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Saginaw reviews Open Rewards buy‑local program; staff proposes expansion and a restaurant week
Summary
The city's Open Rewards program has 651 users and tracked nearly $34,000 spent in participating businesses; staff proposed expanding enrollment (excluding the largest chains), switching to cash‑back and piloting a Saginaw restaurant week to boost local dining.
Pedro (speaker 9) updated the council on the city's Open Rewards program, which was launched as a buy‑local initiative.
"Currently, we have 600 actually, 651 users as of, this afternoon," Pedro said and reported that participants have generated almost $34,000 of spending tracked through the program. He said 41 businesses currently participate and staff estimates expanding to roughly 100 eligible retail businesses if enrollment is widened beyond the original cohort.
Pedro proposed three changes: expand eligible retailers (excluding Walmart and Albertsons to preserve limited funds), consider switching from a points‑style reward to cash‑back for easier redemption, and pilot a Saginaw restaurant week where restaurants would temporarily raise rewards to promote dining. Council members asked staff to provide a list of participating businesses, the total number of retail sales‑tax producing businesses, and to refine the mechanics for cash‑back versus rewards.
Council direction: staff will provide participation counts and options for simplifying redemption and report back.
