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Business & Development-Economic Development Division

BUSINESS & DEVELOPMENT

Economic Development Division

Diane Marlin, Mayor

August 2018

PHILO ROAD BUSINESS GRANTS The City has expanded the Business Grants program to include the Philo Road Business District in concert with the 2018- 2021 City Council and Mayor Priority #6, to make southeast Urbana an economic priority, with an emphasis on the Philo Road Business District. In FY18, there will be up to five, $1,000 opening grants available for new and expanding businesses including retail stores, restaurants, creative industry, or any minority or female-owned business. More information is available online at: urbanaillinois.us/incentives

The $5,000 for the new grants will come from funds available in the FY18 budget as a result of the decline in General Fund payments under the Build Urbana and Beringer Commons incentive programs, both of which have been replaced by the Think Urbana incentive program. The City’s prior Philo Road Business District incentive program was discontinued in 2013 due to the limited availability of non-TIF funds. As with TIF-funded grants, the program requires a minimum one-year lease, business counseling, a ribbon cutting ceremony, and receipts for building improvements in excess of the grant award.

809 WEST NEVADA Green Street Realty has completed construction on a new brick apartment building at the intersection of Lincoln and Nevada. The $3.5 million project consists of a three story 18-unit building containing three-bed, three-bath units. Units are currently available to be leased by the room or in full and feature granite countertops, furnishings, on-site parking, and stainless steel appliances.

THE PLACE FOR CHILDREN WITH AUTISM A new 5,000 square feet center has opened in Lincoln Square Mall in the former Health Alliance space. The center will offer applied behavior analysis therapy for children aged 2-6 on the autism spectrum. The center plans to begin with 12 children with opportunities for later expansion.

LANDMARK HOTEL Chicago-based broker Rick George of Avison Young listed the Landmark Hotel property for auction on the real estate website Ten-X Commercial. The listing page shows a minimum bid of $600,000 and a refundable participation deposit of $10,000. The auction will commence on September 11th and run through September 13th.

URBANA ART EXPO The 4th Annual Urbana Art Expo will be September 14th-16th, 2018 at the Urbana Civic Center, cosponsored by 40 North Champaign County Arts Council. The juried fine arts exhibition and sale will feature the work of 17 local artists: Bekki Canine, Carolina Rodriguez, Cindy Sampson, Drea Aarons, EKAH, Erica Rae Stark, Esther Roh, Fraya Replinger, Kelly Hieronymus, Kirsten Gilmore, Lynn Hawkinson Smith, Marc Anthony-Macon, Marie Casteel, Megan Hinds, Ralph Roether, Sekani Reed, & Sierra Murphy. The 4th Annual Urbana Art Expo will be free and open to the public.

URBANA FINE ARTS STUDIO The Urbana Fine Arts Studio moved to an expanded space at the Pines. The Urbana Fine Arts Studio offers a variety of ballet programs, including for both beginning children and adults. They also offer Tap, Hip Hop, and Jazz dance classes.

Updates Page 2 September 6, 5:30pm-7:30pm: Open Scene Open Mic. Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center, 202 S Broadway. September 7, 5:30pm: Urbana First Fridays, Downtown Urbana. September 13, 3:00pm-5:00pm: Landis Farms Neighborhood Tour. Meet at 2510 Fairfield Drive. Snacks and drinks to follow at Toro Loco, 1601 N Cunningham. September 25, 5:30pm-7:30pm: Urbana Business Association and Young Professionals of Champaign Urbana Connections Over Cocktails. Hudson Farm, 1341 County Rd 1800. September 26, 5:30pm-7:30pm: Open Scene Open Mic. Urbana Dance Company, 122 W Main. December 3-5, Illinois Enterprise Zone Association Fall Conference, Urbana-Champaign. December 4, 3:00pm-5:00pm: Urbana Downtown Neighborhood Tour. Location TBD. December 5, 5:30pm: Urbana First Fridays, Downtown Urbana. Additional community and business events can be found at business.urbanabusiness.com/events/calendar/ and visitchampaigncounty.org/events Upcoming Events Page 3 Development

For a more comprehensive report, please refer to the attached PDF.

Created by Libby Horwitz, Economic Development Coordinator. Please forward questions to erhorwitz@urbanaillinois.us

2018 August Business Development Report.pdf

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Last modified:Thursday, October 4, 2018 - 13:42
- Author: BridgetB