02 February 2007

Nomar International project reaches a major milestone

WICHITA, Kan. – A major milestone has been achieved in the revitalization of an international marketplace district in north-central Wichita which focuses on the Hispanic and Asian establishments in the 21st and Broadway (on the east) from 22nd-20th Street North. After more than a year spent in research and discovery, historic documentation, urban planning, branding, architectural design and marketing strategy development, the project moves into the next phase: attracting investment and growing businesses, both new and existing.

“We have a name, a plan and a vision,” said Ron Cruz, president of the 21st Street Business Association and a community liaison for the El Pueblo Neighborhood Association. “We have a roadmap to take us to our destination and a tank full of gas. We just need to identify other fuel stops along the way.”

How We Got Here
In December 2005, the City of Wichita launched a revitalization process that included branding professionals, architects, urban planners and historic preservationists. Wichita-based branding agency Greteman Group served as the lead consultant, working with partners including WDM Architects, Rosin Historic Preservation Consulting, and MKEC Engineering Consultants. The effort began with community outreach and discovering what the neighborhood, broader community and potential regional visitors think of the district and want from it. Tactics included one-on-one and community meetings, mailed trilingual surveys (English, Spanish and Vietnamese), online questionnaires (available on the City’s and the Greater Wichita Convention and Visitor’s Bureau websites) and on-the-street intercept interviews. Overwhelmingly, people responded that they would come to the district for genuine, culturally distinctive shopping, dining and entertainment. A community workshop held in April was particularly instrumental in helping set the direction for the district’s name, look and feel.

Rosin Historic Preservation Consulting, working with the Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Planning Department (MAPD), surveyed 187 resources within the initially defined project area (the retail segments of the 21st Street corridor from Broadway on the east to the Thai Binh Asian Market at Somerset on the west and the Broadway retail corridor from 22nd Street on the north to 20th Street on the south). Results, published in May 2006, reveal there are 11 potentially eligible individual properties, three potential historic districts and a potential conservation district.

Build It and They Will Come
In October 2006 a name and proposed site plan concepts were presented for public and private improvements. Recommendations were made for a gateway tower and archway signage at the corner of 21st and Broadway, wayfinding signage for secondary entry points, a market plaza with a bandstand, a public jardin (garden), landscaping, streetscaping, building-facade treatments, color palettes and a retail-residential mix. All were met with positive reviews.

“Too many times in life, you feel like your opinion is solicited, then ignored,” says Cruz. “That has not been the experience this past year. The community was really asked to participate in this process and did. The ideas that came back to us were refinements of what we said we wanted. We spoke up, and the pros listened.”

Tools For Success
The recommended name, Nomar International, springs from the long-used abbreviation for the North Market area – No-Mar. The 1928 Spanish-revival Nomar Theater serves as the area’s instantly recognizable landmark and icon. Just as New York’s SoHo identifies the district south of Houston, Nomar provides an immediate locator. Within the district, the Nomar International Market will offer goods, food and music from around the world. It also will be home to everything from festivals and farmers markets to bandstand performances and community events.

Marketing and PR plans, presented in early 2007, offer strategies and tactics for fostering development. A website, launched in February, provides an interactive, one-stop, always-available source to multiple audiences: investors, businesses, visitors, residents and the media. A promotional campaign plays off the theme, “It’s a new día in the neighborhood.” Creative has been developed for both print ads and billboards.

“We do feel like it’s a new day with opportunities and possibilities like never before,” says Brian Devlin, president of the West 21st Street CDC. “Investors are starting to recognize that people are looking for authentic cultural experiences the whole family can enjoy. It’s happening in cities all across America. Nomar’s time has come.”

Visitors to Nomar International will be immersed in a culturally genuine neighborhood, a vibrant center of authentic food, shopping, activities, entertainment and fun in a safe, ethnically rich environment. Like New York’s famous SoHo (south of Houston), the name itself – Nomar (North Market) – builds on a long-standing informal name tradition for the area. The name and logo draw inspiration from the Spanish-revival Nomar Theater, built in 1928, the area’s icon and instantly recognizable landmark.

A new indoor/outdoor market will become the area’s heart and soul. An entry gateway and smaller monuments will define the area, reinforcing its multicultural promise. Area architecture, streetscapes, landscapes and color palette will echo the brand and create a cohesive international district known for its strong sense of place, walkable neighborhoods and cultural experiences.

Nomar reaches from the Hispanic and Asian establishments in the 21st Street and Broadway area west to the Thai Bin Asian Market at Somerset. This revitalized area primarily focuses on the blocks from 22nd Street North down to 20th Street North. The goal is a mix of ethnic-inspired shops, restaurants, grocers, music, crafts and festivals that appeals to residents and tourists alike.