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Thornton council backs BTEC changes to business improvement grant: eligibility period, frequency adjusted
Summary
After a review by the Business and Technology Advisory Committee (BTEC), council agreed to raise the minimum operation time for applicants from 12 to 24 months and shorten the program's re-eligibility interval from five years to three years; other program timing and scoring rules remain unchanged.
Thornton City Council on Oct. 7 approved staff and BTEC recommendations to revise aspects of the city's Business Improvement Grant (BIG) program, intended to improve stewardship and better align the program with local business needs.
Jenny Leon, Thornton's small business manager, told council the BIG program is a mostly 50/50 reimbursement grant for interior, exterior and capital improvements; eligible businesses normally must hold a Thornton business license and a lease for 12 months, and may receive up to $20,000 once every five years. BTEC and staff reviewed program operations during 2024 and 2025 and recommended several changes for the 2026 cycle.
BTEC chair Paul Gurdian presented the committee's findings and recommendations. Council agreed by consensus to: (1) increase the minimum in-business period that makes a firm eligible for BIG from 12 months to 24 months while retaining the reimbursement period (applicants may still be reimbursed for expenses incurred in the prior 12 months); and (2) shorten the re-eligibility interval from five years to three years so businesses can apply more frequently for maintenance and improvements.
Council and BTEC said the 24-month eligibility change reduces risk that the grant will be used effectively as startup seed funding, a concern raised during the review. Council voted to keep the application window (January through July), the scoring rubric and the committee's current recusal approach for BTEC members (BTEC members may receive grants but must recuse themselves from votes on their own applications).
Leon summarized 2025 program statistics: Thornton allocated $350,000 to BIG in 2025, awarded 25 grants with an average requested amount of about $14,500, and ordinarily ends the year with unspent funds because some preapproved projects do not proceed. Staff noted the program permits preapproval to give businesses confidence to proceed with projects and described the department's follow-up outreach to approved applicants who have not started work.
Council asked staff to add a registration requirement for operators that change ownership or control between annual renewals; staff agreed to include that additional notification requirement in the ordinance text prior to first reading where appropriate.
The council's consensus directions will be reflected in code changes and administrative materials for the 2026 grant season.
