Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point

What Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point does

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point (SWRF) is a 501(c)(3) community development nonprofit incorporated in North Carolina in November 2011 and granted tax-exempt status in May 2012. The foundation operates exclusively within a 2.08 square mile (1,331 acre) service area in Southwest High Point, NC, an inner-city district where approximately 40% of residents live below the poverty line and where the area's historic home furnishings and textile manufacturing base has contracted. SWRF's mission is to advance environmental health and community prosperity through urban revitalization, with explicit focus on connectivity, environmental enhancement, economic development, and historic preservation.

The foundation's flagship deliverable is the Heritage Greenway, a planned 6.4-mile linear park and multi-use path along a former railroad corridor connecting six public parks, ten historic mill and furniture plant sites, and 62 vacant parcels with development potential — with projected benefits of approximately $250 million over 20 years, primarily through healthcare savings, accident reduction, and new business activity. Complementary programs include High Point on the RISE (a $18.9M U.S. DOT RAISE grant-funded project to construct 3.5 miles of shared-use greenway, 1.2 miles of Complete Streets, and bicycle boulevard infrastructure), Plan South Main (a corridor planning initiative launched with a November 2025 design charrette), the Blueprints for Southwest High Point planning document (developed with Dover, Kohl & Partners), Richland Watershed environmental programs, and the Trees 4 Trash community cleanup effort.

SWRF operates as a grant-funded nonprofit with no fee-for-service revenue model; it does not charge for services and accepts donations through a "Become a Friend" program. Documented funding sources include a $10,000 Doppelt Family Trail Development Fund grant (Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, 2021), a Guilford County community development planning grant (2022), and a $18.9M RAISE grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (2025). Revenue is not publicly disclosed. The organization runs with 1-10 employees and is governed by a large board comprising community members, local business owners, clergy, public officials, and academic liaisons, with the City of High Point, Piedmont Triad Regional Council, and Dover, Kohl & Partners serving as core strategic partners.

Name

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point

Legal name

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point, Inc.

Website

https://highpointsouthwest.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that plans and develops urban revitalization projects — primarily a 6.4-mile heritage greenway and corridor infrastructure — serving the residents and businesses of a 2.08-square-mile inner-city area in Southwest High Point, NC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Development Services

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219), Land Subdivision (2372), Land Subdivision (23721)

SIC

Non-Operating Establishments (9995), Heavy Construction Other Than Bldg Const - Contractors (1600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAIANAE

Community Development & Neighborhood Revitalization (CDBG, Place-Based Initiatives)

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Housing, Urban Planning & Community Development

SECONDARYBPAIANAI

Urban Renewal, Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reuse

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Housing, Urban Planning & Community Development

SECONDARYBPAGAKAB

Community Foundations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Philanthropy, Foundations & Grantmaking

Keywords

• Community development
• Urban revitalization
• Greenway planning
• Environmental enhancement
• Historic preservation

Headquarters

HQ city

High Point

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grants and Fundraising: Foundation operates primarily through grants from government agencies (Guilford County, RAISE grants) and charitable donations. Major grants include $19.8M RAISE grant for High Point on the RISE project, $10,000 Doppelt Family Trail Development Fund grant.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point is a 501(c)(3) community development nonprofit that plans and implements urban revitalization, greenway, and environmental enhancement projects in the 2.08 square mile Southwest High Point area of North Carolina. Its core offerings include a 6.4-mile Heritage Greenway linear park, the High Point on the RISE infrastructure project, the Plan South Main corridor planning initiative, comprehensive Blueprints planning documents, the Richland Watershed environmental program, and the Trees 4 Trash community cleanup program.

