MARIETTA Enhancing the appeal of downtown Marietta is the goal of Build Up Marietta, a new facade improvement program from Marietta Main Street and the Marietta Community Foundation.

This program is due in part to the hard work of our Design Committee and their focus on beautifying downtown, Cristie Thomas, executive director of Marietta Main Street said in a recent news release.

Through the Build Up Marietta program business and property owners in Mariettas downtown C4 district can apply for a matching grant of up to $3,000 to upgrade the front facades of their buildings.

Those improvements may include exterior painting, brick maintenance, new or replacement awnings and signage, lighting, door and window repair, or other upgrades that increase property value.

We hope that Build Up Marietta opens the door to new partnerships with property owners and business owners, as well as new opportunities for property maintenance through quality design by helping offset some of the financial burden, Thomas added.

Support for the grant funding comes from the Marietta Community Foundation.

The submission date for the first round of 2017 grant applications is no later than July 1. A second round of grant applications this year must be submitted by Oct. 1.

Applications for grant-funded projects will be taken on a quarterly basis and all submissions will be reviewed by a group with working knowledge of construction, design, historic preservation, and community development, according to Thomas.

Build Up Marietta is reminiscent of a similar facade improvement program that was funded through the citys annual Community Development Block Grant. But the city has not offered that program for the last several years.

We used to do that every year during my first administration, said Mayor Joe Matthews. And we would present plaques thanking those who took advantage of the program. Im glad Marietta Main Street is going to do something now.

Andy Coleman, the citys development director, said the CDBG-funded facade program was successful for the first few years, but interest in the program began to wane.

Anytime you use federal (CDBG) dollars for a project, you had to pay the prevailing wage, which apparently made it too expensive for those who wanted to do a facade project, he said.

Coleman noted the project cost was covered 50 percent by the city and 50 percent by the property owner. But having to pay prevailing wage for the work, under the federal Davis-Bacon Act, proved to be too costly for property owners.

Because the Build Up Marietta program is being funded with Marietta Community Foundation dollars matched by the property owner, the federal prevailing wage stipulation is not expected to apply to those projects.

Coleman said CDBG monies once used to fund the citys facade program now support projects like Paint Marietta and the Emergency Repair Program, aimed at improving housing within the city and preventing blighted properties.

Projects that qualify for both of those programs are 100 percent funded out of the grant, he said.

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Program aims to 'Build Up' downtown Marietta - Parkersburg News

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