A new selfie spot could be opening in downtown Logan with the hopes of drawing more university students to explore Main Street. It's part of a college course that allows students to come up with creative ways to merge town with gown.
Utah State University’s Huntsman Scholarship Leader Lab is a seven-week course that helps students demonstrate the importance of working to benefit others. This year, Professor Bret Crane partnered with Logan’s Downtown Alliance in the hopes of making downtown Logan more inclusive of Utah State University students.
“One of the things that impresses me about this generation is they just don’t want to go to work for a paycheck, but they want to go to work for a cause. They want to do something where they can feel a sense of mission, and purpose and contribution,” Crane said.
One group saw that in Salt Lake City and Provo, there are areas that people like to use as backdrops for their social media pictures. These amateur models would take pictures next to an aesthetically pleasing area, like a mural or a garden, and post a photo on social media tagging the location. By adding a similar area to downtown Logan, the group hopes it would increase tourism and revenue for businesses.
“What our hopes are is to bring an essential hallmark to the downtown Logan area and what that really should transition to is an increase in tourism as well as bringing an experience down to the downtown area for college kids,” said Dylan Greer, a USU student who worked on the project.
So,… “what’s a selfie worth?” Well, in today’s day and age, people are starting to buy experiences rather than goods. And with social media constantly on the rise, the idea of adding an Instagram opportunity to Logan could be a simple way to get students downtown. In this case, the group plans to add a love-themed sign next to the Hallmark store on Main Street.
