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Economic-impact report: downtown sales top $110 million in 2024, Charles Town Now says
Summary
Charles Town Now reported the combined downtown footprint generated roughly $110.0 million in reported sales in fiscal year 2024 and flagged $2.9 million in recent property sales and multiple new retail openings, signaling increased investment in the city core.
Charles Town Now presented an economic-impact report Jan. 21 showing increased downtown activity and investment in fiscal year 2024. The presenter reported that businesses in the measured footprint reported $110,000,917 in gross sales for the year and highlighted a recent wave of property transactions and new openings.
The report said the 2024 figure represents significant growth from the baseline the presenter used, and she cited a 26.6% increase for the same footprint versus the earlier comparison year. The presenter also reported $2.9 million in property purchases across six transactions in the prior eight months and listed several new and incoming businesses, saying the numbers point to "increased traffic and business growth in our downtown."
The presentation also emphasized soft metrics used to attract investors: social-media reach (the city's and Charles Town Now's pages reported large month-over-month reach and follower gains), more public events hosted by businesses and increases in evening and weekend hours among downtown retailers.
Council members asked for the full report and the data slides; staff said the full presentation and supporting spreadsheets would be shared with the council.
Why it matters: The figures underscore growing private investment in the downtown footprint and provide a financial baseline that council and staff can use in planning, grant applications and economic-development prioritization.
