Doing Business Downtown and in the Haymarket: A Practical Guide

How downtown Lincoln and the Haymarket work for businesses: the Downtown Lincoln Association, business improvement districts, events, parking and historic rules.

LNK Biz · Last reviewed October 23, 2026 · 5 min read

Downtown Lincoln and the Historic Haymarket offer foot traffic, events and a dense mix of offices, apartments, restaurants and shops. They also come with their own organizations, assessments, parking and design rules that don't apply in most other parts of the city.

This guide explains who does what downtown, how the business improvement districts work, and the practical issues to plan for, from parking to historic district review. It draws on the Downtown Lincoln Association's and the City of Lincoln's own information. Event schedules and programs change, so check the official sites for current details.

Who's who downtown

The Downtown Lincoln Association, or DLA, was "founded in 1967" as a merchants' association started by downtown retailers. Today it supports "a wide range of programs and activities including maintenance, economic development and advocacy." According to its history page, its events arm, Updowntowners, Inc., dates to 1985, and a related organization, Downtown Civic Ventures, was activated in 2008 to support retail retention and recruitment.

The Haymarket has its own nonprofit as well. The Lincoln Haymarket Development Corporation was formed in 1985 by Haymarket businesses, property owners and community leaders to take part in the National Main Street Program. It describes its mission as "the economic development, revitalization, preservation, and growth of Lincoln's Historic Haymarket District," and it operates the Haymarket Farmers' Market. Haymarket information is now hosted on the DLA's website.

On the city side, the Urban Development Department runs public parking through Park and Go.

How the business improvement districts work

Business improvement districts, or BIDs, fund much of the extra service downtown. The DLA describes three overlapping districts:

The Downtown BID, covering 103 blocks
The Core BID overlay, covering 44 blocks in the center of downtown and the Haymarket
The Maintenance BID, covering 319 block faces

They are "special benefits assessment districts," meaning properties within them are assessed to pay for the extra services. The districts were established in 1989 by downtown property and business owners in cooperation with the DLA and the City of Lincoln, and a volunteer board, the Downtown Lincoln BID Association, represents them. According to the DLA, the maintenance district pays for daily trash removal, weekly sidewalk cleaning, landscape care, tree and shrub replacement and holiday decorating. The management districts fund advocacy, marketing, business recruitment, parking information and feasibility studies. BIDs have been used in downtown Lincoln since 1979, and the DLA says the district expanded to include the Haymarket in 2013 and 2014.

What this means for you: assessments fall on property owners, but commercial leases sometimes pass property costs through to tenants. Ask your landlord how BID assessments are handled in your lease before you sign.

What the DLA offers businesses

Downtown businesses can tap several DLA services:

Marketing help, including social media promotion, seasonal campaigns, newsletter placements, website and directory listings, and access to graphic design and photography support
The Downtown Lincoln Gift Card, which the DLA says is accepted at over 200 downtown businesses; the marketing help form lets a business ask to join the gift card list
An online business directory, a job board and a way to submit events to the downtown calendar
An invest section with available space listings, an annual report with downtown statistics, and information on future development

For example, imagine a new boutique opening on a side street. Getting into the directory, the gift card program and the event calendar early could help it show up where downtown shoppers already look.

The Haymarket: history that shapes the rules

The Haymarket takes its name from Haymarket Square, created in the 1870s when the city's original market square was given up for a federal post office and courthouse. Railroads turned the area into a wholesale and warehouse district. The Lincoln City Council designated the eight-block Haymarket Landmark District in 1982, and in 2014 the area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Lincoln Haymarket Historic District.

That history has practical effects. Landmark district status brings design review of exterior changes, which our guide Zoning, Signs and Permits in Lincoln: Check Before You Lease explains. If you plan new storefronts, windows, signs or exterior work in the Haymarket, build that review into your timeline.

Events, markets and foot traffic

Downtown's calendar brings crowds that can help or complicate business. The Haymarket Farmers' Market usually runs on Saturday mornings from early May into October near 7th and P streets, and vendors apply each year using the market's application and rule book.

Plan staffing, deliveries and parking around big events. If you want to host your own event or add sidewalk seating, check the city permits covered in our guide Starting a Business in Lincoln: City and County Steps to Check.

Parking, construction and food trucks

Parking affects both customers and employees. Park and Go, the city's parking program, manages downtown garages and on-street meters. It offers monthly parking, prepaid i-Park cards and validation coupons that let businesses prepay guest parking. Validations are worth a look if your customers make long visits.

Construction can affect access. Project O Street is a City of Lincoln project improving O Street and nearby blocks with new water mains, refreshed streets and sidewalks, and new amenities in the 14th Street Music District. The DLA posts parking routes and business lists to help customers reach businesses during the work.

Park and Go also handles parking meter hoods for food trucks that vend downtown.

A downtown checklist

Confirm zoning and whether the building is a landmark or in a landmark district.
Ask your landlord how BID assessments and other property costs are passed through.
List your business with the DLA directory and ask about marketing help.
Set up parking for employees and consider validations for customers.
Check event and construction calendars before planning openings or deliveries.

Key takeaways

Downtown's business improvement districts were set up in cooperation with the DLA and the City of Lincoln.
Three overlapping BIDs fund cleaning, landscaping, marketing, advocacy and recruitment.
The Haymarket is a city landmark district and a National Register historic district, so exterior changes need extra review.
Park and Go offers monthly parking and validation coupons for customers.
Event permits, sidewalk cafes and food trucks each have their own city process.

Sources

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