Staff presented a targeted facade program that would add $75,000 to the corporation's current facade-reimbursement pool to pay for retail-ready awnings and entrance work on downtown storefronts. Raelyn, a staff member presenting the plan, said the request "would add an additional 75,000 for the retail ready entrances," and described a process by which staff and a consultant would prepare renderings, color palettes and recommendations for property owners.

Under the proposal staff said the board would pick 10 properties for the initial awning-and-paint program and would offer full reimbursement for awnings and exterior paint where eligible; staff emphasized the awnings themselves were relatively inexpensive but costs could increase depending on each building's structural condition. Board members asked whether the $75,000 would be an annual allocation and whether it would cover both front and rear awnings; staff said the program could be continued for multiple years and that not every property would receive both front-and-back work in a given cycle.

To improve administrative predictability, staff proposed establishing a fixed application window (for example, opening in January and closing in April each year) so the corporation could budget and prioritize reimbursements rather than paying out funds as requests arrived throughout the year. The board also discussed using the awning project to "kick start" additional private investment and to target high-impact properties instead of funding smaller, lower-impact applications.

No formal vote on the expanded awning allocation was recorded at the meeting; the proposal was presented for the 2026 budget planning process and will be funded if the board approves the line item in the final budget or in a subsequent amendment.