Price Hill façade program targets two areas

Price Hill Will’s Economic and Business Development Program will allocate $50,000 in matching funds to business and property owners in the St. Lawrence Corner and Cedar Grove business districts as part of a pilot façade improvement program.

Projects of up to $5,000 are eligible for support and can include improvements such as signage and awnings, exterior paint, masonry repair and new windows.

"The façade program is just getting started we will be meeting with business owners and property owners to go over the program one on one," says Price Hill Will director of community organizing Diana Vakharia.  "The façade program aims to increase the number and affordability of these kinds of investments—so maybe someone is considering updating their storefront but doesn’t have all of the capital they need  we provide a way to make it happen."

Vakharia says that the idea behind this Place Matters Initiative strategy is to provide a feeling of place, much like one would experience upon entering Northside, Hyde Park, or Mount Lookout.

"St. Lawrence Corner, which is the heart of the Warsaw Avenue business district and one of two target areas for the matching façade grant, has the infrastructure to be a pedestrian-oriented gathering place," she says.

The second focus area, along Glenway Avenue, is meant to build upon Price Hill Will's housing redevelopment efforts in the Cedar Grove sub-neighborhood.

"We chose this area because of its proximity to our residential redevelopment focus area and, more importantly, its proximity to Elder High School and Seton High School," Vakharia says.  "Both schools are neighborhood anchors that attract thousands of students, families, and fans to their extracurricular activities."

To Vakharia, beauty breeds investment.

"We hope the improvements encourage entrepreneurs to see an opportunity for locating a business—especially one that flourishes in a walkable district," she says.

Writer: Kevin LeMaster
Source: Diana Vakharia, director of community organizing, Price Hill Will
Photography by Scott Beseler