Our March 2026 Update

Happy Spring!

Truth be told, it was a harder winter than usual.

That's because we lost our beloved Midge Thomas in January. Midge was a founding board member of Downtown ROCs, and my dear friend and inspiration.

Of course, she was a beacon of light to so many others too, which is why we are committed to carrying on her extraordinary legacy of activism, collaboration, and passion for our city.

To that end, we are pleased to share that we are doubling down on the Community Garden we built last year in honor of Midge's 99th birthday. To celebrate her "Heavenly 100th", we're expanding the garden to the other side of the walkway leading into St. Joseph's Park!

I know that she'd be so proud.

We miss you Midge 💔

But that's just the beginning of what we've got in store for 2026.

While 2025 saw us hit several new milestones, including our first mural and over 2,000 pounds of litter cleared from downtown, we have an even more ambitious roadmap for this season.

For starters, we have been lining up volunteer partnerships and expect to facilitate over 500 hours of cleanup and beautification activities!

🌻 Additionally, we expect to plant more than twice as many flowers as last year!!

It's also worth noting that we’re prioritizing native perennials wherever possible to support long-term sustainability and provide vital habitat for birds and pollinators. (If you have any bulbs, tubers or plants you'd like to donate, please shoot us a line 🙏)

2025 set a pretty high bar for this year!

One of our newest projects will be a dramatic transformation of the landscaping wells on either side of the entrance to the downtown Transit Center. We believe this will help create a more attractive and welcoming environment, and enhance the public transportation experience for thousands of riders.

We thrive on turning blight spots into bright spots, and we've had our eye on this location for a very long time. We're grateful for RTS' support of this effort.

We'll be seeing double at the Transit Center!

Finally, we're excited to announce that we have planted our flag even more firmly downtown with the opening of our new office at 318 East Main Street (near the corner of Franklin).

In addition to giving us a physical home for the first time, this storefront allows us to play a direct role in activating the streetscape. Our mission is to foster a clean, beautiful, and walkable downtown, and this space gives us the opportunity to make an even greater impact on all three fronts.

We're excited about our Main St. presence

Well that's it for now. We'll have a lot more to share next month after the weather breaks.

In the meantime, remember... Every day is an opportunity to make our city just a little bit better.

- Mike & Tina Gilbert

Please consider becoming a Downtown ROCstar by supporting our efforts with a tax-deductible gift. Every dollar is invested directly into placemaking projects that enhance our center city.