Aurora officials are touting the new Destination Aurora app as a way of bringing things together for the city’s downtown.
The app makes it possible to book an evening or even a weekend all at once, all on your phone. It’s one-stop to book a show, a restaurant and even a room at a hotel or Airbnb, all on one’s mobile phone, officials said.
“There are apps out there that are a bit of each, but not one app that does everything,” said Harish Ananthapadmanabhan, president of APS Data Technology Solutions, a downtown Aurora-based technology company that developed the app. “(This brings) everything into one app, so that it’s easy for a patron to come in and enjoy downtown Aurora.”
The app ties together Aurora’s Aurora Civic Center Authority-run theaters – the Paramount Theatre, the Copley Theatre and the Stolp Island Theatre – with the burgeoning restaurant scene downtown that includes four new restaurants that have opened in the past few years, five more that will be open by the end of the year and at least two that will open in 2025.
The app also shows people where to park, and how to walk around the downtown to different attractions.
“This new app will help our downtown Aurora grow and thrive by offering a seamless journey for a patron,” said Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin. “It’s something that’s going to help attract more people to our restaurants, and attract more people to our theaters.”
Ananthapadmanabhan and his development company, JH Real Estate Partners, LLC, is responsible for several of the restaurants and a number of the new apartment units downtown. But he started in Aurora with his technology company, and has said that is still at the heart of what he likes to do.
He said the new app is just in its first iteration. He said Destination Aurora part two and three will include listings of all the city’s art destinations, galleries and public murals, and could even use augmented reality to “make the murals come to life.”
“It’s clear and intuitive,” Ananthapadmanabhan said. “You can have a true journey for Friday night or Saturday night of even a whole weekend.”
The app can be downloaded at the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
