BIG Grants Available For Downtown
BOBBY ARDOIN
St. Landry Now.com Editor
Opelousas downtown business and commercial owners have until April 30 to apply for up to $10,000 in matched Building Improvement Grant funding in order to enhance the appearance of their buildings or make improvements of historic structures.
Funded by the Opelousas Downtown Development District through a partnership with the City of Opelousas and Opelousas Main Street, the annual grant program that started in 2021 enables owners of buildings in the downtown district to provide dollar-for-dollar match funding to improve historic structural features, window or door repairs, roofing or masonry, walls, ceilings or plumbing upgrades.
The BIG rehab program is designed to help preserve the preservation of downtown commercial structures, according to Brittany Cretchain, project manager for the ODD.
Guidelines for the grant improvements are intended to focus on cultural identity, stimulate private investment and make the downtown area more welcoming, according to a press release issued in connection with the annual project.
Sarah Branton, an appointed ODD member, has noted that the BIG grant enabled six downtown business owners to make either interior or exterior improvements on their buildings in 2025.
The BIG grant recipients last year included CASA of Evangeline and St. Landry, Granger Group,
The Myers Home, the LIttle Yellow Cottage, the Parlor On Maint and the Townhouse Motel.
Applications can be delivered in person to Brittany Cretchain at her 5367 I-49 Service Road office or sent to her by mail or online.
Mailed-in applications need to be postmarked no later than April 30, the press release said.
