Keeping up appearances with downtown businesses
The Downtown Façade Grant is offered by Experience Chehalis, a Main Street community. This program is offered to downtown business and property owners who desire to make improvements to the façade of their buildings. Experience Chehalis works to promote revitalization and offers technical, as well as financial assistance to assure our historical buildings and district are preserved, maintained, and rehabilitated properly.
The façade program is handled by our Economic Restructuring Committee, whose role is to enhance the look and feel of the commercial district. Historic building rehabilitation, signage, and lighting all improve the physical image of the downtown as a quality place to shop, work, walk, invest in, and live. Improvements result in the reinvestment of public and private dollars downtown.
The grants are intended to help downtown businesses and property owners improve the fronts of their buildings. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 we increased our 50% match to 75% up to $2,500 per business or property, for approved improvement costs. Applications will be accepted for as long as funding is available each year. Grant awards will be first-come, first-served and based on available funding. Work done prior to the grant award is not eligible for grant funding. We are now accepting grant applications to past recipients after 18 months has passed since the last grant project was accomplished. Applications will be reviewed by Experience Chehalis.