Courtney Duangdara, community services staff, updated the City Council on Feb. 18 about Denton's Downtown Denton ambassador pilot program, which launched in January 2024 as a two-year, $703,000-a-year contract with vendor Block by Block to provide daily cleaning, hospitality and nonemergency safety services downtown.

Courtney Duangdara told council the pilot worked on two core teams: the Clean Team (trash, power washing, graffiti abatement) and the Safety Team (hospitality, de-escalation, nonemergency business follow-up). "Ambassadors removed over 26,000 pounds of trash downtown in 2024," she said. Duangdara said ambassadors performed 288 power washes and estimated they provided more than 87,000 customer greetings during the year.

Why it matters: Council asked whether the program is sustainable. Staff said the pilot is funded through the city's general fund now and that staff have begun outreach to downtown property owners about forming a public improvement district (PID) to provide ongoing support. If PID funding is not available, staff recommended discontinuing the program at the end of the pilot.

Program results and service details

- Cost and structure: Duangdara said the pilot is a two-year, seven-day-a-week contract with an annual cost of approximately $703,000 funded from the city's general fund for 2024.

- Outputs and public feedback: Staff reported ambassadors removed over 26,000 pounds of trash, performed nearly 300 power washes, and received generally positive ratings in two separate surveys (businesses and general community). Businesses rated cleanliness improvements highly; 60% named enhanced cleanliness and maintenance as the top benefit.

- Safety and social service referrals: Duangdara said ambassadors receive regular training in de-escalation and are equipped to refer people to local homeless services. She gave examples where ambassadors de-escalated a protestor in traffic and where ambassadors changed a business employee's flat tire so the employee could get home.

- Hospitality and visitor assistance: Block by Block reported ambassadors provided over 87,000 greetings and helped visitors with directions and information; the program also supported power washing for the Day of the Dead promotion.

Funding, PID outreach and potential service level changes

- Funding: Duangdara said staff will continue discussions with downtown property owners about establishing a PID. If PID funds are not available, staff recommended discontinuing the program at the end of the two-year pilot.

- Service-level questions: Council members asked about attrition, contractor satisfaction and how city services would revert if the pilot ended. Staff said prior service levels (before the pilot) were lower: trash collection and power washing were less frequent and safety escorts and hospitality services would stop.

Council concerns and follow-up

Council asked for an apples-to-apples cost comparison of the pilot's enhanced services versus the prior city-delivered baseline and how quickly service levels would decline if the pilot ended. Staff said they would follow up with the financial delta and provide boundary options and feedback from property owners. Duangdara said outreach so far showed initial interest among property owners in some type of district funding for the program.

Ending: Council did not take a formal action on the pilot during the work session but directed staff to continue engaging property owners about a PID, to provide more-detailed cost comparisons and to return with updates as part of the budget process.