Commercial Facade Grant (CFG) Program

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Published: Monday, 19 August 2013 10:47

The City of Fort Wayne created the Commercial Façade Grant Program (CFG) to help businesses transform their buildings' facades and revitalize the City's corridors. The program provides a 50% matching grant to eligible businesses that are located within an Economic Development Target Area (EDTA). The purpose is to improve the appearance of their building and the surrounding site. By visually enhancing the exterior of buildings, businesses increase their property values, maintain their marketability, and demonstrate confidence. The CFG program works to assist those owners in promoting reinvestment, strengthening Fort Wayne’s commercial activity, and enhancing economic vitality in the city’s heart.  

Apply Now for a 2024 Commercial Façade Grant 

* We will no longer accept application submissions in phases.  Please ensure that you send all your supporting documents, as listed on your application and in the Program Guidelines, with your application at one time. Please note that a separate scope of work, in addition to your bids, is a required document.  It must be detailed and complete.  

** In addition to to submitting your online application, all potential projects must be reviewed in a New Projects Meeting to discuss all applicable regulations and necessary City and/or County permits. Please contact Christ Beebe to schedule your meeting at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Frequently Asked Questions
Program Guidelines
Design Guidelines
Preparing the Application's Supporting Documents
W-9 Form

Downtown Revitalization Grant Program

Details

Published: Monday, 19 August 2013 10:32

The City of Fort Wayne created the Downtown Revitalization Grant Program to help improve downtown Fort Wayne's competitiveness in attracting and retaining businesses, encourage private commercial and residential reinvestment, stimulate redevelopment, and increase downtown property values.  Approved projects will receive grant funding based on a dollar for dollar (50%) match up to the maximum allowable grant amount. The primary objectives of the Downtown Revitalization Grant Program are to advance the goals of the Downtown Design Manual , Downtown Fort Wayne Blueprint, Downtown Fort Wayne BlueprintPlus, the Plan-It Allen Comprehensive Plan, and subsequent community planning initiatives.

For general information or questions about the Downtown Revitalization Grant Program, review the links below or contact Carman Young at 427-5814 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

If you are certain that you will be submitting an application, the prospective applicant must meet with the Downtown Revitalization Grant Review Committee to discuss the plans and concepts of the potential project prior to the application being officially submitted.  Please contact Carman Young at 427-5814 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to set up the meeting with the Review Committee.  Prior to the meeting, thoroughly review the documents found below.  The applicant is welcomed to come to the initial meeting having attempted to complete the application and necessary steps, but it must be noted that it will be the discretion of the Review Committee as to what else may or may not need to be modified before the application is officially accepted.  If the applicant has a designer and/or contractor who will likley be assisting with project, he/she is also welcomed to attend this initial meeting.

Downtown Revitalization Grant Information and Application:
Map of Eligable Area
Grant Overview, Criteria, and Eligibility
Grant Steps and Process
Grant Application and Checklist  (This can be filled out electronically or by hand.  Regardless, it must be submitted with a hard copy due to the required signatures)
W-9 Form (Required as part of the application)

Grants

Details

Published: Monday, 19 August 2013 10:16

The City of Fort Wayne understands and values the impact that can be brought to a community by establishing strong private-public partnerships. The Downtown Revitalization Grant Program, the Commercial Façade Grant Program, and the Brownfield grants offer private businesses the opportunity to apply for and receive funding to further develop both their businesses and our community. 

For more information on these programs or to speak with the appropriate point of contact, click the links below.

• Commercial Facade Grant Program - Available to businesses along many of Fort Wayne's historic commercial corridors and other areas which have been pre-designated by staff
• Brownfield Grants - Available citywide at abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial sites where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination

Tax Phase-In

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Published: Monday, 19 August 2013 10:12

Mayor Henry at the Groundbreaking for the Courtyard of Fort Wayne.

Tax phase-in is a valuable incentive to attract new businesses into the Fort Wayne area. Its major impact, however, is to stimulate reinvestment by existing businesses -- by not penalizing them with a major tax bill when they can least afford it - after having just spent their money for a building and/or manufacturing equipment, or research and development equipment. Because new taxes are phased-in, each year new tax money goes into the community coffers while the businesses retain employees and create new job opportunities for our citizens. Without this incentive, businesses might not make these capital improvements at all!

For a fact sheet on tax phase-ins click here. For questions or inquiries regarding tax phase-ins contact Carman Young at 311.

Map of Economic Development Target Areas (EDTAS)

New Market Tax Credits

Details

Published: Monday, 19 August 2013 10:07

The New Market Tax Credit Program is an initiative of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, a department of the U.S. Treasury, in support of its mission to expand the capacity of financial institutions to provide capital, credit, and financial services in underserved markets. Tax payers receive a Federal Tax Credit for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDE).

For a developer, participating in a NMTC program means access to loans lower than the market rate, subordinated debt, and enhanced equity arrangements. The tax credit totals 39% over a seven year period, and the investment must in turn be used by the CDE to substantially provide investments in low-income communities. A low-income community is any population census tract in which at least 20% of its population is at poverty level, or median family income (MFI) is at or below 80% of the area MFI. Ideal projects leverage additional sources of funding.

For more information on the NMTC program, contact Sharon Feasel at 427-2107 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For a detailed explanation of the New Markets Tax Credit Program, please click FWNMRF

NMTC Documents of Interest

Project Evaluation Criteria

Questions & Answers

NMTC Eligible Census Tracts