More Than a Block Party: A Bigger Vision for Our Dayton Neighborhood
Our recent block party brought people together across the lot from the Davis-Linden Building.
Organized through Dieringer Development Group, it was a chance to welcome neighbors, support local vendors, and spend time together in a place many people usually drive past.
For those of us working here, it also brought a bigger idea into focus.
What could happen if Davis-Linden, the Hewitt Soap properties, and the spaces around them became a more connected destination?
A place where people could discover local businesses, grab something to eat, meet the makers behind their purchases, and have a reason to come back.
That is the vision behind the Creative Commerce District.
What Is the Creative Commerce District?
The Creative Commerce District is Dieringer Development Group’s vision for connecting creative work, small businesses, food, and community activity across these neighboring Dayton properties.
Davis-Linden already has an important role in that picture. More than 130 tenants bring their businesses, skills, and ideas into the building. There is a lot happening behind those doors.
The opportunity is to create more ways for people outside the building to discover that work.
Nearby Hewitt Soap spaces could help make that connection, giving visitors somewhere to gather while introducing them to the artists, makers, and businesses working in the neighborhood.
What the Block Party Helped Us Picture
The block party gave people a reason to stop, walk around, and spend time here.
Visitors could browse vendors, talk with local businesses, get something to eat, and enjoy the event. People who might not otherwise cross paths had a chance to meet.
It was one afternoon, but it helped us picture how these spaces could work together more often.
A visitor might come for lunch and discover a local maker. Someone attending a market might learn about a business inside Davis-Linden. A neighborhood event could introduce people to a part of Dayton they haven’t explored before.
Those connections are what we want to build on.
Davis-Linden and Hewitt: Two Properties, a Shared Opportunity
Davis-Linden provides space for people to work, create, and grow their businesses. The Hewitt properties offer an opportunity to add complementary uses nearby.
Together, they could support a destination with more reasons to visit and more opportunities for local businesses to be seen.
For Davis-Linden tenants, that could mean increased exposure to people who come to the district for food, shopping, or events. For the surrounding neighborhood, it could mean another place to meet, support local businesses, and spend time close to home.
The goal is to create activity that benefits the people already here while welcoming new customers into the area.
Looking for an Anchor Tenant at Hewitt Building B
An important next step is finding the right tenant for Hewitt Building B.
Dieringer Development Group is interested in connecting with an operator whose business could become a regular draw for the district. A café, deli, bakery, or beverage concept could be part of that vision.
We are especially interested in the possibility of pairing a food or beverage business with a creative market, giving people somewhere to eat, browse, and discover local products.
A business like this could give visitors a reason to return between events. It could also help connect the working community inside Davis-Linden with a more public gathering place nearby.
We want to hear from operators with a clear idea, an interest in the neighborhood, and a desire to help shape what comes next.
Giving People More Reasons to Come Back
Beyond an anchor business, the broader vision could include recurring markets, community events, and an ongoing food truck presence.
These are possibilities we want to explore as the properties develop and the right partners come together.
Each would serve a shared purpose: bringing people into the neighborhood and creating more opportunities for makers, creators, and small businesses to reach customers.
The block party was a starting point for that conversation. The next step is finding people who see the potential here and want to be part of building it.
Help Shape the Next Chapter
We’re sharing this on the Davis-Linden website because our building and its tenants are central to this vision.
The Creative Commerce District would build on the work already happening here, connecting it with new experiences and businesses at Hewitt.
If you have a restaurant, café, bakery, deli, beverage, or creative market concept and would like to explore the opportunity at Hewitt Building B, contact Dieringer Development Group at davislindenbuilding@gmail.com
Tell us about your business, your space needs, and what you would like to bring to the neighborhood.
We’d love to start the conversation.
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