TO: Chair and Members of the Board
FROM: Jeffrey L. Oris, Executive Director
DATE: January 15, 2020
Title
DIRECTING MCRA STAFF NOT TO PROCESS ANY FURTHER APPLICATIONS FOR ANY GRANT PROGRAM APPROVED BY THE MARGATE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY’S BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS PRIOR TO DECEMBER 1, 2019
BACKGROUND: At the MCRA’s August 20, 2019 meeting, the Board voted to place a moratorium on the acceptance of new grant applications until such time as the existing programs were reviewed and new programs presented. This item is in response to that moratorium.
Staff reviewed the MCRA grant programs and found lackluster participation by commercial property owners and programs which were believed by many to be overly generous and which did not necessary succeed in fulfilling their desired intent. For this reason several new programs have been created that are simpler, less generous, and more likely to create a positive return on the grant investment by the MCRA. The MCRA Board approved both a landscape grant program and façade grant program at their December 10, 2019 meeting, and another demolition grant program will be presented at the MCRA’s January 15th meeting.
With these new programs in place, staff would like to make certain there are no loose ends as to participation in previously adopted programs. To this end, this resolution is put before the Board which essentially clarifies that the MCRA will no longer accept any applications for grant programs in place before December 1, 2019. It does however, affirm that outstanding grants agreements for those programs will be honored. There are four grants that are currently outstanding that will not be affected. Those are grants with:
Culver’s of Margate, LLC (Culver’s Restaurant)
RT2P&B Corporation (Rising Tide Car Wash)
Truong Property Management, LLC (Vo An Restaurant)
Vo An Vietnamese Restaurant, LLC (Vo An Restaurant)
RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval of the resolution
FISCAL IMPACT: This item has no fiscal impact
CONTACT PERSON: Jeffrey L. Oris, Executive Director