Increased revenue and foot traffic in downtown Yuma

YUMA, Ariz. — Downtown Yuma is experiencing increased revenue and foot traffic, in part thanks to the efforts of merchants who have come together to connect and engage with the public. Chris Wheeler, president of the Downtown Yuma Merchants Association and owner of Prison Hill Brewing Co.

, presented the Yuma City Council meeting on Oct. 16 with an update on the organization’s current standing and future goals. DYMA, a 501c3 nonprofit, was created a little over five years ago when the city administrator at the time approached Wheeler after being inspired by similar successful efforts in other cities across the state.



Wheeler compared getting downtown merchants onboard to “herding cats.” COVID also delayed the project but offered time for planning and laying the groundwork. “I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved so far and where we’re going, but we’re just getting started,” he said.

“My full goal is to fund major projects in partnership with the city or in partnership with other organizations, and apply for grants, receiving that revenue and putting it forward to do good things for the downtown area.” The city outsources alcohol sales at city events to DYMA, which provides a continuous source of revenue during events season. DYMA’s board of directors is entirely responsible for the operation of the organization.

It is composed of representatives from bars, restaurants, retail and agriculture, with positions available for the Yuma County Chamber of Commerce, Visit Yuma. A current proposal would create a seat for the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area. Membership is limited to the entertainment district, bordered by 1st Street to the north, Giss Parkway to the south, Gila Street to the east and 4th Avenue to the west.

Membership is designed to give equal representation to the downtown business owners, therefore if someone owns three businesses within the operating area, they still only get one vote. “The idea being that it is representative of the entire merchant organization and no one voice outweighs another,” Wheeler said. DYMA has been working with Visit Yuma and MGM Design to promote the downtown area with considerable success.

MGM Design created a website, an app (in the beta testing phase) and information kiosks scattered across the area. “These things were white, dilapidated, and they had businesses on them that I don’t even remember, if you could even read them,” Wheeler said of the kiosks. “Now, there’s a QR code that will link you to the website, and it has every business from law office to retail shop to restaurant or bar categorically listed, and you can click on those, find out where they’re at, what they do, and read a little blurb about what the business is.

” The website can be adjusted timely and efficiently. If a business opens, the website can reflect that within 24 hours. “We have traffic that frequents the site, and our metrics are amazing.

It is having an impact. We see increases in revenue, we see increases in foot traffic, we know that people are clicking through to other businesses. That traffic translates into revenue.

Our revenue turns into tax dollars. Everybody wins.” Councilmember Ema Lea Shoop stressed the importance of utilizing the Colorado River and other surrounding tourist attractions within DYMA’s marketing strategy.

“Without the river, there would not have been a downtown Yuma,” she said. Wheeler replied that the website links to recreation and includes information about the YCNHA to help direct visitors to the river and places that Yuma is most proud of. With the help of Visit Yuma, DYMA’s social media presence has soared in recent years, with its best performing Instagram video eclipsing 150,000 views.

“It’s really unprecedented what we’ve been able to do in the short time we’ve been operating,” Wheeler said. In addition to marketing downtown Yuma, DYMA has taken it upon itself to improve the visual component of the area, beginning to line the block with date palms and other landscaping. “We’re world-renowned for our date production,” Wheeler said.

“We had landscaping issues downtown and the thought was put forward to make Main Street look very consistent, very uniform, but also indicative of what we do well. With assistance from Gowan, we put date palms down that entire block.” DYMA is also hoping to fund light fixtures on the date palms with revenue from event liquor sales.

Councilmembers Carol Smith and Leslie McClendon asked about the status of First Friday events. Wheeler replied that this is a work in progress. It takes time to build consensus among business owners on how to set up the event and convince them that it would be worthwhile to incur the expense of operating longer hours.

“I think that we can make this something that we can be proud of, something that gives us a reason to go out and socialize and see what Yuma is about,” he said. Businesses or organizations who are interested in taking part in First Friday should email [email protected] for more information.

Council only had good things to say about the progress that Wheeler and DYMA have made these last five years. “I am so pleased with the expansion and thoughtful nature of everything that’s going on,” said Councilmember Mike Shelton. “Where you are now, this is just a tremendous leap forward, so I want to commend your leadership and the other businesses for putting this together, and I know you’re up to great things.

” “This is the great next step for downtown,” Mayor Doug Nicholls said. “There’s been an amazing transformation with people opening up their private businesses in the last 20 years, and I think it’s revitalized the energy. You’ve done a great job in pulling together the neighbors, and I think it’s going in the right direction.

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