Downtown Provo Inc. is the nonprofit that speaks for downtown Provo's businesses. It is the group behind the murals that appear on Center Street walls, the art-wrapped electrical boxes, the first-Friday Art Stroll, and, for at least four Decembers, a Holiday Window Competition in which shops decorated their windows and the public voted.
The roadmap row behind this page asked about "the Provo Christmas-window contest." Here is the honest status: the competition was real and ran at least from 2020 through 2023, and the organization still described it as one of its events in December 2024. As of mid-October 2026 we could not find an announcement that it will run this year. What follows is what we could verify about the contest, the organization and its calendar.
The organization
Downtown Provo Inc.'s own website describes it as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit "designed to help the success of downtown Provo," which "organize[s] events, public art, policy, and marketing to bring people into our downtown." Section 501(c)(6), per the IRS, covers business leagues and chambers of commerce, which fits: it is a membership organization of downtown businesses, not a charity and not a city department.
How it is funded. Its executive director explained it to BYU's Daily Universe in December 2024: "I fundraise from the business community. Businesses pay membership, just like a chamber of commerce ... but then the city matches the money that I raise each quarter to a cap."
What it does with the city. The same article described him spending much of his time with Provo City staff on policy: hearing issues from the business community, taking proposals to the city and working out solutions together.
Where it works. The Daily Universe has described it as promoting businesses in the Downtown Provo Historic District. Our Center Street historic walking tour covers the buildings, and our downtown neighborhood guide covers living there.
The monthly lunches
The organization's website says: "We have monthly networking lunches for the downtown community." To join, it asks people to email its executive director at the address listed on the site. The site gives no day, place or price, so the email is the only way in.
The Holiday Window Competition
What it was. BYU's Daily Universe covered the fourth annual Holiday Window Competition in December 2023, which puts its start around 2020. Downtown businesses decorated their windows, and anyone could vote, either through a link on the @downtownprovo Instagram account or by scanning QR codes posted along Center Street. Voting closed Dec. 9, 2023.
The prize. Sponsors were Downtown Provo, the Provo Mayor's Office and the Daily Herald. The two top-voted businesses each received a $1,000 grand prize and ad space in the Daily Herald.
Why it existed. The executive director gave two reasons in 2023: to make downtown "feel more like a holiday destination," alongside the city's Christmas lights in the park and wreaths on Center Street and the county's decorations on its property; and to bring students and residents downtown to vote and shop. Past years, he said, drew several hundred votes.
After 2023. In a December 2024 Daily Universe article about Center Street businesses and the holiday season, he still listed "the Christmas window competition" among the organization's events "to draw people downtown because it's more festive." We did not find coverage of the winners for 2024 or 2025, and we found no announcement for 2026.
How to find out this year. The voting link has lived on the organization's Instagram account, so that is where a 2026 competition would show up first; in 2023, voting ran into early December. Until then, treat it as uncertain.
For the rest of downtown's holiday calendar (the city's Christmas market and tree lighting, the Nutcracker at the Covey Center), see our Christmas in Provo guide.
The rest of the calendar
The Provo Art Stroll, first Fridays. In 2021 the executive director told the Daily Universe that Downtown Provo Inc. is responsible for the Provo Art Stroll on the first Friday of each month, when downtown businesses host artists and artwork. It is still running: the Daily Herald's calendar listed a 2026 Provo Art Stroll in downtown Provo on Friday, June 5, from 6 to 9 p.m., pointing to Downtown Provo's Facebook page. Our Provo Art Stroll guide has the route and what to expect.
A mural a month. The same 2021 article described a monthly mural program, with each new mural meant to be finished by the first Friday and added to the Art Stroll map so people can see it and meet the artist. By then it had produced 31 murals. The executive director said the hardest part is matching an artist's design to a property owner, since owners decide what goes on their buildings.
Art on the electrical boxes. In July 2024 the Daily Universe photographed a series of artist-designed vinyl wraps on downtown electrical boxes, a Downtown Provo Inc. project, at addresses including 20 E. Center St., 198 W. Center St., 290 W. Center St., 490 W. Center St., 210 N. University Ave. and several blocks of 100 North and 200 West. They make a good self-guided walk any time of year.
Event listings. The organization's site links to Utah Valley's regional events calendar and to its Instagram, and offers an email newsletter sign-up.
How to get involved
- Business owners: email about the monthly lunches and membership through the address on downtownprovo.org.
- Artists: the mural program and Art Stroll venues are the openings; our Art Stroll guide covers how artists approach venues.
- Everyone else: come downtown on a first Friday, vote if the window competition returns, and park smart; our downtown Provo parking guide covers where.
What we could not verify
- Whether the Holiday Window Competition ran in 2024 or 2025, or will run in 2026.
- The date, place and cost of the monthly networking lunches.
- The current count of murals in the monthly mural program.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Downtown Provo Inc.?
Is there a Christmas window contest in downtown Provo in 2026?
How did the holiday window competition work?
How do I join the Downtown Provo Inc. lunches?
Who pays for Downtown Provo Inc.?
Does Downtown Provo Inc. run the Provo Art Stroll?
What public art has Downtown Provo Inc. created?
Is Downtown Provo Inc. part of Provo City government?
Sources
The facts in this guide were checked against these sources. Hours, fees and rules change, so confirm anything time-sensitive with the source before you go. How we make Provo.com.
- Business Leagues (Section 501(c)(6)), Internal Revenue Service. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Downtown Provo Inc. (official site: 501(c)(6), mission, monthly networking lunches), Downtown Provo Inc.. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Downtown Provo's fourth annual Holiday Window Competition closes Dec. 9 (Dec. 8, 2023), BYU Daily Universe. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Provo businesses prepare for the holiday season (Dec. 23, 2024), BYU Daily Universe. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Downtown Provo monthly mural program highlights local artists (Oct. 19, 2021), BYU Daily Universe. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Electric boxes color streets of downtown Provo (July 15, 2024), BYU Daily Universe. Checked October 19, 2026.
- Utah Valley Living: places to go, things to do, May 30 to June 7, 2026 (Provo Art Stroll June 5), Daily Herald. Checked October 19, 2026.
