Downtown Forward

The City of Bowling Green, the Center for Regional Development (CRD), and Bowling Green State University (BGSU) are hosting a press conference to announce Downtown Forward, a collaborative initiative to enhance placemaking in downtown Bowling Green. The Downtown Forward partnership was formed after the City of Bowling Green was selected to participate in the Reimagining Rural Regions (R3) program with CRD.

The R3 program, launched in 2021, is an economic and workforce development-centered placemaking initiative that helps communities identify, enhance and build community assets to aid in talent attraction and retention. The program provides the capacity to communities to conduct public engagement to develop placemaking plans. Additionally, BGSU graduate and undergraduate students work with each community to help plan and implement projects to enhance and build more livable spaces.

Downtown Forward Map

Community Feedback

About 70 people attended the first Community Feedback Sessions held on October 18 and October 20, 2022.

Community Feedback Sessions Report

Submit your comments about the Downtown Forward Initiative

The next step of engagement will be a series of Focus Groups to gather more specific comments.  Some focus groups will be invitation-only, while others will be open to the public.  Check back on this site to see when and where focus groups will meet.  

The R3 program is funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the USDA Rural Development Rural Placemaking Innovation Challenge (RPIC).

For questions or inquiries about Downtown Forward please email Martha Woelke.