Young Ideas, Backed by Experience
In 2022, 32 businesses either newly opened or expanded their operations in Gardner.
To date in 2023, 10 businesses have either newly opened or expanded their operations.
For a full list of these businesses, please CLICK HERE.
Since January 1, 2023, 22 buildings in the Downtown have been purchased by new developers who have begun to renovate and revitalize these locations. Many of these locations have been vacant, abandoned, or run down for several decades. This work is bringing a new outlook and life in the area for the future of the historic downtown area.
This work includes the construction of almost 200 new apartment housing units, fixing up storefronts, and attracting new types of businesses to the area to revitalize the City’s economy.
For a full list of the buildings that have been sold, CLICK HERE.
In an effort to help locally owned, small businesses recover from the effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic, 23 businesses received a combined total of nearly $300,000 in grants through Gardner’s Microenterprise Assistance Program. Funding for the program was made available under the Community Development Block Grant Administration, and distribution was done through the City’s Community Development and Planning Department.
In order to be eligible for funds, businesses needed to have 5 or fewer employees, and have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, by covering the cost of rent, utilities, internet, cable, and other non-payroll costs that they incurred during the period of time in which their business was closed due to Pandemic restrictions.
Similar to the Micro Enterprise Grants, Mayor Nicholson allocated $400,000 from the funds the City received from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to provide grants of up to $25,000 for locally owned businesses with more than 5 employees, but less than 50 employees.
This grant program covered costs that were incurred by businesses during the timeframe that they were unable to be open due to restrictions during the pandemic, including rent/mortgage payments, internet, utilities, cable, and other non-payroll, non-optional costs that they were required to pay during the period they weren’t able to be open.
Businesses that were considered Shuttered Venues – food/restaurant services, entertainment venues, indoor athletic facilities, etc. who were part of the final group of businesses that were allowed to re-open in the Pandemic Re-opening process – were eligible to receive up to $30,000 in funding to cover all of the costs that were allowed to be covered by the Small Business Support Grant Program.
These businesses had to have under 75 employees and must have shown that they had a business loss during this period. Businesses who received funding from this program were not eligible to receive the Small Business Support Grant as a way to avoid a duplication of funding.
Mayor Nicholson allocated $50,000 from the City’s ARPA funding to distribute as grants of up to $2,500 to businesses located in ground level storefronts throughout the City who wanted to purchase new signs or awnings to advertise their spaces.
These grants covered the costs of purchase and installation of these signs and awnings.
Mayor Nicholson allocated $1.8 million from the City’s ARPA funds to award as grants of up to $50,000 for up to 80% of improvements to commercial building facades throughout the City.
Projects that were eligible for this funding included new windows, roof repairs, brick pointing, painting, siding, and other projects that improved the visual appeal of a building’s façade that was viewable from the street.
During the last term, Mayor Nicholson, working with the City Council, reviewed properties that the City either had ownership of that they were not currently utilizing or had taken through the tax title process and were just sitting on and got those on the market to bring them back on the tax rolls.
These sales generated $360,400.00 in sale revenue for the City and permanently added $37,321.59 permanently back into the City’s tax base, based on the assessed values of these properties, before any development or revitalization efforts are done to them.
For several years, the abandoned Fontaine Brothers Furniture Factory on Leamy Street sat vacant, abandoned, and condemned creating a large nuisance, fire hazard, and safety concern for the neighborhood.
Utilizing City funding and Community Development Block Grant funding, the Nicholson Administration and the Gardner Redevelopment Authority demolished the abandoned and dangerous structure, cleaned the site, and sold the property for development.
This removed a large concern and liability in the area and kept true to Mayor Nicholson’s commitment to continue to turn blight into promise throughout Gardner.
When Mayor Nicholson kicked off his first campaign to run for Mayor in February of 2020, he made a commitment that if elected, he would put forward legislation before the City Council to give our public safety, public health, and building department the tools they needed to prevent problem properties from becoming a public danger and deal stronger with issues of absentee landlords, abandoned buildings and nuisance properties.
In February of 2022, Mayor Nicholson and Councilor George Tyros jointly proposed an Ordinance, which was unanimously adopted by the City Council, to do exactly what was promised.
To read this ordinance, CLICK HERE
In February of 2022, Mayor Nicholson and City Council President Elizabeth Kazinskas jointly proposed an ordinance that was unanimously adopted by the City Council to help promote outdoor restaurant seating in the City.
This ordinance codified the provisions that were enacted by the Governor’s Executive Orders during the COVID-19 Pandemic into the City Code, to give restaurants greater ability to expand their offerings and attract customers.
Prior to the adoption of this ordinance, aside from the exceptions made by the Governor during the COVID-19 Pandemic, outdoor restaurant seating had not been allowed in Gardner. Now it is allowed by approval a seating plan by the City’s Building Commissioner.
To read this ordinance, CLICK HERE.
In January of 2023, Mayor Nicholson proposed an ordinance that was unanimously adopted by the City Council to allow food trucks to operate in the City.
This ordinance allowed for the operation of Food Trucks throughout the City, streamlined the permitting process for them, and regulated how they can operate in certain areas of the City.
Prior to this adoption, the City Code did not allow food trucks to open or operate in Gardner unless they were ice cream trucks.
To read this ordinance, CLICK HERE
In June of 2022, the Massachusetts Economic Assistance Coordinating Council voted to approve two vacant storefront revitalization districts in the City of Gardner. The City had applied for acceptance into this program under previous administrations, but this was the first time Gardner was accepted into the program. This program impacts 34 storefronts in the downtown area and an additional 12 storefronts in the Timpany Boulevard Corridor that were vacant for more than 12 months at the time the Massachusetts EACC voted to approve Gardner’s application.
Under this program, businesses which come to occupy previously vacant storefronts are given state tax reimbursements and city grant funding related to their start-up costs, with the aim of incentivizing them to occupy previously unused retail space. As part of agreeing to take part in this program, the Commonwealth provides up to $10,000 in tax reimbursement related to start-up and fit out costs, while the City provides a matching local grant of $10,000 to the business.
Mayor Nicholson has pledged to fund the City’s share for the first few rounds of applications from the City’s ARPA funds. To date, two locations have benefited from this program in the City.