By Herald Staff

JASPER — The City of Jasper Facade Grant Program in coordination with Heart of Jasper is a program intended to provide financial assistance for exterior building facade improvements in the Downtown and Riverfront Areas of Jasper. The goal of the program is to stimulate retail growth and catalyze investment through enhanced aesthetics.

Grants will be awarded for 50% of the approved improvements. The minimum project plan must be over $5,000. The maximum match will be $10,000. In total, the program will provide a maximum of $50,000 in grant funding for the 2021 calendar year.

Grants will be awarded on a reimbursement basis, following an application procedure, design review, approval and construction. Disbursement is contingent upon submission of cost invoices from contractors and tradesmen and inspection work by the Heart of Jasper Design Advisory Committee. Availability of funding will vary per calendar year. 2021 will be the pilot year for this program.

The Facade Grant Program is now accepting applications for 2021. The deadline to apply is March 18. Winners will be announced on March 27. Guidelines and criteria to apply can be found at the City Hall or Chamber of Commerce. You may also download all information from HeartOfJasper.org or reach out to Kate Schwenk at info@heartofjasper.org.