Latest facade funding is more than window dressing for downtown Waterville

Courtesy / Central Maine Growth Council A map of downtown Waterville shows the locations of businesses receiving facade and building improvement grants.

Write a Comment

By Staff

Downtown Waterville will get a boost from a second round of grants to fund building and facade improvements, and the grant program may result in nearly $2 million of storefront enhancements this year.

Ten downtown businesses have received grants in the latest round from Central Maine Growth Council, according to a news release Tuesday. Opened in February, the new funding totals $70,000 and provides allocations of $2,000 to $10,000 for improvements such as new awnings and signage, brick repointing and removal of inappropriate alterations to building exteriors.

The funds reimburse up to 50% of a project's estimated budget, and come from Colby College and the Bill and Joan Alfond Foundation.

“We were fortunate to offer a second funding cycle for downtown business and property owners, and we are thrilled with the quality of the applications we received, particularly within the context of COVID-19,” Garvan D. Donegan, CMGC’s director of planning and economic development, said in the release.

In its first round last year, the Facade and Building Improvement Grant Program awarded nine grants totaling $60,000, which leveraged more than $290,000 of new investment in downtown buildings, according to the council. It expects the program to stimulate $1.8 million in direct investment during 2020.

The program was created to assist owners and commercial tenants with restoration and renovation of the properties, while providing a catalyst for others to improve the appearance of their own buildings.

The more general aim is to support place-based economics, which are a driving force behind vibrant municipalities in the 21st century, Donegan said when a similar program was announced in Fairfield last year. “A high quality of place attracts investment, residents and visitors," he said.

Selected from 13 applicants, the 10 Waterville businesses receiving 2020 funds are:

205 Main St. — Day’s Travel Bureau
189 Main St. — Arnold Block, LLC
179-177 Main St. — Sidney H. Geller Trust
139 Main St. — OPA
72 Main St. — Holy Cannoli
59 Main St. — MGH Realty Co. LLC
36 Main St. — Paragon Shop
18 Silver St. — 18 Below
5-3 Silver St. — Sidney H. Geller Trust
6 Water St. — North River Co.

“Block by block, property by property, downtown Waterville is transforming into a vibrant, thriving place. Each of these applicants is contributing to a powerful, collective visual and economic impact that is critically important to Waterville’s revitalization,” said Joy McKenna, a member of the FBIGP advisory committee.