Latest Updates:

After considering recent tours, we have decided to make improvements to our IPT event. IPT will continue to foster efforts that bring historic and economic revitalization to our communities across Texas. However, we have identified some guideline updates that will improve local tours as well as the statewide tour effort.  Our primary update is that IPT will sponsor events during May and October exclusively. Centralizing dates for this statewide signature event will provide a more efficient and effective promotional schedule and should allow us to expand our services to your community. 

For 2024, we will continue to utilize the IPT registration form. This form is designed to help communities structure their Imagine the Possibilities Tour (IPT) and to give us insight into your event planning efforts. We hope that our questions serve as a guiding tool to create a well-organized event that promotes historic preservation and economic revitalization.

All registration forms will be reviewed for compatibility with our mission and then considered for inclusion in the respective (May/October) Imagine the Possibilities Tour. This review step has been added to encourage thoughtful programming that highlights your Main Street district in meaningful ways.

FAQ

1. I’m new to the tours. Is there an overview somewhere?

Yes, you can download these PDFs:

How To Prepare an Imagine the Possibilities Tour

How to Register

2. I want to host a tour, but do I have to host it in May?

For 2024, our IPT events will be held exclusively during the months of May and October. Participating cities can select their own date/time within the designated months. Depending on your community, events can be hosted on weekdays or weekends, during the day or at night. When do you typically get the best crowds downtown? What time of day shows your district at its best? As always, be sure to check your local event calendars and make sure you don’t have conflicts with events and holidays such as Mother’s Day, Halloween, and graduation.

3. Do more people do guided tours or open houses?

It seems an equal number of cities host each type of tour. It depends on your community and what you think will be best.

The concept is very flexible and easy to execute no matter the size of downtown or the current occupancy status. If you have people willing to participate as hosts at each stop, you’ll be successful. If you are struggling to find people to help open up buildings, it may be best to do a guided tour where you can shape the experience.

4. We don’t have many buildings for sale, can we still host a tour?

Sure, you can show off success stories or consider featuring lease spaces to attract new businesses. Cities are finding tours to be a good opportunity to tell people about what is going on downtown and change the overall perceptions about downtown activity and investment.

5. I’m on the fence, why should we host one?

The tours provide the “inside scoop” on what’s going on downtown. They help educate attendees on historic preservation and downtown revitalization, they create emotional connections to the buildings through storytelling, and they build confidence in investing through the sharing of information and the synergy created among attendees. During the tours, downtown feels exciting – it feels like the place to be and it motivates people to action. It’s an experience that cannot be offered in any other way; therefore, the concept should continue to be very successful.

Tour Highlights