£1.5m to be used to repair and update shops in Medway
Grants will be available for local shop owners
Up to £1.5m of funding is to be made available to businesses to improve shopfronts and bring empty units back into use.
Medway Council is to use the government’s Pride in Place Impact Fund money to repairing and update tired looking stores and clean up public spaces.
A £300,000 pot will be open to local businesses across Medway to help improve the external appearance of their retail and hospitality premises.
Grants of up to £2,500 will also be available for shop owners to make repairs, repaint their signs, and update their frontage with new lighting.
Up to £5,000 will be available for structural works, including enhancements which will make premises more accessible.
Applications from businesses for this scheme are now open. Details, as well as how to apply, are available on the council’s website.
Meanwhile, a second scheme will see £800,000 dedicated to street improvements for Gillingham and Chatham town centres.
It will be used for projects which were co-created by both communities, including those from the Gillingham Vision & Action Plan.
Architecture students from University of Kent will collaborate with Medway Development Company – the council’s arms-length construction company – to deliver these updates and projects in the town centres.
The Partners in Investment Scheme will use up to £400,000 to bring empty shops back into use.
The initial funding will be used to see the viability of the scheme before further funding is sought to roll it out on a wider scale.
Medway Council says some sites have already been identified to test out the work.
Cllr Harinder Mahil, Medway Council’s portfolio holder for economic and social regeneration and inward investment, said: “We are moving at pace to get all three of these schemes up and running as quickly as possible, as we know this funding can help to make a real difference to residents and businesses across Medway.
“I am particularly excited to see the Medway Shopfront Grant Scheme come forward, which will directly support local businesses and help to revitalise and breath new life into our town centres across Medway.
“The key theme running through all three of these Pride in Place Impact Fund schemes is partnership, whether it is working with key local stakeholders, Medway businesses or the private sector.
“These schemes will enable us to work together to make sure this funding makes a difference here in Medway.”
The PIPIF has three main priorities which include improvements to community spaces, public spaces, and both high streets and town centres.
Medway was allocated the £1.5m in funding last year and in January the authority’s cabinet approved the utilisation of the funds through these schemes.