MONROE — Looking to provide a boost to mixed-use business downtown, the city is working to resurrect a façade improvement program offering $400,000 in initial matching funds for eligible improvements downtown.
The previous program over a decade ago accomplished a similar task, but given that the expenditure period for Tax Increment Finance District 7 expires on Sept. 28, 2027, any additional grants and development agreements should be finalized by then, according to officials.
What it boils down to is plenty of free money to match new investment in what the public sees and experiences downtown. The main recipient, officials say, are so-called mixed-use properties such as the many storefronts with upper floors downtown.
City Administrator Brittney Rindy and Main Street Monroe’s Jordan Nordby are partnering on the program’s administration, and the concept still needs full common council approval, along with committee review. But the monies is there and visible improvements are what it’s designed to support.
“The TID is nearing the end of its life,” said Nordby, Main Street’s Executive Director. “It’s really a good time to put money into the district.”
The measure will also appear on the agendas of both the Monroe Historic Preservation and Finance Committees, he said.
“The program was well received, and unfortunately ran out of available funds resulting in the discontinuation of the program, even when grant requests remained outstanding,” Rindy told the council, in a memo about the program’s prior success here. “TID 7 has since proved itself to be a successful TID over time, generating increment to support economic initiatives in the district through various developer agreements.”
Goals of the program, according to the city, include:
● Stimulating reinvestment of all available TID increment in the downtown historic district
● Preserve the well-recognized historic architecture and community character
● Support small businesses and local entrepreneurship
The word façade seems fancy but Nordby said the list of eligible projects is potentially lengthy covering everything from roofs to tuck pointing to more aesthetic enhancements such as paint, and architectural flourishes.
Ineligible projects for funding include routine maintenance, interior work, equipment or inventory; and any labor by the applicant’s own staff. The funds are paid directly by the city to the contractors, which streamlines the process for all involved, according to Nordby.
“For a business this would be a great time to consider some of those projects you might have been putting off for a little while,” he said.
One aspect Nordby said is unique about the program is that it targets the middle range of potential projects — for a big impact on the larger downtown area. Many grant programs center on big-ticket projects or micro-type loans to small businesses, Nordby said, while the façade program they are proposing hits a neglected medium market.
“We are really trying to fill the gap,” said Nordby. “We are especially looking for anything visible, public-facing and collectively important to the look of our downtown.”
Pending the necessary city approvals, the program will likely launch sometime in mid-spring and continue through 2028; or until the TID 7 grant funds run out.
