It has three parts to it.

At the top is a brown and white silhouette illustration that represents the historic tobacco warehouse architecture of downtown Danville. The architecture seen in the image is that of 610 Craghead St.

The next portion is a center band in a brick red tone. The final, bottom portion of the image is interchangeable. It mimics the appearance of flowing water but upon closer examination shows electronic circuitry lines. This represents Danville’s advanced technology focus as well as the city’s Dan River.

The image has a three dimensional look to it, presenting the motifs at a unique angle that suggests the fresh approach to the historic landmark that is Danville. The brand has an upward angle that emulates the progressive and upward movement of the River District.

Overlaying the whole image are the tagline’s words. It can be repurposed for other events or activities, such as the Danville Mud Run or the River District Festival. The brand’s colors are brown, brick red, green and chartreuse.

The narrative invites you to be a part of Danville’s renaissance, if not your own. It promotes the individual mobility each individual community member has to envision change and progress that revises the way things have always been done.

“This is not an advertising campaign with a slogan and logo. This is about our identity as a River District and it tells who we are and what our economic advantage is,” Danville Public Information Officer Arnold Hendrix said.

The brand and its accompanying narrative are the product of about two years of research, professional consultation and preparation. Danville used North Star Destination Strategies as the consulting agency for this project.

The process started in 2010 when a delegation from Danville visited Greenville, South Carolina. There they learned of the possibilities for a once-dying downtown. They also learned of the need to develop achievable projects, such as this logo and brand.

North Star spent in the River District, both in a formal manner and undercover. Danville Office of Economic Development Assistant Director Corrie Teague explained that the consultants repeatedly emphasized that “your brand is what they say about you when you’re not around.”

The research portion included interviews and focus groups with public officials, businesses and civic organizations. Representatives from Averett University, the Danville Area Historical Society, Galileo High School, the River District Association and more provided opinions on the River District’s previous successes, potential and ideas for the future. A team of three creatives worked on the design details of the brand and image.

Even secret shoppers were deployed to ask questions about the area and its community. The North Star team wanted to get the unadulterated, true opinion of the River District. The terms adaption and repurposing came up repeatedly.

Signage already is visible at various entry points to the River District. About six more gateway signs will be installed as part of the wayfinding project. Approximately 20 vehicular signs and multiple kiosks will be added, too.

The next streetscape project on Craghead Street will begin soon. The work will introduce pavers and other elements seen on Main Street from Loyal through Newton Streets. The work on the pedestrian bridge connecting the north and south portions of the Riverwalk Trail will begin in June.

“We have a development model in place for the River District. We have had great success with it, and now we want to celebrate that success and challenge everyone to see things not as they are, but as they could be,” Teague said Friday.

Signs that downtown Danville would be making a comeback began slowly. In 2006, Jerry Amburn opened his salon; next door, at the Purple Onion, downtown workers happily had lunch or met after work for dinner. In 2007, Lou’s Antique Mall opened.

Since then, the Purple Onion closed and Jake’s On Main opened in its place. Those three businesses now face the newly-created Main Street Plaza, designed to be a destination with its centerpiece fountain, donated to the city by Japan Tobacco Inc. The effort has been a success: it’s hard to find the plaza deserted and even on Sundays people on the Riverwalk Trail or heading home from church often stop by to visit the fountain and take family photographs posed in front of it.

Some stores — like Rippe’s and Abe Koplan Clothing — hung in during downtown’s decline instead of following many of the other downtown retail stores to the mall or shopping centers along Riverside and Piedmont drives.

Officially dubbed the “River District” following the trip to Greenville (a trip paid for by the Danville Regional Foundation), the foundation’s CEO, Karl Stauber, also offered to pay $75,000 toward the cost of a development plan for the district.

Buildings that have been renovated — the Burton Lofts, Lynn Street Lofts, the Ferrell Building and Pemberton Lofts — filled with residents quickly as they were completed.

Traffic patterns changed and a streetscape project was launched to widen and beautify Main Street sidewalks and is being expanded to Craghead Street this year.

Parking has been studied and a large parking lot was built on Newton Street, within walking distance of The Crossing at the Dan — the one area of the River District that was revitalized prior to the current effort — and Main Street. An enclosed garage is being built at Bridge and Loyal streets and the former Downtowner Motor Lodge site (again the DRF stepped in and picked up the tab for purchasing and demolishing the long-defunct building) is being eyed for future parking expansion.

There have been block parties, musical performances at the centerpiece fountain and festivals downtown, designed to draw people in for a look at how the district is progressing.

Overall, city officials estimate it has spent about $25 million so far on the revitalization project — but City Manager Joe King always smiles when he notes that investment has also inspired about $100 million in private investment.

The work will not be done quickly. Continued work on street and sidewalk improvements throughout the River District will take years and while many of the long-empty buildings have been purchased by developers there are still many more that need new owners able to revitalize them.

This weekend, the public is again invited to see the changes in the district, with a large party planned to unveil new signs welcoming visitors to the district, a new logo and slogan. The sign project took months of work as plans were developed for a coordinated look that would still get visitors to where they wanted to go and point them toward parking.

The party starts 6:30 p.m. Friday at The Crossing at the Dan on Craghead Street. Events for children, live music and a huge fireworks display are some of the events planned for the evening. The event is free and food and beverages will be available for purchase.