and Securian CEO Chris Hilger, the nonprofit Downtown Alliance was launched last summer to direct more jobs and vitality into downtown St. Paul.