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Downtown Excelsior Partnership reports record retail sales, visitor gains and $604,000 in private reinvestment for 2024
Summary
Lindsey Baxter presented the Downtown Excelsior Partnership annual report to the City Council, citing higher retail taxable sales, strong visitor metrics, volunteer hours and grants awarded to businesses, and plans for 2025 festivals and infrastructure investments funded in part by ARPA and Missouri tourism dollars.
Lindsey Baxter, executive director of the Downtown Excelsior Partnership, told the City Council on March 17 that 2024 was a strong year for downtown economic activity, with increases in retail taxable sales, visitor counts and private investment.
Baxter said downtown retail taxable sales totaled $7.14 million in 2024, a 7.1% increase over 2023 and a 29.5% increase compared with 2019. She told the council the Partnership spent $128,000 on marketing in 2024, awarded $16,000 in façade grants to businesses, logged 9,420 volunteer hours and documented $604,000 in private investment into downtown properties.
Why it matters: downtown visitation and sales support small businesses, property reinvestment and the city's tax base. Baxter said the Partnership’s marketing and events drive visitors and revenue; she reported 346,562 visits in 2024, 96,353 distinct visitors and 35,000 attendees on signature event days. For ticketed events the Partnership tracked more than $275,000 in attendee spending on event days.
Key metrics and initiatives described: - 2024 retail taxable sales: $7,140,000 (7.1% increase vs. 2023). - Private investment in downtown properties: $604,000. - Volunteer hours: 9,420 (valued by the Partnership at about $315,000 in donated time). - Digital and social reach: Baxter reported more than one million people reached and nearly 214,000 website visitors in 2024. - Visitor behavior: Baxter cited an average visit dwell time increase to about 71 minutes and suggested opportunities to activate Thursday evenings and Sundays.
Planned projects and funding: Baxter said the Partnership received $15,000 in additional ARPA funding and $15,000 from the Missouri Division of Tourism to expand marketing and event support. She also outlined plans for a mini mural series, electrical infrastructure to better support festivals, changes to ticketing software and upcoming events including the 2025 barbecue and fly-in and a September entrepreneurial conference.
Council response and context: council members praised the figures and thanked Baxter for leadership. Councilman Saint John, the council's liaison to the Partnership, said the group had “done such an amazing job.” The Partnership asked only for the council's continued partnership; no formal funding request was decided at the meeting beyond noting ARPA commitments already in the record.
Quote from the presentation: "We, as an organization, spent a $128,000 last year marketing the district," Baxter said, summarizing the Partnership’s 2024 investments.
What was not decided: the council did not adopt new ordinances or appropriations for downtown work during the meeting; items described were summary reporting and planned activities for 2025.
