Princeton: An Iconic Town Building a Bright Future for Businesses, Residents, and Visitors
By Isaac D. Kremer, MSARP
Executive Director, Experience Princeton
August 5, 2024
Princeton has a globally recognized brand with over 1.2 million visitors each year, thanks to the presence of Princeton University and numerous other educational institutions. Of total jobs in Princeton 51% are education related. Princeton also has a well-deserved reputation as being a center for the arts with numerous theaters, the dynamic and active Arts Council of Princeton with a year-round schedule of public programs and classes, and the Princeton University Art Museum that will be reopened in 2026 following an over $100 million expansion.
All of this might lead one to wonder why Princeton needs an organization to lead commercial district revitalization efforts? The answer in Princeton is tied to the COVID-19 pandemic and the body blow it delivered. Almost overnight with the stay-at-home order visitation dropped off precipitously. The market area shrank with people travelling in from much shorter distances. For the first time anyone could remember there were vacancies. Public officials, businesses, property owners, and stakeholders convened to look at what their options were. They recommended establishment of a Special Improvement District (SID) covering the entire Municipality. The SID was established by ordinance in March 2022.
Founding Executive Director Isaac D. Kremer, MSARP, was hired in the summer of 2022 and started work on October 1 of that year. Previously he led a similar organization in Metuchen for six years, guiding them to the top recognition a downtown in the US can receive – the Great American Main Street Award. He brought the same ambition and drive to his work in Princeton albeit on a much larger scale. By just one measure the number of businesses in the SID was 3 times greater in Princeton than Metuchen.
The Princeton SID includes every commercial and multi-family residential property in Princeton. There are over 266 property owners and 753 businesses that the SID works with and for. The SID covers 12 sub-areas encompassing the downtown core, northward on Witherspoon Street, eastward on Nassau Street to the Jugtown neighborhood, the Princeton Shopping Center, Dinky area by the NJ Transit Station, 206 North, State Road, and two golf courses (Jasna Polana TPC and Springdale).
The first step was to get a handle on all the people that the SID touched. A database was formed and rapidly grew from zero contacts to over 7,414 today. Getting this many required pulling from many different sources and collating these into one definitive list of every business and owner to start with, and gradually everyone touched by the work of the SID including residents, employees, and visitors.
Early on branding was another important priority. The Experience Princeton brand was developed during a several months long process led by Ananta Creative Group. The new name, logo, and tagline that resulted was launched in January 2023 and has been utilized ever since.
Signature events like Restaurant Week held prior to the formation of the SID continued, albeit with significant resources from a growing number of sponsors. This kept restaurants from having to chip in themselves as they had done in years prior. In the time between the first Restaurant Week organized by EP in 2023 and the most recent one this year, sponsors grew by a factor of three times to over $30,000 of cash and in-kind media sponsorship. This helped Experience Princeton achieve statewide reach.
In the fall of 2023 a marketing contractor was hired to handle social media, graphic design, and website updates. This provides a significant boost to capacity like having a second staff member, while giving access to a broader variety of competencies and abilities through working with a contract that can also sub-contract work as needed.
In the fall of 2023 the Experience Princeton Digital Gift Card was launched, working in cooperation with Yiftee. In the first three months nearly 70 businesses agreed to participate in the program. Through the end of June 2024 a total of 633 gift cards were bought with sent gifts value of $53,716. Of these 373 have been redeemed with $32,636.79 of redeemed gifts value. This program was particularly impactful during Restaurant Week in March 2024 when a 50% bonus was sent for every $1 of gift card sold.
One of the most important tasks upon starting the program was making connections between businesses, volunteers, and stakeholders. A monthly Meetup was held the last Thursday of each month at 4 p.m. In the first 6 months 149 people attended at least one. Over the last 18 months that number has grown to over 300. A Virtual Meetup was started on the 1st Thursday of each month starting in April 2023. This regular Zoom call has a featured speaker and allows a deeper dive on subjects of importance to businesses. Just a few of the speakers include municipal staff members, the Mercer County Executive, and the management team of the soon to open Graduate Hotel.
To achieve even broader reach and greater brand recognition, the Princeton Monthly newsletter goes out the first week of each month. The reach now exceeds over 4,311 email addresses with an impressive 52% open rate. Over 165 businesses and nonprofit organizations have been recognized in the 21 monthly newsletters that have gone out. Frequent reference is made to the Arts Council of Princeton, Princeton Public Library, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Palmer Square, and the Princeton Shopping Center among others.
