Q3 of 2026

Dear Downtown London Members,

As we head into the fall, we wanted to share a few highlights from what has been a busy summer and provide an update on some of the work happening on behalf of our membership.

Advocacy continues to be an important part of that work. We have maintained regular meetings with Mayor Morgan to discuss downtown projects, business concerns and issues affecting the district, and recently met with MPP Terence Kernaghan to discuss downtown conditions. On October 5 and 6, Downtown London will also be represented in Ottawa for IDA Canada’s Parliament Hill Day. Vicki is one of 20 downtown Executive Directors from across Canada who will meet with MPs and Ministers to discuss infrastructure investment, mental health and addictions, and community safety. These conversations help ensure that the experiences of our downtown businesses are represented with all levels of government.

We were excited to work with Digital Extremes this summer for TennoCon, with Digital Extremes purchasing Downtown Dollar Gift Cards for their conference attendees to use during the TennoConcert at Canada Life Place. This gave attendees an opportunity to use their Downtown Dollars at Canada Life Place concessions while enjoying the event and experiencing more of what downtown has to offer.

With that process in place, discussions continued with Canada Life Place about becoming part of their Cash2Cards program. Guests attending London Knights games, concerts and events can now convert their cash for use at the venue and receive a Downtown Dollar Gift Card that can also be spent at more than 200 participating downtown businesses. We are already seeing those Downtown Dollar Gift Cards used outside the venue, creating another connection between major events and our members.

It was another busy summer for events and promotion. The third quarter saw 279 downtown events with more than 465,000 attendees. Downtown Month, Summer Patio Tunes, the Patio Trail and Sweet Treat Trail were among the campaigns we used to promote businesses and encourage people to explore downtown. Our trails included 57 businesses and generated more than 4,150 visits to participating locations.

Our marketing audience continues to grow as well. Downtown London surpassed 43,000 followers on Instagram this summer and now has more than 84,000 followers across our social channels. This gives us a strong platform to promote our members, events and everything happening downtown.

This quarter alone, we were pleased to welcome 12 new businesses downtown. Our new Business Leasing Brochure is also complete and is being shared with partners including LEDC, CBRE and other realtors to support our ongoing work to attract new businesses and office tenants downtown.

Partnerships continue to play an important role in our work. This quarter we worked with Canada Life Place, Tourism London, LEDC, Western University Students’ Council, the Grand Theatre, Museum London, London Knights, Covent Garden Market, Dundas Place and many others on opportunities to bring people downtown and connect that activity back to our businesses.

We also recently completed our First Impressions Community Exchange with Downtown Hamilton. Their delegation recognized the strength of our businesses, cultural and entertainment destinations, public spaces and programming, while also identifying opportunities around wayfinding, downtown identity, vacant storefronts and better connecting our attractions, events and businesses. It was helpful to have another downtown organization look at London through the eyes of a first-time visitor and provide a fresh perspective on both our strengths and opportunities.

Our Annual General Meeting will take place on November 5 at Museum London, and we hope you will join us. This year we will present our new 2027–2031 Strategic Plan, which will guide Downtown London’s work over the next five years. The plan has been informed by research, engagement and the changing needs of our downtown and our members, and we look forward to sharing it with you.

Finally, we know that community wellbeing and safety remain significant concerns for many businesses and their employees. Over the summer, we developed a new Community Wellbeing and Safety Support Toolkit and six-part video series to provide members with practical information in one place. The resources cover crime prevention, de-escalation, support available to businesses, responding to uncomfortable situations, and information about homelessness and support for vulnerable individuals.

We know that our members and their employees can find themselves dealing with difficult situations and may not always know who to call, what resources are available or how best to respond. We hope these resources provide useful information and additional tools for your teams, and we encourage you to review and share them with your employees.

Thank you for your continued involvement in Downtown London and for everything you do as part of our downtown business community.

Sincerely, 

Vicki Smith, Interim Executive Director
& Kristin Nielsen, LDBA Board Chair