Way-finding Research

The City of Phoenix is implementing a way-finding system. Some of you may not know what that is; at least by name-- its purpose is its title, to help people find their way around a city. “This way to City Hall, That way to Wells Fargo Parking” and so forth. Way-finding systems are currently implemented in a lot of downtown areas across the US. The goal is to revitalize downtown areas. If people were better able to find their way around a city (especially tourists) then they will presumably be able to visit more places, which encourages economic growth (especially if those public institutions charge admittance fees). Also, residents may not know all of the benefits their City has to offer, and a way-finding sign, a pseudo-advertisement for public goods, informs the populace of different activities and places of interest. Way-finding is administered and funded in different ways: there is no uniform standard.

In the majority of small cities, the City administers and funds the program. In larger cities, such as Philadelphia and Dallas, way-finding systems are implemented and maintained by a non-governmental organization that has taxing authority within a set boundary in the downtown area. But there are still variances. In Philadelphia, the non-governmental organization, called Central City, installs and maintains the signs. They charge a small fee to government and non-profit organizations that are listed on the way-finding signs (although not all pay). In Dallas, The City is in charge of installing (and re-installing in case a sign gets knocked down) and the nongovernmental organization, DID, is in charge of maintenance. DID, like Central City, has taxing authority but does not charge annual membership fees.