WEST BRIGHTON —The Forest Avenue Business Improvement District is launching a new campaign urging Staten Island residents to support local stores and restaurants.
The "Shop Local" campaign will kick off May 18 with live music and activities for children at Burrito Bar on Forest Avenue. The BID will also give out coupons and a restaurant guide.
“It’s just a festival to start this whole campaign of 'Let's shop in the area and support our local businesses,’” said Loretta Cauldwell, executive director of the BID.
The group has previously held spring street strolls to promote the businesses, but this is the first year with coupons and guides.
"We're hoping that this will spark new business," Cauldwell said. “The businesses are still struggling and it gets harder every year and we're just trying to do everything we can to highlight the area.”
The guide will have information about the restaurants, including a map, Cauldwell said.
Kim Beckett, owner of the Burrito Bar on 585 Forest Ave. and a board member of the BID, hopes the guide and coupons will encourage both local residents and those from other parts of the borough to discover new places to shop and eat.
“I think it will help for sure," she said. “It's an incentive to walk inside that shop and see what it's all about... We have so many things in the neighborhood that people can just walk to instead of traveling off to the mall."
The "Shop Local" kickoff will be at the Burrito Bar, 585 Forest Ave., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 18.