Product overview

Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point is a 501(c)(3) community development nonprofit offering a portfolio of interconnected urban revitalization programs. The core offerings include the Heritage Greenway (a 6.4-mile linear park project), High Point on the RISE (a $18.9M RAISE grant infrastructure project), Plan South Main (corridor planning initiative), and Blueprints for Southwest High Point (comprehensive planning documents). Supporting programs include Richland Watershed environmental work and Trees 4 Trash cleanup initiatives. These programs are designed to work synergistically toward the foundation's mission of economic development through environmental enhancement, focusing on connectivity, environmental health, economic development, and historic preservation in southwest High Point, NC.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Heritage Greenway A 6.4-mile linear park and multi-use path connecting people and places in Southwest High Point, NC, including a 3.96-mile Heritage Loop and two spurs connecting 10 historic mills and furniture plants, six public parks, and neighborhoods.
• High Point on the RISE A RAISE grant-funded infrastructure project constructing approximately 3.5 miles of shared use greenway, 1.2 miles of Complete Streets, and two blocks of bicycle boulevard to connect low-income and historically marginalized neighborhoods to commercial districts in southwest and downtown High Point.
• Plan South Main A community planning initiative covering the 1.49-mile stretch of S. Main Street from Business I-85 to W. Green Drive, Vail Avenue, and connections to Guilford Technical Community College, aiming to transform the South Main corridor into a safe, walkable, and active urban gateway.
• Blueprints for Southwest High Point A comprehensive planning document created in partnership with Dover, Kohl & Partners, demonstrating the benefits of revitalization and redevelopment when public improvements and private investment work together in Southwest High Point.
• Richland Watershed Environmental initiative focused on clean water, fresh air, and the rights and dignity of all communities through watershed protection and environmental enhancement in Southwest High Point.
• Trees 4 Trash Program Community cleanup program helping volunteers and residents clean up public spaces in High Point, combining environmental restoration with civic engagement.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6.4-mile greenway generating $249,989,600 in benefits over 20 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Dover, Kohl & PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Nationally-recognized town planning firm engaged to create the Blueprints for Southwest High Point. Victor Dover provided community presentations on revitalization and redevelopment benefits of public improvements and private investment working together.
• City of High PointcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner providing support for greenway plan. Monica Peters, City Council Ward 3, serves as board liaison. City supports the greenway plan as urban greenways spark economic growth.
• Piedmont Triad Regional CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional planning partner. Hope Stuart serves as Water Resources Manager liaison; Danica Heflin serves as PTRC Environmental Programs Officer for Stormwater Smart.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Trust for Public Land: National nonprofit that creates parks and protects land for public use, especially in urban areas. Comparable mission and funding model (grants, government partnerships) to SWRF's greenway and park-building work.
• Rails-to-Trails Conservancy: National nonprofit that promotes trail development from former rail corridors. SWRF is a current grantee and the Heritage Greenway itself is a rail-to-trail conversion project, making RTC a direct functional peer in trail-based community development.
• Dover, Kohl & Partners: Town planning firm specializing in community charrettes and urban revitalization plans. Currently a strategic partner of SWRF (Blueprints for SW High Point) and operates a comparable community-driven planning model across the U.S. Southeast.
• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): National community development nonprofit that finances and coordinates revitalization of distressed neighborhoods. Both operate through local offices, government partnerships, and grant-funded programs targeting low-income geographies.
• Enterprise Community Partners: National nonprofit focused on affordable housing and community development, with comparable funding mix (federal grants, philanthropy) and urban revitalization thesis. Operates in similar distressed urban geographies.

Broad incumbents

• Urban Land Institute (ULI): Established research and education nonprofit focused on land use and real estate development across all property types. Engages in similar urban revitalization advisory work but at much broader scale and with a real estate industry focus.

Emerging players

• Groundwork USA: Network of local Groundwork "trusts" running environmental improvement projects in underserved urban communities. Strong overlap with SWRF's environmental enhancement + economic development thesis and small-team operating model.
• Center for Community Progress: National nonprofit focused on revitalizing neighborhoods affected by vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties. SWRF's work on 62 vacant parcels connected by the greenway is highly analogous.
• Strong Towns: Nonprofit media and advocacy organization promoting bottom-up urbanism and incremental community development. Shares the incremental, neighborhood-scale, "economic development through environmental enhancement" narrative with SWRF.

Regional players

• Conservancy for the Parthenon / High Point Convention & Visitors Bureau area nonprofits: Regional heritage and tourism-focused nonprofits in the High Point/Triad area that overlap on heritage preservation and place-based economic development, though with a tourism-marketing rather than infrastructure-building orientation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/southwest-renewal-foundation-of-high-point

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Southwest Renewal Foundation of High Point