|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Mountain View is expanding a program that provides local businesses with money to undertake storefront improvements, aiming to make it easier for a wider range of projects to qualify for city funding.
The City Council voted 6-0 last Tuesday, with John McAlister absent, to approve updates to the Facade Grant Program, which offers business owners up to $15,000 to make various upgrades to their property.
The key changes include replacing a tiered funding structure with a more flexible system, increasing the city’s matching amount from 50% to 75%, expanding eligible business types to include certain offices and nonprofits, and establishing specific funding for murals.
The program is meant to help revitalize commercial areas in town by upgrading the exteriors of local businesses.
“Facade grant programs are one thing that I really have faith in in our economic vitality plan,” Council member Alison Hicks said.
In the previous tiered funding system, the city would reimburse small businesses for up to 50% of their project costs, subject to different caps depending on the type of project. Businesses had to pick one of three tiers to apply under:
- Tier 1: Nonarchitectural improvements like new signs or awnings – $5,000 grant cap
- Tier 2: Exterior painting and murals – $10,000 cap
- Tier 3: Architectural improvements like new windows or doors – $15,000 cap
Now, the city is replacing the tiered system with a 75% reimbursement rate up to a flat $15,000 cap. Instead of having to choose between new signs and a fresh coat of paint, business owners will have the flexibility to pursue “comprehensive” renovations, according to a staff report to the City Council. For example, under the new model, a business could be reimbursed $7,500 for a $10,000 project, as opposed to the city only covering $5,000.
The city will also continue to pay up to $2,500 for architectural design services, meaning businesses could get up to $17,500, the staff report said.
The city is also expanding the type of businesses that can qualify. Previously, the program only covered storefront businesses in the retail, food service and personal service sectors. Now any street-facing commercial space is eligible, including offices or nonprofits.
Finally, there is now a separate option for muralists to apply for up to $15,000 at the 75% reimbursement rate.
In 2025, Kent Richardson of Richardson Oliver Law Group commissioned a mural for the group’s location on Moffett Boulevard. He explored applying for a Facade Improvement Grant, but found that he wasn’t eligible.
“It was a little bit disappointing to see how hard it was for businesses to access it,” he told the Voice in December. “We can afford to do this, but I don’t know how other people will do it.”
Now, more businesses may have an avenue to get murals funded.
The City Council approved the original Facade Grant Program in 2023, allocating $200,000 to the initiative. So far, the city has granted over $80,000 to support 14 total projects, nine of which are completed and five of which remain underway.
