NEWS FROM OPELOUSASFor Immediate Release Contact: Melanie Lee
May 1, 2008 Phone: (337) 948-5227
OPELOUSAS MAIN STREET OFFERS FAÇADE GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
(Opelousas, LA) – Opelousas Main Street is soliciting façade grant applications from downtown property owners and/or business owners. The competitive grant being offered is the Façade Grant for Exterior Rehabilitations.
Façade Grants offer up to a $10,000 match for major improvements to downtown structures. These grants are intended to reverse adverse alterations and to bring buildings back to their historic appearance. Even jobs requiring structural repairs and stabilization may qualify under this grant.
Applications received from Opelousas Main Street building and/or business owners will compete statewide for funding with other Main Street communities’ applications. A panel of experts at the state level will rank the applications according to the level of architectural preservation and impact on the streetscape, the historic district and the community.
To be eligible for façade grant funds through the program, a building must be located within the downtown Main Street district, must be used for commercial purposes, and must be at least 50 years old. In addition, the proposed work must be approved by the local historic district commission and the Louisiana Main Street office and must be the guidelines set forth by the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
Since the time Opelousas has been under the Main Street program, a total of $124,000 has been awarded to property and business owners in façade grant funding. Opelousas Main Street façade grants are reimbursable matching fund grants that require project approval at the local and state level before work can begin. All grant applications must be submitted to the Opelousas Main Street office at 828 E. Landry in Le Vieux Village by 12:00 noon, Friday, June 13. If awarded the façade grant, the applicant has until April 30, 2009 to complete the work and submit the required documentation.
The Opelousas Main Street district is bound on the north by Little St., on the east by Union St., on the south by Market St., and on the west by Vine St. If your building is located within these boundaries and you wish to apply for grant funds, contact Melanie Lee, Opelousas Main Street Manager, at 337-948-5227.
Melanie Lee
Tourism Director