They're common complaints downtown:too much trash, and too much crime.

But now, downtown businesses have banded together hoping to change that.

"You get the hang of it pretty quick," said Ronald Stover after struggling to keep upright on a Segway.

"You just gotta watch your center of balance," he said.

Soon the Segway will be second-nature to Stover, as he and eight other "Downtown Ambassadors" patrol downtown.

We'll help escort people to their cars. If they have car trouble, wait on a tow truck," he said. "Just be there for them."

It's all part of the new Business Improvement District.

Downtown property owners pay for the ambassadors to help make downtown more desirable.

"It's going to help with the perception that downtown is not clean or safe," said Margaret Woodard, with the Downtown Development Authority.

"Now downtown will be very clean and very safe," she said.

"They're gonna start moving all the big items, trash on the streets," she said. "They're gonna start steam-cleaning sidewalks next week."

It's all part of segueing downtown into the future.

"People will know they've got people watching their back, looking out for safety issues," Stover gleamed. "I just want them to know we're out there for them."