Downtown Plymouth Popular Among Diners: Survey

PLYMOUTH, MI — When people visit downtown Plymouth, it’s usually to dine, shop, attend an event like Art in the Park or take in a free concert in Kellogg Park. Those are the findings of a recent Downtown Development Authority survey.

The idea behind the survey was to get an idea of what people like to do in Plymouth, how often and where they park. Responses were gathered face-to-face starting in June and finishing up at last month’s Fall Festival.

A total of 72 people took the survey. Most were from Plymouth, but a significant number of responses also came from nearby communities like Livonia, Westland, and Canton.

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Dining edged out concerts as the most popular activity, 79.2 percent to 66.7 percent. Shopping was third at 58.3 percent and attending major events came in at 51.4 percent. Work, exercise and other forms of entertainment rounded out the list.

Of the people that visit downtown Plymouth, 43.1 percent said the come more than once a week and 26.4 said they’re in town every day. Most people park on-street along Penniman Avenue and Forest Avenue, among other locations, or in a private/business lot.

The idea of paid parking was also broached in the survey. While 56.9 percent of people said it wouldn’t affect their decision to come downtown, 43.1 percent they either wouldn’t come as much or would only park where free parking was available.

Photo by GabboT via Flickr Commons