Two Downtown Kiosks are Unveiled

Two Downtown Kiosks are Unveiled
The first two informational signage kiosks were unveiled today, by Mayor Tony Roswarski and Mayor John Dennis. One is located at the northwest corner of Columbia and 5th Streets, by the Farmers Market in the Arts & Market district. The second is in the Riverfront District located on Tapawingo Drive next to the Myers Pedestrian Bridge crosswalk on the Wabash Landing side.

These double-sided large kiosk signs are the first to hit the streets to help visitors and community members know more about what is offered in the downtown districts. As funding is available, more of the kiosks will be located throughout the three downtown districts. There are ten planned for Downtown Lafayette and six for Downtown West Lafayette. One side of the 3-foot wide by 4-foot tall sign includes a map and directional information for shopping, dining, attractions and services in that district. The other side includes nightlife and entertainment in a given district, as well as festivals throughout the downtown, community buildings and places.

Mayor John Dennis of the City of West Lafayette said, “The information on these signs make each downtown district more user friendly, and will help shoppers, diners and travelers know where to go to spend their money with our local businesses.”The kiosk signage design contains the branding for each cultural district, shows web addresses for the Downtown website – www.readysetgodowntown.com as well as www.LafCal.com and the Tippecanoe Arts Federation -www.tippecanoearts.org website. The purpose is to allow visitors to access those sites from their cell phones to gain detailed information for that day or weekend. The Indiana Cultural District logo will be added to the map side of the kiosks when that becomes available from the Indiana Arts Commission.

“In these hard economic times we want to do everything we can to support the businesses in our downtown and make sure we are working to get people in their doors,” according to Mayor Tony Roswarski, of the City of Lafayette.

“These kiosks add to the positive visitor experience downtown. People walking throughout each of the districts can access directions and the closest place to grab a bite to eat in that district,” said Jo Wade, President of the Lafayette – West Lafayette Convention & Visitors Bureau (LWLCVB). These signs have been developed by the LWLCVB in partnership with both cities. Funding for the first two kiosks has been provided by the LWLCVB. The Downtown Development Council requested and received funding from the Lafayette Regional Association of Realtors to create a strategic brand positioning and visual identity marketing program for downtown Lafayette-West Lafayette. The Downtown Development Council (DDC) partnered with the Cities of Lafayette and the West Lafayette and Lafayette-West Lafayette Convention & Visitors Bureau (LWLCVB) for this project. A total of $35,000 was committed for this project with $10,000 from the DDC, $5,000 from the LWLCVB and $20,000 from the Lafayette Regional Association of Realtors.

The LWLCVB is using the two kiosks that have been installed as a test run. Before more are implemented, they need to ensure the seals on the doors keep condensation and other element issues off the glass fronts, as well as to determine how often the printed information needs to be changed out. Be sure to check them out!