Business Grant Program Rejuvenated With $200,000

After spending all of the funds in its business grant program, the Whitefish Bay Business Improvement District is rejuvenating the program with the hope of filling additional vacancies on Silver Spring Drive.

Whitefish Bay's retail incentive grant program was launched in 2009 with a pot of $200,000 that was to last through 2014. After three years, the money has already been spent.

"We wanted to get new businesses on the street as soon as we could," said Sendik's Food Markets co-owner Ted Balistreri, a member of the BID board. 

Here's a brief history of the retail incentive grant program:

• 2009: Simon Oliver, $20,000; City Market, $50,000;
• 2010: Minoan Intimate Apparel, $20,000; Three Wishes, $25,000
• 2012: Erik's Bike Shop, $42,500; The Bay, $42,500

On Monday night, the Village Board agreed to lend another $200,000 to extend the program for another five years past the 2014 expiration date. In effect, the grant money will be made immediately available and is intended to last seven years.

"We are looking at the inventory on the street and we're saying, 'How much more money do we realistically need, and how much more money can we expect the BID and the TID to fund," Balistreri said. "We thought this was a fair amount."

The village provides the initial money for the grant program. Half of that money is reimbursed through special assessments on BID members, and the other half comes from increases in assessed value in the Silver Spring tax incremental finance district.

Business incentive grants have contributed to filling most of the bigger vacancies with new businesses, such as a Erik's Bike Shop, The Bay and City Market. 

"We have kind of done our thing," said BID board member Jim O'Connell from M&I Bank. "We're not going to spend money on businesses that might want to come in if they're not the right fit."

• Related: Whitefish Bay and Shorewood Differ on Business Grant Public Funding