The City of Orillia presented $55,000 in grants to two new projects in the City’s core through the second intake of the 2021 Downtown Tomorrow Community Improvement Plan (DTCIP) grant program.
“The Downtown Tomorrow grant program is helping local businesses create a stronger, more vibrant downtown with more commercial and residential spaces,” said Mayor Steve Clarke. “As we move towards recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, these projects will be important for attracting new residents, visitors, and businesses to the area.”
The DTCIP program includes financial incentives designed to stimulate development in the City’s core. The second intake closed on April 30, 2021. Grants awarded include façade improvements; building improvements for new commercial spaces; residential grants to create two new two-bedroom units in downtown Orillia; and a feasibility/design study grant for the development of a new multi-unit townhouse.
“Over the past year, we have seen an uptick in Building Improvement Grant and Residential Grant Program applications,” said Laura Thompson, Senior Manager of Business Development. “This is encouraging because these improvements add more jobs and housing to the City’s core, and drive confidence in Orillia’s economic recovery.”
Grants awarded through the second intake were for properties located at:
- 163 Mary St. – $50,000 (former dental office)
- Dr. John T. Seki and Dr. Neda Seki are creating a new mixed-use building with a ground-floor medical office and retail space. The second and third floors of the building will be two-bedroom residential units. The commercial space is anticipated to employ eight people and the residential space will create housing for up to eight people.
- 61 Front St. S. – $5,000 (vacant lot)
- The owners of 61 Front St. S. are pursuing development of a multi-unit townhouse on the vacant lot with four or more units. They were approved for a Feasibility/Design Study Grant, which will facilitate the preliminary topographical survey and site plan.
“We are very grateful and honoured to be the recipients of the DTCIP grant,” said John and Neda Seki. “We have lived in this area since 2002 and feel privileged and blessed to be able to provide ongoing services and to give back to the community that has given us so much. This new project will allow us to merge our medical practice and medical spa clinic into the downtown core and also to have the opportunity to provide much needed additional residential space for downtown Orillia. The DTCIP grant program allows entrepreneurs like us to take the next steps to make downtown Orillia a more vibrant place to live and work.”
The next DTCIP intake, the final one for the year, has a deadline for applications of Oct. 29, 2021. Potential applicants are encouraged to register for the DTCIP virtual community workshop on Sept. 28, 2021. Potential applicants must attend the virtual community workshop if they have not previously taken part in a mandatory pre-consultation with the City of Orillia Business Development Division. Register online at orillia.ca/downtownCIP.
For more information on the DTCIP Grant Program, or to register for a virtual community workshop, contact the City of Orillia Business Development Division at 705-325-4900, or visit orillia.ca/downtownCIP.