DOWNTOWN
FREMONT
ECONOMIC
VITALITY
PRESENTATION
May 19, 2026
FRAMING THE DISCUSSION
Discussion + Feedback
Vitality Strategy Framework
Background + State of the District
BACKGROUND &
STATE OF DOWNTOWN
MAJOR CITY INVESTMENT
HAS LED TO SIGNIFICANT
PRIVATE SECTOR
ACTIVITY
➢2012: Downtown Community Planadopted
➢2016: City Center Community Plan
adopted
➢2018: City-funded street grid and
infrastructure program to preempt private
development
MAJOR CITY INVESTMENT HAS
LED TO SIGNIFICANT PRIVATE
SECTOR ACTIVITY
➢ 2020: Locale project completed, enabled by new zoning and City’s below market sale of land to developer
➢ 2021: City opens Downtown Event Center
➢ 2022-25:
❑ The Beacon (2022)
❑ Fremont Bank HQ (2024)
❑ The Tolman (2025)
➢ 2026: 16 of 17 Downtown retail spaces leased
Capitol Avenue: Downtown’s “Main Street”
THE DOWNTOWN EVENT CENTER
PROVING TO BE THE OF
THE DOWNTOWN DISTRICT
Fiscal Year 2025/26 Statistics
➢ 43 Public Events
➢ 256 Rentals
➢ Estimated 75,000 Visitors
➢ Community Partners – Fremont
❖ City of Fremont - Fremont Fire, Police, Human Services,Community Devlopment, Economic Development, CommunityServices
❖ Fremont Chamber of Commerece
❖ Fremont Unified School District
❖ Fremont Cultural Arts Council
❖ Churches
❖ Fremont Businesses
TRACKING
DEVELOPMENT
PROGRESS
Completed
➢ 672 units
➢ 59 KSF commercial
➢ 13 KSF civic space (DTEC)
Under Construction
➢ 365 units
Approved
➢ 925 units
➢ 64 KSF commercial
DOWNTOWN
VISITATION CONTINUES
TO INCREASE
CHALLENGES:
➢ City is largest Downtown property owner with 13 acres, 25% of total Capitol Avenue frontage
➢ Vacant lots detract from Main St. feel of Capitol Ave ➢ Encampments pose challenges – increased enforcement
making improvements
➢ Several existing property owners unwilling or unable to redevelop
➢ Entitled mixed use projects awaiting change in financing environment to lower construction costs in order to proceed ➢ State laws incentivize housing above all else, giving future projects option of not building ground floor commercial
DOWNTOWN STRATEGY -
5 PILLARS
1. Fostering Investment in Built Environment
2. Activation Through Events & Placemaking
3. Building Coalitions & Strategic Partnerships
4. Attracting New Retail and Marketing Downtown
5. Enhancing the Public Realm
1. FOSTERING DEVELOPMENT AND
INVESTMENT IN BUILT ENVIRONMENT
➢ Maintain predictable and expedited review processes for Downtown and City Center area projects
➢ Supportive zoning exists to allow for desirable retail and commercial uses “by-right”
➢ Continued use of Code Enforcement to ensure “good neighbor” caretaking of future development sites
➢ Evaluating ways to market new and existing procedures as added incentive for new restaurants and retail
➢ Exploring future opportunities to pull-forward mixed-use development on Capitol Avenue through City fee and regulatory levers
2. ACTIVATING DOWNTOWN THROUGH
EVENTS AND PLACEMAKING
➢ Continuing to leverage DTEC for community and City-sponsored events with focus on diverse programming
➢ Engaging with operators to evaluate opportunity for
potential Downtown Farmer’s Market
➢ Exploring opportunities to activate vacant future development sites with outdoor gathering activities
➢ Potential use of public art funds to provide exhibits and programming to Downtown
➢ Building upon streamlined DTEC Special Event permit process to create more turnkey opportunities for community event
organizers
3. BUILDING COALITIONS & STRATEGIC
PARTNERSHIPS
➢ Interdepartmental coordination on shared resources, calls for service, special events, and other needs
➢ Formalizing already strong partnerships with Downtown stakeholders including Chamber of Commerce, Fremont Bank, retailers, and property owners for more organized advocacy on Downtown needs
➢ Discussing and sharing best practices with other cities and organizations such as Main Street Alliance and International Downtown Association
➢ Longer-term opportunity to establish to establish dedicated private funding sources to support marketing, events, and beautification as Downtown district continues to build out
4. ATTRACTING NEW RETAIL &
MARKETING DOWNTOWN
➢ Aggressively marketing Downtown Fremont with commercial brokers, developers, and retailers
➢ Looking for opportunities to build on existing branding and wayfinding including signage and logos
➢ Continuing to spread awareness and excitement with community about Downtown
➢ Exploring best practices to package the existing wrap-around support process for new businesses coming to Downtown
➢ Engaging with developers to design ground floor retail space to be suitable for restaurants and quality retailers
5. ENHANCING THE PUBLIC REALM
➢ Studying programs in other communities for clean streets in downtowns to evaluate opportunities
➢ Convening multidepartment working group to create unified parking plan to support retail and further Downtown growth ➢ Exploring opportunities to enhance already active presence of CSO/patrol officers in Downtown and City Center area
➢ Evaluating existing resources for Downtown maintenance needs based on current calls for service
➢ Continuing to deploy good urban design principals to enhance comfort, safety, and street beautification
DISCUSSION & FEEDBACK