Council backs second round of Wadsworth recovery grants, asks Local Works to administer

Councilor Martel proposed a second round of the Wadsworth Recovery Grant Program at the March 2 study session, asking that Local Works administer and promote the program to reach additional small businesses affected by corridor construction.

Martel said the original program received requests totaling about $97,000 while $75,000 had been allocated; she recommended using an available $45,000 set-aside (previously earmarked for facade grants) to fund another round and to have Local Works manage application intake, completeness review and scoring. She read the program’s eligibility and scoring criteria used in the first round, which required businesses to be located within the Wadsworth construction-impact zone, demonstrate construction impact, hold an active Wheat Ridge business license and propose eligible expenses such as digital marketing, signage, equipment upgrades and business consulting.

Councilors discussed promotion and administration. Councilor Larson and others said they favored keeping the criteria and scoring approach in place, and staff noted prior awards ranged from about $2,000 to $9,000 with initial grant limits between $5,000 and $10,000. Local Works requested an administrative fee (5%) to manage the program; staff confirmed a similar fee was charged in the prior round.

By general consensus the council directed staff to move forward with Local Works administering a second round using available funds and asked staff and Local Works to consider clarifying eligibility language (for example, to discourage funding temporary A-frame signs) and to enforce any minimums or maximums the council approves.

What’s next: staff will work with Local Works to finalize criteria and outreach and return any materials to council as needed; awards and administrative details will be reported back when the program is run.