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Authority encumbers $39,000 for small-business grants; asks staff to establish program rules
Summary
The board discussed using $39,000 for business grants (facade or marketing) and heard a CPMSA proposal to administer a marketing‑multiplier program; counsel advised program parameters must tie to the authority’s economic‑development mission, and the board unanimously voted to encumber the funds into FY26/27 while staff and counsel develop eligibility and administration details.
Board members debated how best to deploy $39,000 earmarked for business development, focusing on whether the authority should administer facade or marketing grants directly or whether an established entity such as the College Park Main Street Association (CPMSA) should distribute funds under an MOU.
CPMSA representatives proposed a marketing grant structure that seeks a multiplier effect: pick a group of businesses to receive small grants (for example, $2,000 each) and require recipients to spend those funds with other local vendors (marketing firms, videographers, social media services) to keep the money circulating within College Park. "The small business in College Park need that money," a CPMSA representative said, asking the board to prioritize small downtown merchants on Virginia Avenue and across commercial districts.
Attorney Latanya Wiley reminded the board that the authority’s enabling powers require project‑based economic development financing and warned against unconditional cash giveaways. "It'll have to be project financing for eligible capital improvements," she said, noting that any partnership or MOU must be drafted to withstand constitutional review and comply with the gratuities clause.
To allow time to draft program rules, determine administration and ensure legal compliance, a board member moved to encumber the $39,000 into FY26/27; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously. Several members said they preferred the authority retain oversight rather than simply delegating the funds without structure; staff and the city manager offered grant‑administration support and suggested encumbering funds so the program could be launched with appropriate controls next fiscal year.
What happens next: staff and counsel will draft program parameters and an implementation plan for the board to review; the board instructed staff to consider an encumbrance that preserves the funds while allowing design of eligibility criteria, application and compliance procedures.
