The hiring of a new director for the Downtown Auburn Business Improvement District is a positive step we hope will help the agency's mission: improving downtown.

Michele Tarnow brings to the job experience as a business development consultant with the Peace Corps and with work at Eastman Kodak and Hewlett Packard, among other companies.

A lot of progress has been made in recent years. Building facades have been updated and interior renovation projects have helped keep the look of downtown from falling further into disrepair.

The Auburn Public Theater is a great example of how foresight, planning, investment and implementation can bring about real change.

The theater project was ambitious in scope and continues to grow. Offering a variety of shows, it has become a destination, not just a dream.

Downtown still faces major obstacles, but not insurmountable ones.

The center of the city will never see the number of shoppers it did in its heydays, but the right mix of niche retail, services, food and entertainment could make the area more than viable; it could actually thrive.

Many business owners and shoppers have complained that too-strict parking enforcement has created an unwelcoming atmosphere that has soured the downtown experience.

The city needs to tread carefully with regard to enforcement and fines, because there is plenty of free parking at retail businesses and restaurants elsewhere in the city and surrounding areas.

And the Downtown Auburn BID needs to be smart about how it promotes the area.

Ill-advised promotions and small festivals may not live up to people's expectations, and BID needs to continue promoting downtown and offering events people will want to take part in.

A huge streetscape improvement project recently approved by the city will not only beautify downtown, but hopefully make it more user friendly.

We hope - and expect - Tarnow will help downtown improve upon what it has going for it and become a leader in the effort to make downtown a modern success story.