Experts on downtown revitalization and redevelopment in other parts of the state shared how their efforts have been funded at a Wilmington event Wednesday. The discussion added to an ongoing conversation among local leaders, merchants and residents on the topic of assessing a special tax for enhanced services in part of the Port City's downtown community.

In Durham, for example, a 7-cent per $100 tax on downtown property owners has not hindered development in that city, said Bill Kalkhof, who recently retired as president of Downtown Durham Inc.

“It was very controversial,” Kalkhof said, but in the end did not meet with major opposition and resulted in numerous benefits for Durham, including national developers taking notice. Kalkhof added that when national developers become involved in downtown transformations, “things really start taking off.”

Kalkhof was among three speakers participating in a panel discussion Wednesday afternoon at the Wilmington Convention Center as part of the Wilmington Downtown Inc. Economic Series Luncheon on the topic of “Downtown Rebirths in North Carolina.”

Also speaking were Anne Morris, executive director of Burlington Downtown Corp., and Jeff Murison, executive director of Hillsborough Street Community Services Corp. in Raleigh.

WDI has helped lead the discussion on establishing a Municipal Service District in downtown Wilmington. An MSD in Wilmington's case would be a designated portion of downtown where a special tax would be assessed to pay for extra services and improvements, in addition to those the city already provides.

“I would say it's critical, but it's not the only critical element,” said Morris, in response to an MSD question at the Wednesday event. “What that gives you is a stable source of funding. You want your very small staff focused on actually doing economic development and not having to rely on special events or knocking on doors to keep your doors open.”

In the city of Burlington, which has a population of about 50,000, Morris's organization receives $150,000 of its $250,000 budget from an MSD assessment.

Murison said the Hillsborough Street organization gets about 50 percent of its budget from a similar measure. Downtown commercial districts, he said, have to compete with shopping centers and malls located in other parts of communities, and sometimes the services municipalities provide aren't enough to keep up.

“Downtowns need management,” he said. “They need all the things a shopping center or a mall has.”

Wilmington's latest MSD proposal has been in its planning and research phase, officials have said. If property owners agree to a plan, City Council would be asked to establish the district, with action potentially taking place by early summer 2015, according to WDI.

After the panel discussion, which also touched on public-private partnerships and the contributions universities and colleges have made to downtown efforts in the panelists' parts of the state, WDI CEO Ed Wolverton shared some of 2014's triumphs for downtown revitalization efforts in the Port City.

Among the highlights that Wolverton pointed out: 21 new businesses in downtown, 11 new net businesses, six businesses expanding or deciding to stay in downtown and new investment of more than $42 million.

In addition, Wolverton said, projects that represent more than $264 million in investment in downtown Wilmington are on the way.