DeBary staff outlines façade grant pilot for village center; council signals support for 2026 trial

City staff proposed a pilot façade grant program aimed at the 1792 village center and the Highbanks node to help downtown businesses improve storefronts, signage and streetscape elements.

Growth Management Director Stephen Bap described the program’s goals — enhancing curb appeal, supporting local businesses, and promoting investment in the commercial corridor — and outlined proposed eligibility and review criteria. Staff suggested a 50/50 matching model in which business or building owners provide half the cost and the city matches, noting an illustrative façade job for roughly 100 linear feet could average about $24,365.

Bap summarized the proposed implementation steps, including a public outreach period, an application review committee and a pilot year to evaluate results. “My grandpa would say, it’s kinda spruces the place up,” he said, illustrating the program’s intent to raise visual quality with focused improvements.

Councilmembers broadly supported a targeted pilot and offered guidance: Council member Papalardo noted the city’s business‑tax‑receipt fund balance and suggested staging the program across multiple years rather than spending the fund in a single push. “We will sit at $223,000 in there right now. We bring in roughly 35,000 a year on it,” Papalardo said. Council member Stevenson said he “strongly support[ed] ’26 being the trial balloon year” and advocated concentrating funds along the 1792 corridor for the initial phase so improvements produce a cumulative visual effect.

No final program budget or ordinance was adopted; staff will refine the timeline and eligibility rules and return to council with a formal rollout plan for a pilot year, including application windows, scoring criteria and an evaluation framework.