Durham Next, a nonprofit organization, released its first annual report that details how they're envisioning Durham's Destination Master Plan and what projects are in the works.
"What we really want is to do good things for Durham residents that Durham residents can benefit from," executive director Tara Kenchen said. "But also bring visitors to grow that economic impact from the visitor economy."
By 2044, Durham will be the most welcoming, inclusive, innovative, and vibrant destination in the United States, while thoughtfully honoring its history and people, according to the report.
The report also finds that visitor spending plays a key role in that vision, and the average age of visitors is 53 years.
"What that means is that we need to have activities and continue to do things that will attract people to Durham," Kenchen said.
Some of the priority projects include welcome signage in Terminal 2 of the Raleigh-Durham International Airport to promote Durham, a multipurpose sports facility and expanding the Durham Convention Center.
"The downtown space is such an amenity, and so I think improving the convention center is a real part of that," Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein said.
For local establishments such as Queeny's, owner Sean Umstead said he hopes the heart of the Bull City remains its charm.
"I would love to see Durham think about the things that we can do that both build a revenue and a tax base and bring people to Durham, but also continue to build on the community," Umstead said.