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Oswego EDC reports grants to two downtown food-and-drink startups; fund balance small
Summary
The Economic Development Commission reviewed recently approved financial incentives for two downtown businesses — Bay 54 and Taco Dolly Cantina — and staff reported a remaining balance in the incentives fund and two amended agreements for ongoing projects.
The Oswego Economic Development Commission on Wednesday reported that two downtown restaurants received financial assistance and that the village has a modest remaining balance in its local incentives fund.
Kevin (staff member) told the commission that Bay 54, a cocktail lounge proposed for the old bike-rack space next to the winery, received a $38,000 grant and a $32,000 loan to be paid over 10 years. He said the owners — the same operators behind The Lewis in St. Charles — will undertake significant interior work and ADA improvements and plan a second phase with additional seating and a small kitchen.
Kevin also said Taco Dolly Cantina, which is taking over the former tap house space downtown, received a $22,000 grant and has already begun construction. “She literally hasn't slept because she's been in there every single day doing the build out,” Kevin said of the owner.
Kevin told commissioners that, after those awards and other earmarks, “there's about, roughly about $17,180 left in the fund.” He said the remainder of the incentive fund is reserved for projects already in the pipeline and that two existing grant agreements — for work at 19 East Jackson Street and 7678 Main Street (Hudson design houses) — were amended to extend completion timelines to the end of the year.
The commission also reviewed the village board’s adoption of the EDC’s recommended changes to the economic development incentive program. Kevin summarized the board’s edits: landscaping and partial roof work were added as partially eligible under the program’s $5,000 cap, and painting, building painting, and cleaning were listed as fully eligible items. He said parking-lot improvements remain eligible under the cap.
Discussion among commissioners and staff focused on program clarity and timelines. Kevin said the village board considered the EDC’s recommendations at a Committee of the Whole and approved them on the consent agenda with only minor tweaks.
The commission did not take a new vote on these incentive awards; Kevin reported them as approved at the village board. The meeting’s only formal votes recorded at the EDC were approval of the June meeting minutes and a motion to adjourn.
Clarifying details: Kevin reported the grant and loan totals and the approximate remaining fund balance. The amendments to the two existing agreements extend deadlines to the end of the year, and staff indicated both projects were expected to finish sooner than that.
Looking ahead, commissioners asked staff to continue tracking project timelines and to provide clearer, itemized summaries of eligible work under the revised program so applicants and the EDC have a common reference.
