The City of La Mesa Façade and Property Improvement Program has been established as a two-year pilot program to provide matching grant funding for business owners and/or property owners of retail, commercial, industrial and office properties in the City of La Mesa to complete exterior improvements to business-use properties.
Donor Name: City of La Mesa
State: California
City: La Mesa
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: Ongoing
Size of the Grant: $25,000
Grant Duration: 2 years
Details:
The grant is not for new “ground up construction” but for improvement of existing commercial buildings and the property around them. Legal non-conforming residential properties in commercial zoning designations do not qualify for FPIP funding.
A goal of the FPIP is to be a catalyst for improving the exterior of business-use properties that result in quality improvements and enhancements that benefit the business and the City. The improvements must enhance the appearance of the property and the environment in which the property is located. Private investment may exceed the matching grant portion of the project if, for example, interior improvements are included in the scope of work even though they are not eligible for the grant.
Funding Information
- Applicants are eligible for a specified maximum grant amount based on the building’s linear foot frontage on a public way:
- Grant amount:
- Linear Public Right-Of-Way Frontage (Feet) 10-49: $14,000
- Linear Public Right-Of-Way Frontage (Feet) 50-99: $18,000
- Linear Public Right-Of-Way Frontage (Feet) 100-149: $22,000
- Linear Public Right-Of-Way Frontage (Feet) 150 or more: $25,000
- Grant amount:
- The initial $5,000 of the maximum grant award has no matching requirement, therefore qualifying projects of $5,000 or less do not require matching funds from the applicant. Any awarded funding in excess of $5,000 requires a 50% match of funding from the applicant. For example, if an applicant is awarded a grant for $25,000 in eligible improvements, the applicant is required to match $10,000 (50% of $20,000) to receive the additional $20,000. In this example, a commercial property owner can realize a total of $35,000 in improvements with a $10,000 investment ($25,000 in grant funds + $10,000 match from applicant).
Eligible Activities
Activities Eligible for Grant Funding
- Significant façade improvements and renovations
- Restoration of historical architectural features
- Landscaping in outside pots, planters or parking areas if a substantial amount of plant material is used and improvements are irrigated
- Building additions, when the entire building is improved, that is, the addition does not appear to be an add-on but integrates with the building (ex: building addition of compatible architecture and repainting of entire building to match the addition)
- New roof material (not repair) only if part of a significant façade improvement or renovation
- Upgraded and uniform façade improvements in older commercial strip centers that enhance the entire center (if the center has more than one individual property ownership, there must be a comprehensive signage plan, color pallet and/or architectural façade plan in place; improvements made must conform to the plans or color pallet)
- Block walls and fencing only if part of a comprehensive landscaping project
- Signs (except internally illuminated “can” signs), awnings and painting of structures only if part of a significant façade improvement or renovation
- Murals if they are professionally done in compliance with City mural policies in effect, provide an important aesthetic improvement and/or improve an expanse of wall or surface prone to graffiti
- Trash enclosures only in conjunction with other exterior property improvements
- Screening roof-top equipment only in conjunction with other exterior property improvements
- Creation of permanent outdoor patio areas (removable patio furniture, fixtures or accessories are not eligible)
- Creation of customer entrances from the alley, especially when parking is available in the rear of a building or the alley side is visible from a public street; this must be done in conjunction with a comprehensive façade improvement
- Other improvements can be considered on a case-by-case basis, but must make a significant improvement to the property appearance and not be one of the excluded improvements listed in the next section
Eligibility Criteria
The property and grant submittal must meet the following criteria:
- Be located within the City of La Mesa city limits
- Be a retail, commercial, office or industrial use or a business that is permitted in residential zones, such as a bed and breakfast
- Applicants owning or doing business on more than one property may only apply for funding for one property. Properties that have received grant funding in prior years are not eligible to receive funding in subsequent years.
- Proposed project must be in conformance with all applicable City codes and development standards
- Property must not be an active code enforcement case or under code enforcement review at the time of application submittal
- Must be a permitted or conditionally permitted use; legal non-conforming uses are not eligible (example: improvements to a legal non-conforming sign, structure, or a structure housing a non-conforming use will not be eligible)
- Project must receive all necessary approvals before any work is started for which grant funds are being received
- Applicants (such as business owners) that do not own the building or property where the work will be completed must have the building or property owner’s consent at initial application submittal to perform the proposed scope of work.
For more information, visit City of La Mesa.
