Grants will assist six communities with downtown building improvements
NASHVILLE — Carthage and McMinnville were awarded two of the six Façade Improvement Grants recently approved by the state of Tennessee. These grants will be used to make improvements to downtown buildings.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe recently approved more than $550,000 in Façade Improvement Grants to assist Tennessee communities with downtown improvements.
Façade Improvement Grants come from Tennessee’s federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. The grants are used to improve commercial buildings in downtown districts in Tennessee Main Street and Tennessee Downtowns communities. Grants can support new awnings and signs, painting, windows, doors, brick repair and other upgrades.
“With the assistance of the Façade Improvement Grants, each community will be able to renovate its downtown districts, which will help promote future economic growth,” Haslam said. “I congratulate the six communities selected for this round and look forward to seeing them continue to succeed in our state.”
“The Façade Improvement Grants are great assets for communities looking for opportunities to enhance their downtown districts,” Rolfe said. “I applaud these six recipients for taking the initiative to invest in themselves to make their communities a better place for their citizens to live and work.”
The 2018 Façade Improvement grantees are:
Carthage – $97,751
Greeneville – $100,000
Linden – $100,000
McMinnville – $56,630
Sweetwater – $100,000
Union City – $100,000
Four of the six grantees are accredited Tennessee Main Street communities, and three have completed the Tennessee Downtowns program. Each is required to provide a 25 percent match for the funds and administer the façade improvement programs.
This is the sixth annual round of Façade Improvement Grants.
Each application was supported by the community’s senator and representatives in the Tennessee General Assembly.
