Claremore city leaders said the newly-named Lilac District is just the beginning of many plans for the downtown area. They are hopeful the new district will attract shoppers and investors in the future.

The Lilac District was named earlier this month and is a reference to Claremore native Lynn Riggs’ writing that later inspired the play "Oklahoma!." Paying homage to Riggs is just one of the ways the city is trying to connect Claremore’s history to the new upgrades in the future.

Jacob Garrison, Executive Director of Claremore Main Street, said branding and marketing the Lilac District is the first big step. The installation of new signage has begun and in the coming weeks, people will notice new parklets and lighting in the downtown area.

“Making the Lilac District recognizable and the growth of downtown is going to be predicated not only on our local investors and our local community but those people on the outside that see Claremore is a place we want to be,” said Garrison. “They bring their business and their investment into downtown.”

Lots of community forums have taken place to get feedback from people on what they would like to see for the area. Main Street is currently at full capacity, so the focus is to enhance the current businesses.

Other plans include bringing the Lilac Festival back to downtown in 2022.