from left, Eve Hulsey, Mike Myers, Casie Jarman, Andrea Holsomback and Cedric Burden
Does your business need a little help?
The recently established Alabaster Downtown Redevelopment Authority (ADRA) is now accepting applications for a program that will help fund businesses who want to improve their façade. Designed to benefit storefronts within a three-mile radius of the upcoming city recreation center, the program not only aims to rejuvenate and preserve commercial properties but also strives to stimulate new investments and developments citywide. “We want local businesses to know that they are valued, and the city wants to invest in them the way they have invested in our community. It’s a partnership, and this is just another way that Alabaster can reflect that,” says Board Vice Chair Andrea Holsomback.
If granted, the funds will reimburse owners or lessees for eligible exterior improvements to commercial establishments, with a maximum reimbursement of $25,000. The grants are structured as either a base grant of up to $2,500, requiring no matching funds from the grantee, or an option to receive the base grant plus a price match. In the latter case, the grantee would share the cost 50/50 with the ADRA, with a total investment $25,000 from the ADRA.
Improvements can commence after a design is submitted and approved by ADRA. Board members meet once a month and include Casie Jarmon, Cedric Burden, Eve Hulsey, Andrea Holsomback, and Board Chair Mike Myers. “I have worked for a corporate facilities management company for 16 years in various roles, so I understand the need to improve business aesthetics. Getting involved in this program was a perfect combination of my love for Alabaster and my career,” Holsomback says.
Upon approval, grantees can start improvements within 60 days of the signed agreement, with completion expected within six months and no later than September 1 of the grant year. City building officials and zoning administration provide design consultation and assistance for the projects. “The earlier a business applies, the better the chances of getting approved since applications are reviewed as received and based on the funds available at the time the application is reviewed,” Holsomback offers, “so get those applications in!”
Contractors involved in grant-related work must be licensed by the city of Alabaster. General conditions applicable to all grant-related projects include the maintenance of improvements, prompt repair of graffiti and vandalism by the grantee, current property tax payments, and insurance coverage for properties funded by the grant.
Projects are subject to periodic review by Alabaster’s city building official and the ADRA project coordinator to ensure compliance with approved plans and designs. Eligible work projects include improvements to any side of a commercial building facing a public way or space, such as signage, awnings, decorative features replacement, door and window restoration, storefront or façade rehabilitation, removal of non-historic materials, exterior paint as an architectural element, ADA access improvements, historic preservation-related maintenance, landscape enhancements, exterior lighting, and parking lot improvements. Types of things not covered are non-public faces of buildings, interior areas, temporary or seasonal improvements, and work classified as routine maintenance.
For more information visit cityofalabaster.com/624/Alabaster-Downtown-Redevelopment. For questions call City Hall at 205-664-6832 to speak with City Administrator Brian Binzer, or email the board at [email protected].