More businesses lobby to join Longmont Downtown Development Authority

Greg Ellis figures joining the Longmont Downtown Development Authority will help spruce up his bookkeeping business on the 700 block of Main Street. Ellis will also be more connected to downtown activities and promotions.

“We can fix up the signage, spruce up the buildings and do a number of other things,” said Ellis, co-owner of Ellis Bottom Line Bookkeeping, 729 Main St. “And we will be more of a part of the downtown community. That will help us a lot.”

Bottom Line Bookkeeping has been in Longmont for 15 years and Ellis bought the business in October. 

Ellis is among four other business and property owners close to downtown who have successfully lobbied to be included in the LDDA. The redevelopment group encompasses 242 acres and spans First Avenue to Longs Peak and Martin Street to Terry Street.

As part of its mission, the LDDA offers business and property owners several incentives to support the maintenance and improvement of historic buildings in the district, according to its website.

Last month, the city council intially approved the expansion of the LDDA boundaries to include Ellis’s business and properties at 33 South Pratt Parkway along with 721, 723, 727 Main Street. Ellis said the business owners all agreed to seek entry to LDDA to take advantage of the group’s ability to make their buildings more attractive.

“We just wanted to make a more inviting atmosphere,” he said. The city council will make a final vote on the extended boundaries at its April 12 meeting.

The LDDA boundary has expanded since it was formed in 1982 to bring in a number of properties north of Longs Peak Avenue, according to a staff report to the city council. That expansion allowed for the redevelopment and the construction of the Roosevelt Park Apartments, the report states.

Once inside LDDA boundaries, business owners can apply for a grant to improve the facade of their buildings. The maximum grant is 25% of the total facade costs with a cap of $10,000 contingent on the scale of the project and available funds, according to the LDDA website.

Other grants offered by the LDDA are for retail conversions, signage and residential property. There is also the Tax Increment Financing Investment Program, aimed at larger scale redevelopment projects in the downtown area, the website states.

Business and property owners can also receive assistance with business listings or property listings on the LDDA website, Kimberlee McKee, executive director of the LDDA, said via email. District members can be part of joint events or promotions, participate in a gift card program, and add events to the LDDA calendar, McKee said.

“We provide communication and troubleshooting for business/property owners with construction projects, road closures, property development, clean and safety issues and more,” she said.