A plan has been identified to provide a list of places in the city where Saratogans can shop or dine, reports Danielle Surdin, the city's economic development coordinator.

Hired in May 2001 to help improve the business community, Surdin has spent the past year focusing on attracting new businesses to the area. Efforts have included the development of a brochure regarding available lease space; quarterly networking meetings with commercial brokers, property owners and landlords; and the creation of a comprehensive marketing packet.

In the future, Surdin said, she hopes to have photos and contact information for all properties available for lease posted on the city's website and to standardize the marketing packet with a brand image for Saratoga.

At one point the city suffered from a 30 percent business vacancy rate, but that number has since dropped to 10 percent, Surdin reported to the city council earlier this month. Following that announcement, the council directed the economic development coordinator to focus more of her attention on promotion and retention of existing businesses.

Surdin hopes to put together promotional bags for visitors who come to the annual open house held on Thanksgiving weekend. The bags would include coupons from various shops and restaurants in the downtown area.

The city is also considering other mediums for advertising special events. This year's Mustard Walk drew some 600 to 800 people, according to Surdin, who credited the success to "aggressive promotion" by staff, council members and commissioners, along with a large, $700 banner visible to drivers along Saratoga Avenue. Also, city staff plans to feature recreational activities, hotels and wineries on the city's website to send the message that "it's an entertainment experience to come and stay" in Saratoga.

Furthermore, Surdin said she is trying to encourage retailers to stay open for longer hours because the only downtown activity offered in the evening is dining at a restaurant. By keeping retail stores open, residents would have more than one reason to come downtown at night, she said.

"The city is trying to build some type of a nightlife," she said.

Some merchants are skeptical this plan would work.

"I don't think it would prove worthwhile," said Denise Thompson, owner of Studio 67, a women's clothing store on Big Basin Way. Although business has been decent for Thompson, she also said she has considered closing shop at 5 p.m. The store is currently open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on most days.

Patrick James, however, has longer hours one day of the week. While the store is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. most days, it stays open until 8 p.m. on Thursdays.

While the city has expanded efforts to recruit high-end chain stores, opportunities for development are limited because the city has almost built out all of its commercially zoned areas, and spaces for lease aren't big enough to attract larger chain stores, Surdin said.

Bella Saratoga restaurant owner Bill Cooper said he prefers having businesses be locally owned anyway. "We have a certain uniqueness here that we need to capitalize on. The village aspect attracts a lot of European visitors. We need to do what it takes to maintain that."

Besides chain stores, some merchants are hesitant to see new businesses selling wares similar to their own line of merchandise move in, said Surdin, who hopes to convince merchants that competition is not a bad sign. Looking at communities with competing businesses, she said, "it's the variety of the stores—and many of them do have crossovers—that makes it thrive. People, when they shop, want options. Overall competition creates more business."

"Competition is better than no competition," Thompson said.

As for business retention, the city began a beautification project of the downtown area last year. To date, about 20 new benches and trashcans line the sidewalks of Big Basin Way. The second phase of the project will include bringing in planters, but that most likely won't happen for at least several more months.

Beyond the benches and tree lights, Thompson suggested planting more flowers to beautify the street and said that she wants the city to allow merchants to put up new signs. Cooper identified parking demands as a major issue and said the city should address the problem of rundown buildings and somehow close "the gap between landlords who won't put money in and tenants who want to but can't afford to fix it up."