xDowntown areas are beginning to come back to life after taking some of the hardest hits imaginable during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. But are certain downtowns recovering faster than others?
Researchers at the University of Toronto School of Cities recently studied this, and the results tell an encouraging story for Milwaukee
The study looked at cell phone activity at points of interest in the downtowns of the top 62 cities in North America. According to the university, the median downtown has seen about 56% of its activity come back, comparing Spring 2022 to Spring 2019. Among the findings: Salt Lake City is surging at 155% of pre-pandemic activity, while San Francisco ranked lowest at 31%.
How did Milwaukee do? According to the study, Milwaukee's downtown recovery rate is 76 percent -- ranking us 16th out of the 62 cities studied.
Read the full rankings and an accompanying article here.
While this data set may indicate that Milwaukee's recovery is ahead of some key peer cities, we know things are far from perfect in the Milwaukee Region. Our small businesses are getting hit hard by inflation, a prolonged labor shortage and continued supply issues. One only has to look at a recent round of downtown restaurant closing announcements to know that we have not reached a full recovery. At MMAC, we are here to serve as a resource for you and your small business.
Original source can be found here.
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