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Westborough EDC approves grants for new restaurant and dance studio, holds remaining funds
Summary
At its October meeting the Town of Westborough Economic Development Committee awarded $5,000 to Brio 33 and $5,000 to Academy of Dance Expressions, approved a $1,600 award to a local CPA for office build-out, and deferred or denied several other applications while reserving funds for future rounds.
The Town of Westborough Economic Development Committee on its October meeting approved three business-assistant grants, including a $5,000 award to Brio 33, a new restaurant at 33 East Main Street, and a $5,000 award to Academy of Dance Expressions.
The awards came after presentations from six applicants seeking help with start-up or improvement costs. Abby, representing Good Cause LLC (Brio 33), said the restaurant is "over 85% women owned, 70% of which are Westborough residents," has hired more than 40 staff and several Westborough High School students, and asked for help with equipment and signage after an extensive build-out. "Our signage due to awnings cost nearly 20,000 to replace," she said, and added that a pizza-dough mixer the kitchen needs would cost about $10,000.
Why it matters: committee members prioritized projects that expand foot traffic and create local jobs. In voting to award Brio 33, members cited the restaurant's potential to attract visitors and create multiple positions. The committee also endorsed a $5,000 award to the Academy of Dance Expressions, owner Loreen Eldoricio told members she serves more than 100 students and that an unexpected move and build-out required significant investment to keep the program running.
Committee discussion and constraints: staff reported the business-assistant grant balance for the cycle (reported in the meeting as "27.04 49"). Members debated whether to pull signage-related costs into a separate signage grant pool and discussed rubric criteria intended to limit awards to a share of project cost and favor brick-and-mortar businesses. Several applicants were flagged as ineligible or deferred: TB Lawn and Landscape (concerns about eligibility because of storage/home-based operations) and Thrive Collective (insufficient days open to meet the program's stated preference). The committee voted to withhold remaining funding for this round so some money remains for future cycles.
A compromise award: after discussion about timing of expenditures and partner contributions, the committee approved a $1,600 grant to Nina Bond, a local CPA who had completed an office layout renovation costing $6,300. The motion carried by majority vote.
What the committee recorded: motions and roll-call votes were recorded on the official meeting record for each award and for the decision to withhold remaining funds. Several members urged staff to tighten pre-meeting vetting of eligibility to avoid bringing in applicants who do not meet the rubric before they take time to present.
Next steps: recipients were congratulated and staff were asked to notify applicants and follow up on eligibility and signage grant routing; the committee said it expects to reconvene with another grant round before the March meeting.
"I think a business that helps attract people to our community…will be a great asset to our community," one member said while supporting the Brio application.
(At the meeting the committee also confirmed Shelby Marshall as vice chair and handled other procedural business.)
