Published on : Wednesday, January 9, 2019
Although the city had the Denton Main Street Association and local businesses, the concentrated effort to make downtown Denton a vibrant community was still in progress. Now, with Phillips’ efforts and those of several organizations such as the Main Street Association, the Square has become the crown jewel of Denton.
“That’s one of the biggest things that’s happened — watching downtown become what it is today,” Phillips said. “Our downtown Square has become a tourist attraction all on its own.”
Now after working for 16 years to cultivate what the city has to offer and marketing it to visitors, Phillips will leave her post at the end of the month to lead the Texas Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus.
Through her work with the local bureau, Denton got an identity while experiencing population growth, something cities can really struggle with, Phillips said.
To quote Phillips, “We realize growth is going to happen, but how do we navigate through that and remain Denton on the other side? I would say that’s been a big focus, and so far we’ve been successful by telling the whole world out there that Denton is really cool.”
She’s also proud of the media attention that Denton has seen in recent years, such as being named the second-best destination in Texas behind San Antonio by Texas Highways magazine readers in 2014.