From the owner of Slice of Life comes a slice of technology for residents and visitors who want to use their smartphones or tablets to find downtown Wilmington businesses, dining, entertainment and events.

“It will definitely promote downtown,” said Ray Worrell, owner of Slice of Life and the new Wilmington Downtown APP Inc., available now. “It's just going to be another tool that's going to be used by the businesses and the public to navigate downtown and find things, whether it's a business or an attraction."

The app platform was developed by AppyCity owner Tim Fields. AppyCity, an app development company, partnered with the City of Wilmington, Wilmington Chamber of Commerce and Wilmington and Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau last year on an app network for the area.

A party being held from 5:30 to 7:30 tonight (Thursday) at 128 South Events, 128 S. Front St., celebrates the formal launch of the downtown app, and Worrell said he encourages downtown business owners to come to learn more about the app and view demonstrations. The party also features free drawings for listings and featured advertising, according to a news release.

What is displayed on each listing is dependent on whether a business buys a page listing or not, giving the business the ability to add detailed information, photos, videos, sales events and coupons, the release said. A basic listing is $199 a year, Worrell said.

The downtown app, which can be downloaded for free on an iPhone or Android device from app stores using the keywords “downtown Wilmington” or “Wilmington downtown,” has already had nearly 23,000 downloads, Worrell said, citing Google analytics updated Thursday.

Worrell owns four Slice of Life locations, including the recently relocated restaurant at 125 Market St. downtown.