September 11, 2018
By Paragon News Director Paul Joseph –
Elk City’s downtown revitalization program took a little time to get up and going, but after merchants started to invest in the initiative, it took off.
Elk City’s Director of Economic and Community Development, Jim Mason says its called, simple enough, the Downtown Revitalization Program and is a matching grant program. The city agreed to match the first – up to – $25-hundred dollars spent by a downtown merchant’s building owner. He says it isn’t the tenant’s responsibility, but the owner’ s responsibility.
Mason says the program is designed for owners of buildings that house retail businesses which collect sales tax. That’s the catch. The program is not available for those that are service companies, unless they charge a city sales tax.
He says the program has been 100% successful if you look at how many vacant buildings are located downtown, because there are none. If it’s a viable building, it’s full.
Mason says some of the city’s retailers not in downtown wanted to be included in the program wanting a little financial help, too. So, he says this year the city opened up the program, city-wide.
The first application for the new city-wide revitalization program was submitted last Wednesday to City Hall. He says it’s a business located on South Main Street. He adds that the city is making the program grants available to the first 40 that apply and are approved this first year.
As result of the downtown revitalization program and other ideas, Mason says the City of Elk City has witnessed 53 new businesses in town open their doors in the last 48 months and others are expressing their interest in opening up in Elk City.
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