Greenwood approved a plan to apply for a state grant to fix the façades of downtown buildings.
The city is applying for a $400,000 grant, which would help cover the cost of fixing up the fronts of 30 downtown buildings. The city also would spend up to $850,000 from its tax-increment financing, or TIF districts, and business owners are expected to put in 20 percent of construction costs.
With the approval from the city council, the city can now turn in its application to the state, which will decide later this summer who should get the grant funding.
The city council gave final approval to the plan to move forward with the grant application with a 6-3 vote. Council members Bruce Armstrong, David Hopper and Brent Corey voted against the proposal.
The cost of the project and how much the city is contributing, compared to the grant, has increased significantly and now the city is paying for the majority of the project, Armstrong said. That is on top of other projects the city is spending millions on, including the pool, new Interstate 65 interchange and work to the new city center building, Armstrong said.
“We spent more in the last three to four years than we are going to make in the next nine,” Armstrong said.
The façade project is not the long-term solution for the needs of the downtown area, Hopper said.
The plan does not address any of the infrastructure needs for both traffic and pedestrians at Main Street and Madison Avenue, Hopper said.
Members of Restore Old Town Greenwood spoke in favor of the project, asking city council members to approve moving ahead with the grant.
