The Wilson Downtown Development Corporation (WDDC), a non-profit organization that partners with the City of Wilson, offers the economic development incentive programs below. They were created to physically improve downtown properties for priority business uses, stimulate active business and property ownership, healthy commerce, and pedestrian activity in Historic Downtown Wilson’s Municipal Service District (MSD).
To be eligible, the business and/or property must be located within the MSD (map included in each application document below). Any property within the MSD for which the property owner pays property tax is eligible for these incentive programs. This generally excludes properties owned by governmental and non-profit entities. WDDC will prioritize building improvement projects that make the greatest impact on the MSD.
For more info on starting a business in Historic Downtown Wilson, click here to download our Guide to Redevelopment.
Enter a street address, including the directional (for example: S, NE, etc.) in the following weblink to determine whether a property is located within the MSD and therefore eligible for incentives.
https://wilsonnc.org/search-downtowndistricts
Incentive programs offered by WDDC are typically funded annually on July 1st. These are very competitive grants with a pool of approximately $50,000 to split between all three incentive programs.
Contact Brie Anderson, Downtown Business Specialist, at banderson@wilsonnc.org prior to starting the application process to determine the current status of available funding and eligibility.
Application Deadlines: To be eligible for review by the WDDC Committees and Board, the applicant must participate in a pre-application meeting with City staff by September 22, 2025. Applications must be received by 5pm on October 20, 2025.
Funding Determination: The WDDC Board of Directors will make funding decisions for the spring round of funding at their June board meeting, and for the fall round of funding at their November board meeting.
Property Tax Rates: WDDC incentives are funded from the MSD tax. To learn more about the MSD tax rate, as well as the tax rates for the city of Wilson and Wilson County, click here.
