Myrtle Avenue Businesses Seek Grants For Building And Streetscape Improvements

Myrtle Avenue businesses are hoping to get $200,000 in grant money to improve the look and functionality of local storefronts and building facades on the three-block stretch between Washington Park and Clermont Avenue, and they have the support of Community Board 2’s (CB 2) Economic Development and Employment Committee.

The application is for the New York Main Street grant program, which has previously awarded five grants to support 17 Myrtle Avenue property owners and 41 projects — via the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership (MARP) — totaling $827,500 in matching, reimbursement grants.

According to Chad Purkey, director of planning and economic development at MARP, the grant would also be a tool to fill empty storefronts; he told CB 2 committee members that Myrtle Avenue has a 16 percent vacancy rate. The gist of the idea is that repairing broken brickwork, restoring storefronts, finishing interior improvements, upgrading HVAC air systems, and removing solid-panel security gates will make the strip more appealing to potential business owners/tenants.

The full board of CB 2 will be voting tonight on whether to take the Economic Development Committee’s recommendation to support MARP’s grant application effort.