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Published on January 15, 2025
Boulder's Affordable Commercial Pilot Program Injects Over $840K into Local Business VenturesSource: City of Boulder

Boulder, Colorado is putting its money where its mouth is when it comes to supporting small businesses and community-driven projects. The city's Affordable Commercial Pilot Program has just handed out a substantial sum of over $840,000 in grants to three lucky recipients, promising to breathe new life into local ventures. A collective from city staff, the Small Business Development Center, Community Connectors, and the Downtown Management Commission came together to review applications, doling out scores based on the potential community impact and the promise of project longevity, according to the City of Boulder.

The handpicked trio includes radio stalwarts KGNU, which snagged a grant to reinvent a massive 10,000-square-foot space into a community media center. But it doesn't stop there, they plan to generously share the love by offering affordable space for a café, and low-cost rates for arts groups and nonprofits seeking meeting and performance spaces. Meanwhile, Top Hat Supply for Journeys is set to quickly transform its East Pearl outpost into a nonprofit incubator and gallery for artists, complete with rent subsidies and capital improvements. Finally, The New Local, a bastion for women-owned small enterprises is poised to keep its fees low for at least five coming years, thanks to a grant that will cover heating upgrades and a rent subsidy.

The city's Community Vitality Department is not resting on its laurels either. Beyond the pilot program, initiatives like the Mobile Vending Cart Program and the Outdoor Dining Pilot Program are touted as inventive ways for businesses to stretch their legs, literally onto the streets of the Pearl Street Mall. These street-savvy schemes encourage local businesses to use mobile carts and expand outdoor areas to better serve their customers.