Grants & Incentives

Downtown Special Services District Preliminary Design Assistance Program

Program Purpose

This program is intended to provide some level of cost clarity to Downtown property owners or potential owners as a first step in making code–related building improvements. The program provided assistance for owners or potential owners of downtown buildings interested in making significant improvements to accommodate new uses. Tenants and potential tenants are also eligible for assistance with the support of an owner or potential owner.

Eligible Assistance

The Downtown Special Services District (DMSSD) provides one-time mini grants to provide high-level code analysis to address code-related structural or mechanical issues. Grants of between $1,000 and $5,000 can be awarded to current/potential owners or tenants with a viable reuse concept, or used by the DMSSD itself for priority buildings. The DMSSD has set aside $20,000 of its own funds from which the first set of grants are to be awarded. Once the code analysis is complete, the DMSSD will own the information and keep a copy of the resulting work on file. Owners, potential owners and their representatives would have access to this information.

Process

Owners/potential owners apply for a mini-grant to the Downtown Economic Development Committee (EDC) through the Town’s Planning and Economic Development Department. The Downtown EDC then makes a recommendation to the Downtown Manchester Special Services District Board of Commissioners, which acts on the application. If approved, the DMSSD pays for the code analysis directly upon completion.

Application

Questions

Questions should be directed to Gary Anderson, Director of Planning and Economic Development, Town of Manchester ganderson@manchesterct.gov 860 647-3043