On the Road Again: Weekly Message from Maggie Campbell, President and CEO of DAMC

In a month, DAMC is hosting our Downtown Arlington 2020 Annual Meeting. We’re completely reimagining this annual tradition, moving it from an in-person gathering to a live streaming celebration on Thursday, September 10 at 5:30 p.m.
 
Sound familiar? How many of you have also found yourself punting to a virtual Plan B for your upcoming meetings, special events, conferences, parties and conventions?
 
I’d like to let you in on a secret: once our team wrapped our heads around what we MUST do for the health of our community, we’ve been having a lot of fun thinking up what we CAN do with this new medium!
 
By stripping away our routines, we can see with crystal-clarity what we love most about our annual meeting: bringing our community together. So this year, the event will be a lot less meeting and a lot more celebrating!
 
Inspired by our theme of On the Road Again, we’re reimagining the event as a free virtual celebration of our community’s creativity, authenticity, and hometown pride; resiliency in the face of COVID-19; completion of Abram Street’s revitalization; launch of Downtown Outdoors; and a peek into the future of the arts in Downtown.
 
With Mayor Williams as our co-host, you’ll be treated to a format that focuses on the people in our amazing neighborhood. You’ll learn their stories through a celebratory year-in-review video plus live program elements. We’ll recognize all the remarkable ways our community spirit of innovation and teamwork shone brightly during this unpredictable time, and celebrate this year’s winner of the Dreambuilder Award.
 
Ready to join the fun? You’ll be able to RSVP for the Annual Meeting starting next week, but in the meantime, please save the date!

News Briefs  

Star Light, Star Bright: Speaking of stars in Downtown, we love the live streaming series hosted by the University of Texas at Arlington Planetarium. Tune in to the UTA Planetarium Facebook Live every Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. for an interactive exploration of our big, beautiful universe.

Best BBQ in DFW: The Dallas Morning News wants to know who has best barbecue in North Texas. Help us tell the world: it’s Downtown Arlington’s own Hurtado Barbecue! Vote today!

Tune In: The Levitt Pavilion is keeping the free live music coming as its popular streaming Levitt Living Room Series continues. As proud sponsors of this series, we’re grateful to be able to promote Downtown Arlington businesses like Urban Alchemy, Rita’s Italian Ice, Legal Draft Brewery, and the Arlington Music Hall by streaming them live to you at home. Please continue to support our local venues by tuning in, ordering out, or donating. Coming up: American Sons with the Candlelite Inn on Aug. 18 and Jo James with J.R. Bentley’s on Aug. 25. For more info, visit levittpavilionarlington.org and tune in 8:00 p.m. every Tuesday on Levitt Facebook Live.

Deep in the HeART: In addition to the Levitt’s online series, performing and visual arts are alive throughout Downtown! With COVID-19 precautions well in place, Theatre Arlington is producing a terrifically fun Summer Sunset Cabaret Series featuring the likes of John Dosher and Chris Menger, Ken’Ja L. Brown, Micah Green, Persis Ann Forster, and more. Arlington Music Hall is swinging with a lively performance schedule beginning this month. The Dallas Observer recently featured the current exhibition at the Arlington Museum of Art, celebrated painter, sculptor and muralist Knox Martin. Click here to discover all the ways to enjoy the arts by visiting our arts and culture directory.

2020 Downtown All Stars: Earlier this year, Arlington Today magazine readers cast votes for their favorites in more than 160 categories from restaurants to automotive repair. The results are in, and Downtown Arlington is the big winner! More than 38 Downtown Arlington businesses placed in a wide variety of categories. Join us in congratulating all the 2020 All Stars who shine brightly in Downtown. Click here to see the list of winners. 

Virtual learning for entrepreneurs: Continue to tune in to the Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce Business Leaders Series Online for regular conversations on business topics for the COVID-19 and digital age. Free and open to members and non-members alike. Today’s segment focused on building strategic partnerships and featured a number of examples from Downtown Arlington. If you missed it, you can catch it here.