Palmer Square in Princeton. This planned development has roots in 1937. Today the Nassau Inn and nearly 100 retailers, restaurants, and offices add much vitality to Princeton.
Business openings have shown a steady pace of approximately 15 each year in the two years since the program started. The first year brought Hamilton Home, a new home furnishing and gift store; Alpha Fitness, a fitness club; Princeton Bridal; and several restaurants. In the most recent year these have been joined by several new retail businesses including Lily Pulitzer, Faherty, and Hermes all in Palmer Square. They have been joined by numerous cafes and restaurants. Amicus Therapeutics brought 150 employees to the core downtown area and officially celebrated their opening in June 2024 with Governor Murphy and numerous other VIPs in attendance. Triumph Brewing Company has had their soft opening in the former US Post Office building on Palmer Square East that has been lovingly restored.
Streetscape improvements, cleanliness, and holiday decorations have been another important priority. For two years the Streetscapes Team has expanded decorations during the holidays along Nassau Street and Witherspoon Street, extending into areas that had never received this attention before. The decorative lighting on trees in Hinds Plaza were updated with Experience Princeton support. And tree wells along Nassau Street that had unsightly tree stumps were cleared out and planted with attractive and hearty flowers and plantings.
Creating a better environment for doing business has been a focus of the Economic Development Team. Input was provided on the first significant update of the outdoor dining ordinance in 50 years. Experience Princeton advocated for a more supportive ordinance for businesses, limiting fees and giving greater flexibility of what businesses were able to do in public spaces. This has been greeted positively by many businesses agreeing to make investments in outdoor dining, particularly on Witherspoon Street following an award-winning streetscape project valued at $5 million.
Board development has been a key to making a more efficient and effective organization. In June 2023 a multi-hour Board Retreat was expertly facilitated by Princeton resident Rachel Grainger. With an impressive track record working with startups and established companies, including in Silicon Valley, this retreat established norms and welcomed four new board members added that year. Recently two additional members were added to the board replacing two other founding members who decided to circulate off after their terms ended. In February 2024 Donna E. Harris of Heritage Consulting, Inc. gave a Board training, focusing on strategic fund development and historic preservation. These were two areas the Board self-identified as needing training after going through the Community Self-Assessment tied to the new certification standards from Main Street America.
This leads to the last and most potentially impactful work that Experience Princeton has done. On March 15, 2024, Princeton was among nearly 20 municipalities to submit an application to be considered for designation as a Main Street New Jersey community. Presently there are 25 Main Street New Jersey communities. Of those who applied, 9 advanced to the interview stage with the interview happening in May. The communities selected for this program will be announced this month.
Princeton Battlefield colonnade. An over $1 million restoration of this monument is being planned as part of broader preparations for the 250th anniversary in 2026.
One area where Princeton is well positioned to excel is around the 250th anniversary of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. This really is the beginning of telling a deeper story of the crucial role Princeton played including the Ten Crucial Days and the pivotal battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777 where over 4,000 Americans fought and defeated the British. This victory gave confidence needed on the part of Americans and their allies to fight for many more years leading to independence. For a brief time the capital of the Continental Congress was in Nassau Hall, also the location where the Battle of Princeton officially ended. A Heritage Tourism Committee has been formed with representation from many stakeholder groups. Plans are underway to help Princeton stand out for the 250th anniversary and beyond.
To conclude, Princeton is well on our way to demonstrating how a community can organize to create a more friendly environment for businesses. While already formidable before establishment of a commercial district management entity, Princeton is now striving to improve on the firm foundation established by many generations of public officials, business owners, and residents deeply committed to improving the vitality of this iconic community. This work was on display earlier this year when Executive Director Isaac D. Kremer, and Council Member Michelle Pirone Lambros gave testimony before the New Jersey State Legislature. Together they extolled the virtues of a SIDs and made a compelling case for why more support is needed for organizations like Experience Princeton that are doing important work throughout New Jersey.
Experience Princeton was founded in 2022 and is a volunteer-based, nonprofit organization formed to shape, maintain and grow a flourishing Princeton economy by offering an exceptional experience for residents and visitors. Visit experienceprinceton.org for more information. For additional information, please visit experienceprinceton.org or email isaac@princetonbusiness.org. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
