A decade after the Main Street design project, downtown Concord looks a lot different. By cataloging storefronts and analyzing data, we can more easily assess the progress made and identify areas for growth.
What makes up a healthy Main Street? What’s the right mix of different business types for Concord? What changes would people like to see in the next ten years and how does the city get there?
To answer these questions, we created an interactive map of downtown Concord so you can engage with the myriad of businesses populating the Main Street area. By mapping 183 different storefronts, we sought to uncover some of the lesser-known facts about downtown, such as who serves as landlord to the most businesses, what exactly remains open after 8 p.m., and just how many hair salons there are downtown.
How to use this map
Click the arrows below to learn more about how to use the map. Tip: If you ever get “lost,” refresh the page to reset.
Filtering the map
Each bubble represents a Main Street storefront and the business occupying it. The bubbles are color-coordinated to indicate the type of business. Click on a bubble to view details about each location and when a business is open.
To see Main Street at different days and times of the week, use the day and time slider at the top. Slide the blue dot on the timeline throughout the day to watch businesses open and close.
To isolate one or a few different types of businesses, click the labels in the top toolbar.
To see all businesses, both open and closed, keep the “show” setting on “all.” Closed businesses will appear in shadow. To see only businesses that are open or only ones that are closed, select those settings. Note that empty store fronts are coded as closed at all times.
Navigating the map on Desktop
To zoom in and out, scroll up and down or use the +/- button at top right.
To adjust your location on the map, click, hold and drag, then release.
To change your orientation and viewpoint, right click and hold – or use with two fingers on a trackpad if you don’t have a mouse.
To adjust the view angle (street view vs bird-eye) right click and hold, then move your cursor vertically. To spin your view point (viewing from the East or North instead of from the South) right click and hold, then move your cursor horizontally.
Navigating the map on Mobile
To zoom in and out, scroll up and down or use the +/- button at top right.
To adjust your location on the map, click, hold and drag, then release.
To change your orientation and viewpoint, right click and hold – or use with two fingers on a trackpad if you don’t have a mouse.
To adjust the view angle (street view vs bird-eye) right click and hold, then move your cursor vertically. To spin your view point (viewing from the East or North instead of from the South) right click and hold, then move your cursor horizontally.
Things to try
Now that you know how to move around, test these views:
- Pick a few times of day (maybe lunchtime on a Thursday, or later Friday evening) and click around as if you’re “taking a walk” down Main Street at that time. “Walk” down Main Street on a Sunday morning or a Saturday night. Compare that to a “walk” on a Tuesday morning or a Thursday night.
- Use the tool bar and click “open” to see only the open businesses. Set the slider to a time of day (10 a.m. or 5 p.m. are interesting places to start). Spin to view Main Street and then click through each day from Monday to Sunday to see the variability in business hours.
- Select the “vacant” category to see only the empty storefronts. The Monitor’s analysis found that 10% of Main Street storefronts are currently unoccupied.
FOLLOW THE SERIES
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About On Main
Concord reporter Catherine McLaughlin and community editor Rachel Wachman teamed up on this series. You can reach them at cmclaughlin@cmonitor.com and rwachman@cmonitor.com.