Art & Vine, a Downtown Wine Festival

By Christina Michaels

What goes better with wine than cheese and chocolate? Why, art, of course. And it’s around that coupling that downtown’s
outspoken advocate, business owner and publisher, Allen McDavid, is planning a festival. Art & Vine, scheduled for Saturday, Oct.
13, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., will bring 10 wineries, live jazz and bluegrass music, samplings from local restaurants, along with lots
of art to the 200 block of Davie Street and the area’s surrounding galleries.

It will also bring a lot of people with the same idea—enjoy the October weather while getting acquainted with local art and wine.

McDavid is working to make the ripe and timely idea come together. “There’s a void downtown for a good fall event. It’s a beautiful
place and now especially with the (Center City) park right there,”McDavid reasoned. It’s an idea people are embracing. Betty Cone
is glad McDavid is planning Art & Vine. “It’s a collective effort to make things happen, to make downtown a vital place,” said Cone,
the festival adviser with Grassroots Productions Limited, Which produces the two large downtown festivals—Fun 4th and Festival
of Lights. She believes a wine festival will appeal to a number of people.

The Davie Street area, which has the Greensboro Cultural Center, Center City Park, and two restaurants with patios, will anchor
this newest of the downtown happenings. Galleries will be open for festival-goers to peruse works, and downtown restaurants will
have stands for sampling.

The festival is free, but a ticket entitling you to partake in the unlimited wine tasting is $15 in advance or $25 at the festival. A third
of the proceeds from each ticket sold will go to the Greenhill Center for North Carolina Art. “It kind of all works together,” McDavid
said about arts and life downtown. “It makes it unique and vibrant. People don’t realize how important art is for quality of life,” he
said. McDavid is intentionally limiting the participating wineries to 10 to keep guests from being overwhelmed. “You’ll be able to
really get a feel for each winery,” said McDavid, who adds that eight wineries have committed so far.

Art & Vine is not a festival to spur economic development. It won’t be a big boost for downtown businesses since it’s not going to
be in the shops or at the storefronts, McDavid said. Rather, Art & Vine will showcase local wine and local creativity, also necessary
ingredients for a robust and distinctive downtown.

McDavid, a professional event planner and promoter, has worked on numerous events throughout the region: The Arts Alive,
Ribfest, the Eden Riverfest, and Mystic Karnival. Several have received awards. But many know McDavid best as the zealous
downtown businessman, owner of eclectic bead and coffee shop, Terra Blue, and as the offbeat publisher of “The Hippo,” the
miniature-sized arts and entertainment magazine. McDavid says the name is short for Hip Pocket and not a jab at “The Rhino
Times,” he swears. “It’s a bar rag, but it’s my little soapbox,” he said of the publication that fits in a hip pocket.

His involvement in the town and its culture began in the early ‘80s when he became art director for Jefferson Pilot insurance,
which has since merged into Lincoln financial. Over the years, he has owned small businesses, mostly in advertising and
marketing. That was when h noticed that his youngest and most creative employees often left the area because of a lack of things
to do on weekends. He realized that downtowns must flourish to sustain a creative class.

His proactive involvement with downtown Greensboro’s development can be traced to the late ‘90s. “When I heard that Downtown
Greensboro Inc. was forming, I was so excited. I met with Ray Gibbs (former DGI president) a few times to tell him how excited I
was and how I wanted to help,” he recalled. McDavid served on DGI’s marketing committee doing what he does best while
working for a cause he believed in. The work he began there blossomed into a subsidiary of DGI, Greensboro Center City
marketing Alliance. “I thought they were there to help the little guy, but since have realized they are more development, big-retail
oriented,” McDavid said. “There’s nothing wrong with it, but I figured I can organize too,” he said. McDavid feels that he’s a voice for
small, downtown businesses.

His downtown store has given him insight into doing business there, and he gladly shares his thoughts and opinions with anyone
who’s interested. His experience has made him a magnet for new entrepreneurs seeking advice. “People know where I stand,”
he said. “We all want to get to the same place, but we have different ideas on how to get there,” he said.