Fourteen Communities Selected for Project Awards
Posted by mw on January 25th, 2010 1:31 pm
January 23, 2010 (Des Moines, Iowa) The Iowa Department of Economic Development today announced that $822,000 in HUD Challenge Grants will be awarded to 14 Iowa communities through a fund administered by the Iowa Downtown Resource Center and Main Street Iowa. The funding will be distributed in the form of grants, training, and technical assistance to the selected Main Street programs. Applications totaling more than $1.4 million in requests were received.
Governor Chet Culver was joined by newly appointed IDED Director Bret Mills, to make the announcement during a special check presentation ceremony held at the Des Moines Botanical Center. The grants will benefit local improvement projects, ranging from building slipcover removal, to a geothermal system, to converting an old Post Office into a winery, with a combined total investment of nearly $10.4 million.
?These challenge grants have now been awarded to 69 projects in 33 different Main Street Iowa Communities. Every project improves the economic health of these cities through new business growth and additional residents for the wonderful historic buildings in our Main Street districts?, stated Governor Chet Culver.
“Iowa’s Main Streets are the vital lifelines of our communities, and investing in them helps preserve our state’s character while giving small businesses a boost,” Senator Harkin said. “This year’s recipients will help restore community touchstones and improve our local economies.”
The Challenge Grant program is funded through an appropriation from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Since the first appropriation in 2002, this program has awarded a total of $3.9 million and has leveraged approximately $22.3 million in local investments.
For more information about the Challenge Grant program, contact Jane Seaton, State Coordinator, Main Street Iowa, at 515.725.3056 or jane.seaton@iowalifechanging.com.
Awards included:
Dubuque Main Street
Riverworks Bldg. / 44-48 Main St. / $100,000
Main Street West Union
100 Block of North Vine St. / $100,000
Main Street West Branch
Historic Post Office / 116 West Main St. / $100,000
State Center Development Association
State Center City Hall / 118 East Main St. / $66,500
Story City Greater Chamber Connection
Cook Family Dentistry / 628 Broad St. / $66,500
Cedar Falls Community Main Street
Bruhn Bldg / 407 Main St. / $60,000
Bloomfield Main Street
J.H. Leon Bldg. / 104 S Washington St. / $48,000
Hamilton County S.E.E.D.
Shorthorn Building / 626 Main St. (Jewell) / $40,000
Main Street Waterloo
Montgomery Ward Bldg / 503 Commercial St. / $50,000
Main Street Washington
Bodywrx Fitness Center / 110 S Iowa Ave. / $20,500
Woodbine Main Street
Jess Watson Gas Station / 313 Walker St. / $33,000
Main Street Mason City
J.E.E. Markley Bldg. / 209-211 N Federal St. / $50,000
Cedar Rapids /Czech Village-New Bohemia
Suchy Building / 1006 Third St. SE / $50,000
Davenport Hilltop Campus Village
McButts Tavern / 1514 Harrison St. / $37,500
To find out more, go to: www.iowalifechanging.com
