r/uofdayton • u/zombiepotatox • May 07 '26

Students at The Dayton Arcade

What would it take for UD students to visit The Hub/Dayton Arcade more often? There's a variety of places to eat, and with the North Arcade opening there are additional vendors selling merch of all sorts. Art, prepackaged food, nick-nacks, etc. Certain places even have student discounts. I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts.

I'm also curious to see what y'all would like to see in the space that used to be Startup Grounds/Beyond Grocery in the front of the Hub. Suggestions?

8 Upvotes

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9

u/Gh0stface513 May 07 '26

Im alumn so idk what it's like now but as a local, i can say the biggest barrier to breaking the bubble is transport. You walk to everything on campus and Dayton public transit is ass so some kind of shuttle would probably be huge.

Down town is pretty far for a pedestrian and that big stretch of warren is essentially a wasteland. There's enough dining on brown so i dont see students going there for lunch.

I think a dedicated shuttle and some advertised events would be a draw.

3

u/Michig00se May 07 '26

The Flyer is a free shuttle that does exactly what you're describing.

I'm not sure what would work to draw more students. I wish Gather was still there, it would've had potential to host some interesting events that might have appealed to students.

2

u/Gh0stface513 May 07 '26

The arcade was only just beginning restoration when i graduated.

Getting the student body at-large to do anything besides day drinking is gonna be a struggle tbh. Some of the best turnouts I ever saw were for things like street concerts or outdoor festivals at art Street because they were accessible, fun, and met the students where they were at.

I would focus more on targeted marketing, you have very defined demographics of majors so push what appeals to them. People who hang out at art street or spend time in the studio spaces are more likely to seek out the craft and arts shops. Engineering people might find something fun in the maker mart category. Emphasize the community aspect, make some social media content showing what's there and If you can get enough students through the door and it's worth their time, things like this have a way of spreading through word of mouth and becomming culture. Thats what you really want. You want the seniors to tell the freshmen about this cool off-campus right of passage.

2

u/AmberCarpes May 07 '26

Gather isn't there anymore? The coffee shop closed? That doesn't bode well.

1

u/Michig00se May 07 '26

I guess there were issues with management, there's a Mexican place in that spot now. The other coffee shop in the arcade is still there, but it doesn't have the same cozy speakeasy vibe or excellent service that Gather had.

11

u/Das2461 '20 May 07 '26

Alum who’s also “local” (Fairborn), but I echo Gh0stface in saying transportation is the biggest thing. I know the Flyer exists but at least when I was there and it was in its infancy, no one I knew really used it.
Part of it could also be what you can do there? If your main selling point is “We have food and vendors!” then that’s probably part of your issue, they have food and vendors on Brown Street so what’s motivating them to go out of their way? Are there other events going on? Places to just hang out with friends? I know once I started going to the Oregon District more my fifth year, I lamented that I didn’t go more throughout my time at UD. I really just didn’t know it was there and that there were some pretty cool spots to hang out at

8

u/VolcanicAsh149 May 07 '26

Current student here, Brown street has most of that stuff and it's much easier to walk down there than to figure out the flyer's schedule and coordinate all that

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u/wild_brillance May 07 '26

Hosting an Arcade back to school kick off or an event that brings awareness of all the offerings would help students work it into their schedules. A lunch shuttle from 11am-2pm would be amazing! Offering a flyer discount, a reward system, or a way to use your flyer card.

1

u/jackedup25 May 08 '26

My only advice unless you pay me for more: Get on their Flex Meal Plan. With a lot of business classes taking place by the hub you should get some business that way.

Other advice would mean hiring me as a consultant to run up your numbers at the beginning of next semester

3

u/IndividualRoll9107 May 08 '26

Or they could work with the Miami Valley Small Business Development Center at The Hub that provides free resources before deciding to pay someone. Or, better yet, they could work with students at UD School of Entrepreneurship, also based at The Hub and develop a plan with actual UD students.