West Chester Trustees move to pursue second round of Spark Grant for small-business exterior improvements

Community Development Director Katie Cantalopoulos summarized the township’s 2023 Spark Grant pilot and asked trustees whether West Chester Township should launch a second round in 2025.

The pilot offered reimbursable grants of up to $10,000 for locally owned small businesses to make exterior improvements such as paint, signage, awnings, lighting, hardscape and outdoor seating. Cantalopoulos told the board the township funded 18 projects with $100,000 in township investment and that the projects leveraged more than $300,000 in total improvements.

“The grant was up to $10,000,” Cantalopoulos said. “It focused only on exterior property improvements. ... This was a reimbursable grant.”

Economic Development Manager Michelle Kohn told trustees she hears strong interest from business owners during ongoing business-retention visits. “The unpredictable business environment ... is really challenging for them, and they are putting off these construction programs,” Kohn said. “This program at this moment will allow them to move forward. It’s gonna keep our businesses looking good.”

Why it matters: trustees and staff said the program is intended to spur reinvestment in older commercial corridors that are harder to redevelop with large incentives such as TIF. Staff and trustees described the program as a relatively small, targeted investment meant to improve curb appeal, encourage a “ripple effect” of further private investment and support long-standing local businesses.

Staff recommended several changes to the program before a second round: tighten the definition of “small business” from 30 to 20 full-time employees, make nonprofits ineligible, revise the scoring matrix (removing total project cost as a scored category and adding years in West Chester and degree of local engagement), direct more points to targeted redevelopment areas, and add non‑township community members to the scoring committee. Cantalopoulos said property-owner written permission will continue to be required for tenants who do not own their storefronts.

Trustees and staff also discussed program safeguards and follow-up. Trustee Welch asked whether staff had followed up after the initial reimbursement checks; Cantalopoulos said the township verified projects were completed before reimbursement but had not conducted a second, later follow-up to see how the improvements have held up. Trustee Lee and others raised the possibility of requiring a multi-year business-continuity condition for grant recipients; Trustee Becker and staff said recovering funds from a closed business would be difficult and potentially costly.

Staff described the pilot’s geographic participation (noting concentration along the Route 42 and Cincinnati-Dayton Road corridors and Old West Chester) and invited trustees to identify any additional targeted areas for the scoring matrix.

Board direction: with the feedback at the meeting, trustees signaled they want staff to pursue a second round. Staff said they will prepare an appropriation for the board’s consideration next month, revise the scoring matrix per committee feedback and return to the board in May for formal approval.

The board did not take a final vote on the program at this meeting; the appropriation and any formal changes to eligibility and scoring will be considered at an upcoming meeting.

Ending: Staff offered to collect current photos of the 16 completed projects and to circulate the updated scoring matrix to trustees for review before the May presentation.