MANSFIELD — Financial help may be on the way for Main Street businesses impacted by the ongoing corridor improvement project.
The city’s Downtown Improvement Advisory Board on Thursday recommended a $50,000 grant program that will award $2,500 grants to 20 different businesses on Main Street. The businesses must demonstrate a negative financial impact since the $19.3 million project began on Feb. 24.
The city Board of Control will consider the proposal during its meeting on Tuesday.
Downtown Mansfield Inc. will administer the program, which will include an online application process.
“As we were out on the street last week talking to merchants, we decided that we wanted to try to move a plan forward that we were already working toward a little bit to try to help businesses sooner,” Mayor Jodie Perry said.
“A lot of difficulty can be in cash flow. We’ve had some businesses that have actually lost whole days, and certainly many have been impacted by the construction,” she said.
“We had already been kicking around a grant program of some nature,” the mayor said about what’s been dubbed the Main Street Business Resilience Grant Program to assist during a 20-month project scheduled for completion in October 2026.
The program began with replacing a water main from First Street to Fifth Street, which was expected to be completed by the end of May.
Contractors have been slowed by the discovery of unexpected utility lines, including gas lines, that were not included on local infrastructure maps, so work continues.
As a result, Main Street has been reduced to one lane during the replacement of the century-old water mains, making navigating the street difficult. Utility issues have forced some businesses to close for a day or more, as well as flooding in some locations.
The grant program plan the advisory board recommended would consider applications by Main Street businesses and non-profits from First to Sixth streets that operate “a customer-driven business model reliant on corridor foot traffic … in food service, retail, entertainment and recreational industries.”
Those “brick-and-mortar” businesses must have been in operation “for no less than three months” before the project began and “demonstrate construction-related business impact such as utility outages, decreased sales or revenue.”
The one-time grants are available to businesses that can demonstrate a 25 percent or greater loss in sales or revenue receipts for at least 60 consecutive days compared to the same period in 2024.
Sales or revenue data must originate from accounting software reports, payment processor reports, bank statements or sales tax reports.
The advisory board will review applications in the order received. The deadline to apply is Oct. 1, 2026, or until grant program funds are expended. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis to businesses that meet all eligibility requirements and submit all required documentation.
Priorities will be given to businesses directly impacted by closures or utility disruptions.
Grant funds may be used for rent/lease/mortgage payments, utilities, payroll, business insurance, and marketing/advertising.
The Downtown Improvement Advisory Board was created seven years ago and is funded through a $5 annual vehicle license tax increase for all vehicles registered in the city that was approved by City Council in 2018.
The 12-year tax was created to fund downtown improvement projects under a board appointed by the mayor and approved by local lawmakers.
Current board members are Scott Cardwell, Ben Davis, Ellen Heinz, Chris Hiner, Jennifer Kime, and Matthew Stanfield.
Kime, CEO of Downtown Mansfield Inc., abstained from Thursday’s vote. DMI will receive $5,000 to administer the program.
That license plate revenue, which began to be collected in 2019, amounts to about $250,000 annually. Under its organizational bylaws, the board sets aside 40 percent each year for long-term projects.
