Driving Downtown’s Destiny
308 West Rosemary Street Suite 202 Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27516
May 17, 2006
Mr. Kevin Foy, Mayor
Members of the Town Council
Town of Chapel Hill
405 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Dear Mayor Foy and Members of the Town Council:
On April 26, 2006, the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership adopted a new incentive program for downtown Chapel Hill, a Façade Incentive Grant Program. This is a very typical downtown revitalization tool that is offered early in a program as a means of encouraging high-quality physical change to the built environment. Our organization has provided the funding for this program, but we request that the Town of Chapel Hill partner with us on this project and offer approved Façade Incentive Grant applicants a waiver in the Development Review Fees that they would normally be subject to for such projects.
The purpose of the program is to encourage downtown property owners and business owners to invest in the street-facing facades of their existing properties by offering them a small carrot in exchange for input and education by our organization on alterations that are appropriate to downtown Chapel Hill and their individual property. The program is designed to highlight the unique architectural character of each property. Simple changes, such as the placement of awnings and signs, and the materials that are used to repair or replace windows and doors are all vital to the economic impact that the structure has for the businesses that are housed there and the overall economic impact that each building has on the district as a whole.
Our board allocated $10,000 to jumpstart this program in July, 2006, and it will be available on a first-come first-serve basis to properties within the Municipal Service District. For each approved application, we will offer a small grant, up to $1000 for single facades and up to $2000 for corner buildings, which must be matched dollar-for-dollar by the business or property owner. Our office will assist the owners with design recommendations as needed to insure a quality project, and funds are distributed on a reimbursable basis, once receipts have been submitted and the work has been reviewed by our office to make sure that the work that the owner said was going to be done was indeed completed.
In setting this program up, we realized that an owner could be subject to substantial development review fees, depending on the scope of the project and the location of the building. These fees diminish the incentive that this program offers, but a waiver of the fees for approved façade grant projects could serve as an even greater incentive that may encourage owners to make the needed investment. We anticipate 5-15 projects will be funded from the $10,000 allocation, therefore it is not a substantial investment by the Town of Chapel Hill, but again, one that we feel offers valuable support for this program.
If the program is successful here in Chapel Hill we will evaluate and perhaps tweak the program, secure additional funding, and at that time we will come back to you for your continued support. Therefore, at this time, all we are asking you to do is to waive fees for the projects funded through this initial $10,000 allocation.
Attached is the Facade Incentive Grant Brochure and packet for your review, plus a schedule of the Town of Chapel Hill Development Review Fees.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Sincerely yours,
Elizabeth H. Parham, CMSM
Executive Director
Cc: Cal Horton
Kay Johnson
JB Culpepper
ATTACHMENTS (Added by Town staff 6/5/2006)