The Davis-Bacon Act requires that all construction workers are paid the prevailing wage. The Davis-Bacon Act applies for any project where CDBG funding is used for construction services. It does not apply to design services.

It is important to consider that any construction work performed anywhere on the property within six months of CDBG funding being used on the facade will also have to be performed paying Davis-Bacon wages. For this reason, it may make sense, depending on increased costs due to Davis-Bacon, to complete façade work six months or more after façade work has been completed.  

We welcome additional improvements. This is a rare opportunity to leverage grant funding to permanently enhance the value of the property and the visibility of the business. If the property owners and/or tenant wish to do improvements in excess of the maximum grant award, then the property owner and/or tenant will be responsible for 100% of costs that exceed the maximum grant amount for the property.

The City of Mesa has several design consultants on-call for the City managed path. Property owners and tenants will have the opportunity to select their architect from this list. The City will make the final decision in matching consultants with participating properties. 

For the self-managed path, the owner may select any licensed architect they wish. The architect works for the property owner, not the City.

The City of Mesa does not prescribe any particular design. Owners and their architects will work together to design the owner’s vision according to their budget. For both paths, the Office of Downtown Transformation will conduct a review and the City’s Design Review Board will also have the opportunity to provide comment, similar to other renovations along arterial streets. The City reserves the right to require modifications, particularly in cases where the right-of-way or public safety is affected.

Currently, the city-managed path covers all design costs. Design costs will be negotiated between the design consultant and the City. Construction grant awards are based on a formula. All properties accepted into the program receive $10,000 plus $400 per linear foot of façade frontage. (i.e. a property with a 25’ frontage would be eligible for $10,000 plus the linear foot amount: 25 X $400 = $10,000. Therefore, the total grant amount for this property would be $20,000.)

The self-managed path reimburses up to $20,000 for design. Construction services are reimbursed up to $25,000 and requires a 50% match. For example, if the owner paid $40,000 for construction, they could be reimbursed for $20,000. If construction was $100,000, they could only be reimbursed for the maximum of $25,000.

Based on funding availability, the City is under no obligation to offer these amounts on future projects. Inquire with a program representative for more up-to-date information.

Yes. It is not the responsibility of the City to inform or work directly with your tenant.  We will attempt to make information about any project easy to access.

Yes. The Façade Improvement Program will result in improvements to private property facades, therefore the City cannot act without the express signed consent of the property owner. The property owner must be an active and informed participant, even if the application is submitted by a tenant.

At this time, only applicants accepted for the design phase are eligible to receive funding in the construction phase. There is not a re-application; however, the construction phase will require additional paperwork.

For design, no. For construction, yes. Participants in the city-managed path agree to provide funding match dollars equal to 15% of the total construction grant amount. Since the maximum amount any one property would be eligible to receive for construction is $50,000, the highest amount of match dollars any participant would be required to fund is $7,500. The matching dollar amount will be less than this for many participants (i.e. a $10,000 award would require a $1,500 match).

For the self-managed path, the City currently reimburses 50% of construction costs up to $25,000

The City of Mesa has worked hard to minimize, and in many cases remove, the obligation of CDBG reporting from the property owner and/or tenant. Mesa’s Housing and Community Development Department will be responsible for reporting to the Office of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Participants will be required to keep on file all program paperwork for 10 years.

The program is not accepting new applications at this time. Contact a program representative for more information.

There are two façade improvement paths: a city-managed path and a self-managed path. Each has it’s own benefits and responsibilities. Generally, the city-managed path is for smaller property owners whose improvements are not time sensitive. The self-managed path is for owners that have funding to pay expenses upfront and have a more urgent timeline. Grant paperwork under the city-managed path is handled by the city. The self-managed path requires that the owner or designee handle much of he grant paperwork.

Design is funded 100% by a the CDBG grant, so no funding is required by the property owner or tenant for either the city-managed or self-managed paths.

For the city-managed construction phase of the project, the property owner and/or tenant will be required to pay 7.5% of the construction grant amount before construction and 7.5% after (i.e. a $20,000 grant amount would require a $3,000 match, $1,500 before construction and $1,500 after construction). The self-managed path must fund all services, both design and construction, upfront and in full. Projects accepted into the program and meeting all program requirements will be reimbursed for design after permits are issued and for construction after a certificate of occupancy is issued.