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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Downtown Facade Grants RESOLUTION NO. 18-097 RESOLUTION APPROVING DOWNTOWN FACADE GRANTS FOR THE CITY OF AMES WHEREAS, the Downtown Facade Grant Program was introduced in 2000 to facilitate private improvements to Downtown retail and other commercial storefronts; and, WHEREAS, the City Council annually budgets $50,000 as matching grants for eligible projects; this program is available to property owners within the area generally described as from 61n Street to the railroad tracks, from Duff Avenue to Northwestern Avenue, and along Kellogg Avenue to Lincoln Way; and, WHEREAS, the program includes up to $15,000 of dollar-for-dollar matching funds per facade and up to $1,000 for additional architectural services; and, WHEREAS, the program requires compliance with specified Design Guidelines, and the Program requirements include a prerequisite of a ground floor use of office or retail trade; and, WHEREAS, additionally, grant eligibility includes a requirement for proposed improvements to retain the historic facade or for the removal of non-compliant elements consistent with the guidelines; and, WHEREAS, the program is designed to operate with two application cycles; the first cycle is typically in the summer, and if there are remaining funds after awards in the first round, then a second application round occurs in the winter; and, WHEREAS, the summer grant round is intended to provide funding for new projects with one grant per building, the second round is intended to fund new projects and potentially second facades for properties that have already received a grant; and, WHEREAS, the City Council awarded three grants in the first round of this fiscal year, which leaves $69,000 available for this second round of funding within the 2017/18 fiscal year; and, WHEREAS, the City solicited applications for this second round and received requests involving three properties for a total of four grants; the total requested grant funding is approximately $59,000; and, WHEREAS, two grant requests are for the west and south facades of 131 Main Street, which property is a two-story building on the northeast corner of Main Street and Douglas Avenue; and, WHEREAS, the third grant application is for property at 110 Main Street, which is a single- story building that was broken up into several separate properties with separate ownership; and, WHEREAS, the fourth application is for 116 Main Street, which is a separate property, but in the same building as 110 Main Street; and, WHEREAS, the building at 131 Main Street sits on a corner lot and has a front facade on Main Street and a secondary facade on Douglas Avenue with the entrance at the corner; and, WHEREAS, the owner is renovating the entire building, interior and exterior, and is seeking a grant for the replacement of non compliant windows on the upper floors, new exterior doors, and the installation of a canopy along the two street facades; and, WHEREAS, although the building was initially of a different character when it was constructed as a market, it was substantially remodeled in 1953; the 1953 character of the building is the period of historical significance for the building, not the original period of construction; and, WHEREAS, it should be noted that the owner, in conjunction with Main Street Cultural District, is seeking up to a $100,000 Community Catalyst Building Remediation Program grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority, and, WHEREAS, if the grant is awarded, it will be used as a financial match for the Catalyst grant exterior and interior renovations of the building; and, WHEREAS, although more exterior work is proposed on the two facades, staffbelieves work that is eligible for the facade grant is removal of noncompliant items and replacement with compliant items (the doors and windows) and installation of a compliant element where none now exists (the proposed canopy); and, WHEREAS, 110 Main Street is owned by LCM Properties, LLC, and 116 Main Street is owned by 116 Onondaga, LLC; and, WHEREAS, the two owners are located at the same address, and the building is unique in that 108, 110, 116, 118, 120, and 122 Main Street were built as a single building; and, WHEREAS, at some point, the property was subdivided into the six separate properties all sharing the same building; and, WHEREAS, 110 Main Street has about a 30-foot store front, and it is noted that 122 Main Street received a facade grant in 2013; at that time, Main Street Iowa prepared a conceptual building facade rendering for the entire building to guide the incremental changes to the building as subsequent spaces remodeled, and the proposed changes are consistent in character with this 2013 rendering that guided the 2013 grant award; and, WHEREAS, the project at 110 Main Street consists of removing the entire front facade of stucco, glass, and wood and replacing with brick; the brick will comprise the kickplate and walls up to the top of the transom windows, and, above that,will be new stucco; and, WHEREAS, new windows, including a translucent transom, and doors will be installed; the finished product will look similar to 122 Main Street, approved as a facade grant in 2013; and, WHEREAS, staff recommends approval of this grant request due to inclusion of compliant building materials and storefront design, despite the lack of a recessed doorway, and, WHEREAS, this project would be eligible for the maximum funding of$15,000; and, WHEREAS, the project at the neighboring storefront, 116 Main Street, is similar to the majority of addresses in the building; the applicant proposes moving an angled front wall to be flush with the right-of-way and to have an outswing door; and, WHEREAS, a recessed entryway in the center of this expanse would add interest and break up the massing of the building, although the 2013 grant award did not require the recessed doorway, and, WHEREAS, the owner prefers the flush wall and outswing door for 116 Main Street to retain sirrnlarity with 110 and 122 Main Street; and, WHEREAS, the project would be eligible for the maximum finding of $15,000, and the applicant will need to provide cost breakdowns to ensure only eligible activities are funded with the facade grant. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Ames, Iowa, that Downtown Facade Improvements grants totaling up to $59,038 are hereby approved as follows: a) 131 Main Street in the amount of 50 percent of the estimated eligible costs up to $14,038 for the Main Street facade; b) 131 Main Street in the amount of 50 percent of the estimated eligible costs up to $15,000 (west facade); c) 110 Main Street in the amount of 50 percent of estimated costs up to $15,000; and, d) 116 Main Street in the amount of 50 percent of estimated eligible costs up to $15,000. ADOPTED THIS 271h day of February, 2018. I '�- ) Diane R. Voss, City Clerk John A. Haila, Mayor Introduced by: Beatty-Hansen Seconded by: Corrieri Voting aye: Beatty-Hansen, Betcher, Corrieri, Gartin, Martin,Nelson Voting nay: None Absent: None Resolution declared adopted and signed by the Mayor this 27th day of February, 2018.