The Downtown Winston-Salem Business Improvement District, or DWSBID, is a 60-block area in downtown. The idea for DWSBID was born by the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership and presented to the city council’s finance committee in July 2013. DWSP is an organization that hosts a multitude of events throughout the year and aims to revitalize and strengthen the city.

On June 25, 2013, former DWSP Chairman Mark Dunnagan sent a letter to former City Manager Lee Garrity, stating that the business improvement district would allow them to “continue to make positive strides in improving our downtown by implementing new services that supplement the existing city services.” It was endorsed by the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce, the Winston-Salem Alliance and the Arts Council, Dunnagan added.

In November 2013, DWSBID was created by Mayor Allen Joines — who is also Winston-Salem Alliance’s president — and members of council and formally established the following fiscal year in July 2014.

DWSP’s President Jason Thiel gave DWSBID’s annual presentation to council on Oct. 16.

The organization performs “supplemental services” such as removing graffiti, picking up extra trash and powerwashing, Thiel said, adding that they also spend money on their marketing services [Disclosure: DWSP buys advertising from Triad City Beat.].

This year, DWSBID spent $624,349 on their services. Last year, they spent $579,567.

The “Clean Team Ambassadors” collected 2,610 bags of litter, maintained 15 pet waste stations,spent nearly 700 hours removing graffiti and more than 100 hours pressure-washing.

According to DWSP’s website, they are also responsible for cleaning and straightening public fixtures — including trash cans, newspaper racks, benches and more — as well as reporting code enforcement problems that should be maintained by the city such as broken street lights, damaged property, etc.

These services are paid for by a supplemental tax, Thiel said, noting that “these funds do not come from the general fund, they come from a separate levy just on the properties within the very core of downtown.”

According to the city’s website, the current tax rate for the district is 9 cents per $100 of valuation, assessed on real and personal property — including registered motor vehicles — within the boundaries of the district.

The district extends to Broad Street on the west and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to the north, and is bordered by N. Church Street to the east and Business 40 to the south.

Thiel said that they have regular meetings with stakeholders downtown to get their feedback.

Thiel makes $110,000 per year from his role as DWSP’s president according to tax records from 2022.

All CityBeat reporting content is made possible by a grant from the NC Local News Lab Fund, available to republish for free by any news outlet who cares to use it. Learn More ↗

Republish this story 🞬

Republishing Content

All content created for the CityBeat— photos, illustrations and text — is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives 4.0 license (CCA-ND).

These republishing rules DO NOT apply to all of our content. The CityBeat is a nonprofit-funded position that specifically reports on city council business in Winston-Salem and Greensboro.

You are free to republish all content from the CityBeat under the following conditions:

  • Please copy and paste an html tracking code into articles you post online, allowing us to access analytics on our work.
    It can be dropped onto the page right beneath the copyable content, available below.

    If your site is using Google Analytics already:

    <script>
    gtag('config', 'UA-49884744-1');
    gtag('event', 'page_view', {
        page_title: 'Council hears annual report on the Downtown Winston-Salem Business Improvement District',
        page_location: 'https://triad-city-beat.com/council-hears-annual-report-on-the-downtown-winston-salem-business-improvement-district/',
        send_to: 'UA-49884744-1'
    });
</script>

    If your site is not using Google Analytics: 

    <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=UA-49884744-1"></script>
<script>
    window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
    function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
    gtag('js', new Date());
    gtag('config', 'UA-49884744-1');
    gtag('event', 'page_view', {
        page_title: 'Council hears annual report on the Downtown Winston-Salem Business Improvement District',
        page_location: 'https://triad-city-beat.com/council-hears-annual-report-on-the-downtown-winston-salem-business-improvement-district/',
        send_to: 'UA-49884744-1'
    });
</script>

  • Please use our bylines with attribution to Triad City Beat with a live link to our website: "by Gale Melcher/Triad City Beat"
  • At the bottom of the article (print or web) please include this text (links may be hyperlinked online):

    "Triad City Beat is an independent, for-profit news source serving the cities of the NC Piedmont Triad in Guilford and Forsyth counties, online at triad-city-beat.com.
    CityBeat content is funded by a grant from the NC Local News Lab Fund, online at nclocalnews.org."

  • If you have any questions, please contact Brian Clarey at [email protected]

Join the First Amendment Society, a membership that goes directly to funding TCB‘s newsroom.

We believe that reporting can save the world.

The TCB First Amendment Society recognizes the vital role of a free, unfettered press with a bundling of local experiences designed to build community, and unique engagements with our newsroom that will help you understand, and shape, local journalism’s critical role in uplifting the people in our cities.

All revenue goes directly into the newsroom as reporters’ salaries and freelance commissions.

⚡ Join The Society ⚡