Local leaders agree that innovation is what will drive the growth of downtown Winston-Salem. Now, they have been vindicated.
The economic impact of Innovation Quarter in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County reached over $1.66 billion in 2022, according to a new study by TEConomy Partners, a provider of economic and functional impact studies in a broad range of industries.
Developed by Wexford Science + Technology and anchored by the Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, Innovation Quarter repurposed empty tobacco warehouses and manufacturing plants in downtown Winston-Salem and focuses on research, business, education and biomedical and clinical sciences.
IQ BY THE NUMBERS
- 2.1 million square feet
- 115 companies and institutions
- More than 2,000 degree-seeking students
- More than 4,500 full-time, part-time, contract employees
- 7,000 square feet of space dedicated to startups and coworking
- $876 million invested, including $650.8 million in private investments from WFU Health Sciences, Wexford Science + Technology and others, and $157.1 million in investments from the federal, state and local governments
“This economic impact study validates decades of work by a broad range of partners in reimagining Winston-Salem’s future,” said Mark Owens, president and CEO of Greater Winston-Salem, Inc. “The development of this district has been one of the most important projects that put Winston-Salem on a growth trajectory. It not only encourages investment within the district itself – it has also redefined the value proposition of Winston-Salem, as a whole, being an ideal place to locate.”
Innovation Quarter is also far from complete. It recently debuted its startup launchpad and coworking space in Bailey Power Plant called Sparq and has been attracting a slew of new restaurants and retailers like Dram & Draught and Diamondback Grill. Phase II is expected to begin this year, with an eye institute by Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist anchoring the project on the south end of the district.
More than 4,500 work at IQ
Across all its tenants, Innovation Quarter is home to 3,883 full-time workers and more than 4,500 total employees.
But the district’s employment impact does not end there. Through a ripple effect in specific sectors and at specific companies, Innovation Quarter has helped generate an additional 4,427 jobs throughout the region.
The estimation of these ripple effect, TEConomy utilized an input-output model that represents economic relationships between sectors, showing how IQ expenditures withing the regional economy affect suppliers and vendors. In this model, the direct effects represent the people employed by IQ tenants; the indirect effects represent how and where IQ businesses purchase goods and services; and the induced effects represent how wages are spent and induce other jobs regionally.
Success in Winston-Salem a good sign for Charlotte
“This snapshot of our impact as a district of how far we have come gives us momentum to continue building the kinds of partnerships and creating more positive growth in the years to come,” said Lindsey Schwab, director of community relations for IQ.
The proven success in Innovation Quarter, as shown by the economic impact report, may mean good things ahead for Charlotte.
Earlier this year, Atrium Health and the Wake Forest University School of Medicine began construction on The Pearl, Charlotte’s innovation district also designed by Wexford Science + Technology.
Much like Innovation Quarter in Winston-Salem, The Pearl is set to revitalize a section of Charlotte’s midtown. The Pearl and its tenants are expected create more than 5,500 onsite jobs and more than 11,500 jobs in total over the next 15 years. The second campus of the Wake Forest medical school, the anchor of The Pearl, is expected to create $5.2 billion in economic impact by 2040 alone, according to a study by Tripp Umbach.
Officials with Atrium and Wake Forest have long promised that the corridor between Innovation Quarter and The Pearl will be a region of collaboration and innovation, especially in health care.
