NORMAN — The Norman Chamber of Commerce and Norman Convention and Visitors Bureau want shoppers, tourists and other visitors to Norman to better find their way around town. In particular, these local business and promotional organizations would like visitors to be able to find retail districts, entertainment venues and cultural attractions.

The Chamber and NCVB would like to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the city to develop a city branding and wayfinding program for Norman.

“In general, wayfinding is a series of signs and symbols you would use here in this community,” said Director of Public Works Shawn O’Leary.

Wayfinding is a program designed to help visitors find their way around town.

“Where do we want to get them?” O’Leary said is one of the questions that will be discussed in future meetings.

Any wayfinding program should be easy to quickly grasp and should include signs, symbols, colors and images to cross cultural and language barriers to serve all visitors and tourists.

Intended as an economic and business development tool, wayfinding could potentially help increase visits to Norman destinations by providing “clear and inviting directions,” O’Leary said.

“The Chamber is very excited about this,” said Chamber President John Woods.

Stephen Koranda, executive Director for NCVB agrees.

Both boards have given the program the “green light,” said O’Leary and are contributing $20,000 each for the purpose of conducting a comprehensive wayfinding study.

“This is coming out of a retail development fund that the Chamber has,” Woods said.

The committee looked for a concept that could benefit the community as a whole. Other entities were having the same conversation so the time was right.

“It’s important for retailers that consumers know where they are going, how to get there and where to park,” Woods said. “They need to know where areas of interest are.”

The public and many groups and organizations will be invited to be part of the development process. A number of public-private partnerships will help fund the implementation of the program that could eventually unfold throughout the city.

“I believe other non-governmental entities will want to partner in this,” Woods said.

Current signage in Norman lacks consistency in sign material, support design and font. There is no uniform style to help brand Norman as the unique community that it is, O’Leary said.

Current signs do not follow through in guiding visitors to specific locations. Many entertainment, recreational, cultural, and civic destinations are not identified through the current signage. Neither are people guided to historic and retail destinations.

O’Leary said part of the purpose of a wayfinding program is to help create a sense of identity in certain areas such as Downtown, Campus Corner, the university schools and various shopping districts.

“Conceptually having uniform, clear signage across the community assists in the endeavor to help visitors locate areas of interest,” Woods said.

If a convention brings visitors to the Embassy Suites, for example, those visitors may not want to stay within University North Park for their entire visit. Clear signage helps to get them out of the hotel room.

“It allows visitors to navigate our community,” Woods said. “When they can do that with ease and comfort, odds are they are going to visit more places and spend more dollars when they’re in Norman.”

Members of the community will help determine the style of signs.

“There’s an artistic function to this. There’s a beautification aspect to this,” Woods said.

The multi-step process will include a planning and design phase where a strategy is developed through community meetings, surveys of visitors and studies to identify gaps in current signage.

The contract and fabrication phase will solicit proposals and bids and present choices to community groups and city council. Signs will be selected and a location map of areas needing signage will be identified.

Eventually the signs will be reviewed and unveiled and then installed. A plan for maintenance will keep the new system up and running.

Currently, the city is entering the planning and design phase. City council indicated it is amenable to entering the Memorandum of Understanding with the Chamber and NCVB. That MOU will be on a future council agenda.

“There is no funding commitment or sign number commitment,” O’Leary said of the city’s obligation.

The obligation is to proceed with the process and to seek grants and other means to help fund the program.

Joy Hampton 366-3539 jhampton@normantranscript.com