2025 Annual Report
From Our Director
Dear Downtown Bellingham Community, Supporters, and Friends,
2025 was a year of many milestones for us here at the Downtown Bellingham Partnership. We completed our first-ever multi-year strategic plan - a shared roadmap shaped by staff, board members, partners, and community voices.
We also made meaningful progress in how Downtown looks, feels, and tells its story. We created the Commercial Street Parking Garage Art Plan, a framework designed to reimagine this highly visible piece of infrastructure as a canvas for local creativity and storytelling. At the same time, we invested in digital strategies, building relationships with community-minded marketers and creators, and exploring new ways to help Downtown businesses share who they are.
We welcomed Christa Robertson as our new Events and Administrative Coordinator, strengthening our internal capacity and bringing fresh energy to our team. We were also honored to welcome two new board members whose perspectives and leadership deepen our organization’s governance and vision.
Our Landscape and Maintenance team truly showed up for Downtown in 2025. Beyond their day-to-day work, the crew installed 410 new plants in the spring, and in the fall, our community raised $700 to plant 1,700 tulip and daffodil bulbs throughout the Downtown core. These efforts were supported by volunteers and supported by Mayor Lund, City Council members, and neighbors who care deeply about this place. I’m incredibly grateful for that shared stewardship.
The district experienced a mix of highs and lows throughout the year - we said farewell to a local anchor, Boundary Bay Brewery, but we also saw tangible signs of belief in Downtown’s future. Businesses chose not only to stay, but to deepen their roots here. New investments brought fresh energy to our streets. Arts and culture continued to anchor our identity. Employers reinvigorated weekday foot traffic - all indicators that Downtown is resilient and here to stay.
None of these efforts happen alone. In 2025, our work continued to be supported by a mix of private and public investment - from the City, the Port, our 45+ Main Street donors, event sponsors, and individual supporters, to everyone who filled our beverage garden at Downtown Sounds and lined up to sell out our seasonal Wine Walks. For this, my team and I are deeply grateful.
Downtown is always evolving, and our work is designed to evolve with it. 2025 is a reflection of shared stewardship - of people showing up, investing thoughtfully, and believing in what Downtown can be. I’m proud of what we’ve built together and confident in what lies ahead as we continue caring for the heart of our city.