Business News - July 1

Let’s keep the newsletter short and sweet since we’re headed into another holiday weekend. We want to thank everyone for all of the support for our Downtown Ambassadors and the Star City Slide. We couldn’t have done it without you!

Today’s Top Three:

• River’s Edge has BIG plans for Thursday that include fireworks.

• Roanoke received a grant to fix the farmer’s market stall awnings.

• Remember to congratulate our businesses celebrating anniversaries this month.

Keep reading to stay informed!  

- Joya Garris, Director of Marketing & Communications

Get Involved

Celebrate July 4th with Fireworks 🎆 

PLAY Roanoke is bringing the fun to River’s Edge this Thursday with the return of the Freedom Festival and Fireworks! Enjoy live music, a kids’ fun zone, a museum on wheels, and (of course) the most wonderful fireworks display! Celebrate the holiday in Downtown Roanoke.

Bites & Bevs Feedback 📝 

Thank you to everyone that participated in the inaugural Downtown Roanoke Bites & Bevs Week! Since this was a new event, we’d like to gather feedback! We have two surveys: one for participating locations and one for customers.

Stay Informed

New Farmer’s Market Awnings Coming Soon 🧑‍🌾 

We’re thrilled to share that The City of Roanoke has been awarded a $50,000 infrastructure grant from the Commonwealth of Virginia as part of a statewide initiative by Governor Glenn Youngkin to bolster local food production and agricultural facilities across Virginia. The City will allocate these funds to updating the Historic City Market’s awnings, which will enable vendors to operate at full capacity and create opportunities for additional vendors.

Downtown Roanoke, Inc.’s President and CEO, Tina Workman says, “We are excited to continue our long-standing partnership with the City of Roanoke to improve and enhance the Historic Roanoke City Market, which is a vital and cherished part of our downtown. By managing the market daily, we understand the immediate benefits it will bring to our local farmers, artisans, and neighboring businesses.”

Let’s Celebrate July Anniversaries! 🥳 

We still have a ew June anniversaries to highlight on social media, but we’re officially in July! Help us congratulate our businesses celebrating anniversaries this month.

• Jaybird Tavern - 1st Anniversary!

• BitterSweet - 8th Anniversary

4th of July Impacts

Folks love coming downtown to shop, dine, and find entertainment, so keep visitors informed about changes to your hours, special events, and 4th of July promotions. We’d love to help spread the word, so please submit your events and specials to our calendar.

Ambassador Update 💙 

Following a busy weekend working WDBJ7’s Star City Slide, our Downtown Roanoke Ambassadors woke up bright and early to pressure wash and clean the event area, including the Roanoke City Schools parking lot.

Gain Knowledge & Network

Blue Ridge Rising Summit ⛰️ 

Join residents and regional leaders from the 29-county Blue Ridge Parkway corridor on July 8-10 at Hotel Roanoke to discover new ideas, hear the latest updates and progress reports, learn about upcoming grant programs and other plans, and make new connections to continue advancing the Blue Ridge Rising Action Plan. Attendees will connect with people from all across the region, including representatives in tourism, economic development, outdoor recreation, planning, nonprofits, and the general public.

Events, Street Closures, & Parking

Downtown Events and Street Closures 🚧

The following street closures and associated events may affect Downtown traffic and business for the week of June 30 - July 6.

• Straight Street Youth Night on Friday, 6/27 and Saturday, 6/28 on Luck Ave SW between 3rd St and 4th St

• Freedom Festival & Fireworks on Thursday, 7/3 at River’s Edge

Additional closures & upcoming events:

• Drainage Project — Find updates and closures here .

Find Downtown Parking 🅿️

With more than 1,300 on-street spaces and 7,000+ off-street spaces, plenty of free or paid parking options exist.

Parking Information

DRI - Your Downtown Partner

Put DRI to work for you! 💼

Our mission is to make Downtown Roanoke the preferred place to Work, Live, and Play. As a Downtown business, you have a valuable FREE resource at your fingertips. Let us help share your story!

Website Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Our business listings often come up among the first in Google searches. Help us enhance your listing by providing us with vital information including website, phone number, description, hours, menus, and images.

Fill out the form .

Job Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Downtown Roanoke is the most vibrant workplace around and a destination for job seekers. Let us help get the word out when you’re hiring!

Submit a job listing here .

Event Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Our Event Calendar is THE place people go to find out what’s happening Downtown. Get your event in front of the audience you’re looking for.

Submit an event here.

Important Contacts 👤

Often businesses need phone numbers for government services, such as solid waste, permitting, etc., and other services, such as private parking and transportation.

Check out our list of frequently requested information!

Important Contacts