Huron East Applying for a My Main Street Grant to Improve the Main Street in Brussels
by Bob Montgomery
Huron East has applied for funding through the My Main Street program to help them make improvements to the main street in Brussels.
Huron East Economic Development Officer Taralyn Cronin says the My Main Street program invites communities to apply for a grant until the end of this month that will allow them to make improvements to a limited geographical area, so it can't be the whole main street, just a section of it. She says the eligible main streets in Huron East are the main street in Brussels and the main street in Seaforth but they can only apply for one, so the Economic Development committee decided to apply for the main street in Brussels just because they have the highest vacancy rate right now. So they'll do some improvements on the Brussels Main Street this year and apply next year for funding to address the Seaforth Main Street.
Cronin says the streetscape improvements in Brussels will include some new benches, waste receptacles, some trees on the main street and they also want to install a mural. “Community Futures Huron has an artists rendering that was never put up on a building and it's been sitting around for years. We would like to get that digital print done and put it on a building.” Cronin says they're also looking at accessibility issues. She says most of the downtown stores would be accessible if they had automatic door openers. Some of the stores still have steps but the entrances of the majority of the stores are level with the sidewalk. So they're looking at applying for some automatic door openers, similar to the ones that have been installed in downtown Clinton.
Cronin says they'd also like to add some picnic tables to the main street. She says they have benches now, but they need a few picnic tables so people can eat outside in the summer and they would also be accessible for anyone with mobility issues. Cronin says it might be the end of May before they know if their application has been successful.
