Downtown High Point seeks increased municipal support, adds new events and local gift-card program

Rebecca McGee, CEO and president of Downtown High Point, told the High Point City Council that the organization is asking for increased municipal support in its FY2025-26 budget and outlined several new and expanded programs aimed at driving foot traffic and supporting small downtown businesses.

McGee said Social Saturday, a monthly program that teams retail, bars and restaurants with special promotions and activities on the first Saturday of each month, produced a 58% increase in measured traffic compared with the prior year. "We have had a 58% increase in our traffic from this time last year," McGee said.

The sales-driven events are central to Downtown High Point's request for more municipal funding, McGee said. The organization proposes to expand Social Saturday and launch Cinema Saturday (outdoor movie nights on the third Saturday of summer months), a Downtown High Point Dollars community gift-card program and a trolley-pub tour option. McGee said the proposed gift-card program uses a geographic footprint downtown, has no fee for merchants to join and had about 27 businesses sign up within roughly 10 days of the announcement. She said the group hopes to sign at least 30 businesses initially.

Downtown High Point also said it received a $10,000 Elector Cities grant to seed a downtown revitalization fund for business retention. McGee described a matching structure for that fund: if a customer purchased $100 in local gift cards, the program would match $50 from the grant funds to be used for business retention and customer incentives.

McGee described an art walk concept that would draw on High Point's textile and furniture history by commissioning sidewalk art pieces resembling rugs rather than wall murals. She said the project would be funded by sponsorships rather than city dollars and that the organization is not the market authority but the downtown management organization.

McGee repeatedly noted capacity limits: Downtown High Point operates with an office of two, and the group would like project funding dedicated to programs; if the city provides additional recurring funding in the future, staff expansion is a possibility. "We're a small office of 2," she said, noting that most U.S. downtown organizations operate with two to four staff.

Council members congratulated McGee on Social Saturday's growth and asked about merchant participation, benchmarking and capacity. Councilmember Holmes asked whether Downtown High Point used benchmarks from other cities for cinema or other events; McGee said the group relies on industry best practices and local capacity. Mayor Pro Tem Moore asked whether the gift-card program is open to all businesses; McGee said it is open within the geographic footprint and is aimed at small, local businesses.

Why it matters: Council members framed downtown activation as a driver of economic development and a way to manufacture foot traffic until more downtown residents move into new housing. Several council members praised the partnerships Downtown High Point has built with Visit High Point, High Point by Design and other local organizations.

What happens next: McGee closed the presentation by answering council questions; the council did not take a vote on Downtown High Point's FY2025-26 appropriation at the meeting. Staff and council members discussed related budget items later in the session.