Council reopens downtown revitalization grant for budget consideration

Beaver City — The council revisited a downtown revitalization incentive the city ran from 2020–2021 that matched storefront improvements at 50/50 up to $2,000 per property. Staff said multiple businesses recently inquired about storefront improvement assistance and recommended reauthorizing the program for the new budget period beginning July 1.

Council members discussed whether to increase the per‑property cap from $2,000 to $2,500 or $4,000, make the program a time‑limited application cycle (for example, a two‑month application window) and whether past participants should be eligible for a second award. Staff was asked to pull historical line‑item budget data, list the number of previous applicants and return the item to the council in two weeks with recommended budget amounts.

What’s next: Staff will return with budget history, past award counts and proposed budget and program rules so the council can decide whether to reauthorize and how to structure the incentive.