BRYAN, Texas (KRHD) — Downtown Bryan is hosting its first-ever Maroon and White Night with live music and discounts to attract Texas A&M faculty and staff, and the community to explore local businesses.
- The event is designed to appreciate Texas A&M faculty and staff, and encourage them to visit local businesses, with hopes of boosting retail activity in downtown Bryan.
- Special discounts and offers will be available, including rare tours of the historic Milton Parker Estate Bed and Breakfast.
- Some shop owners are concerned about the costs of extending hours and paying overtime, but the mayor hopes targeting A&M staff will drive more foot traffic to the area.
- For a list of participating stores and restaurants, click here.
Broadcast script:
Live music and special discounts will fill the streets of downtown Bryan for the first-ever Maroon and White Night, a spin-off of the 20-year-old First Friday tradition.
Bryan Mayor Bobby Gutierrez says the event is geared towards Texas A&M faculty and staff, but everyone is welcome.
"This is for people who have never been here before and to kind of see it's more of an adult space,” Gutierrez said.
The mayor added, “It’s truly thanking them for what they do for our economy and getting them into these local businesses, the local merchants, the restaurants, and the retail establishments. And with that, hopefully, we’ll get more retail down here.”
Several downtown businesses are offering special discounts and promotions, including some that don’t usually participate in First Friday events.
Denise Barbier with the Milton Parker Estate Bed and Breakfast said, “We rarely open for tours because we are so busy. But because this is a very special night and we want to showcase this beautiful place to Texas A&M faculty and staff, we feel like they probably don't know about this hidden gem right in their own backyards.”
The bed and breakfast will offer tours of their 140-year-old historic B&B from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Barbier continued, “We've only maybe been open twice in our eight-year history for tours. So this is something special that we want to offer again to our Texas A&M faculty and staff who want to come explore a bit of Bryan's history.”
Other shop owners are a bit more skeptical. They say the cost of extending their hours and paying workers overtime is often higher than the additional sales they make. However, Mayor Gutierrez hopes that focusing on A&M staff and faculty will bring more shoppers to downtown.
“We're just going to kind of test it and let it grow organically,” he said.