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Department of City Development
Commercial Revitalization Grants
The Commercial Revitalization Grants provide financial and business assistance to businesses and commercial property owners interested in renovating their buildings. The program was established by DCD to improve and enhance the physical appearance of commercial buildings in the City's Commercial Corridors. The fund offers three different programs to assist businesses and property owners to invest in commercial storefronts in the City of Milwaukee. See below for program categories and eligible activities.
For more information or if you have trouble downloading an application, please contact the Commercial Revitalization Fund at (414) 286-8201 or email [email protected].
All grant eligible work needs to be approved before any work begins, please contact us for further guidance on your application and project timeline.
Questions and Answers to all questions received as part of the Vibrant Spaces Grant application process can be found here.
The City's Signage Grant program provides financial and business assistance to business owners interested in creating well designed signage or updating their signage to current design standards. The program was established by DCD to increase the physical appearance of Milwaukee’s commercial areas. This incentive will offer reimbursable grant funds up to $2,500. The grant may not exceed 50% of the total eligible project costs.
More information on signage regulations here. This grant funding cannot be used for Type B projecting signs.
The City's Façade Grant program provides financial and business assistance to businesses and commercial property owners interested in renovating the street facing facades of their building. The program was established by DCD to increase the physical appearance of Milwaukee’s commercial areas. This incentive will offer reimbursable grant funds up to $5,000. The grant may not exceed 50% of the total eligible project costs.
The Storefront Activation Grant is designed to provide targeted financial incentives to increase the vitality of the neighborhood commercial corridors. The funds will assist in recruiting new businesses to vacant commercial/retail tenant spaces in commercial buildings.
The Storefront Activation Grant will make available a new business development incentive to commercial building owners and developers. This incentive will offer reimbursable grant funds up to $10 per square foot with a maximum grant in the amount of $25,000. The grant may not exceed 50% of the total eligible project costs.
The Storefront Activation Grant cannot be combined with the Retail Investment Fund.
The Retail Investment Fund (RIF) is limited to funding retail development projects, located in neighborhood business districts. These businesses cannot be home-based. The size of a RIF grant is determined by the size of the project, private investment, and job creation. In most areas there is a $5,000 per FTE job grant limit. Projects in Targeted Investment Neighborhoods (TINs) are eligible for up to $6,000 per FTE grant.
The RIF program is a reimbursement program. The grantee will be reimbursed for eligible pre-approved grant related expenses. Grant funds cannot be disbursed until all conditions of the grant contract have been fulfilled, including job creation.
The Retail Investment Fund cannot be combined with the Storefront Activation Grant.
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For more information, email [email protected].