Salem Grant Set To Spruce Up Point Neighborhood Storefronts

SALEM, MA — A stretch of Point neighborhood businesses are in line for a glow-up with the help of a $10,000 MassDevelopment grant.

The North Shore Community Development Coalition secured the grant from MassDevelopment to upgrade the storefronts and facades of the Lafayette Street businesses as part of the Salem Small Business Economic Recovery project.

The grant will fund a design to paint the phrase "Hola Mi Gente" ("Hello My People") on the Harbor Street side of the building, surrounded by leaves and greenery, as the mural wraps around the building. The leaves will evolve to reflect what each business offers — including hair products, clothing, shoes, groceries and candles.

The goal is to beautify the building and make checking out the small businesses more enticing for customers.

"This grant will add vibrancy to a significant building in Salem’s historic and diverse Point neighborhood in a way that reflects the local community and draws foot traffic to the small businesses located there," MassDevelopment President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rivera said. "MassDevelopment has been proud to support the great work of North Shore Community Development Coalition and their efforts to strengthen the Point neighborhood, and we're excited to deliver this targeted assistance today."

MassDevelopment's Commonwealth Places initiative aims to engage and mobilize community members to make individual contributions to placemaking projects, with the incentive of a funding match from MassDevelopment if the crowdfunding goal is reached.

MassDevelopment said last year it awarded $224,965 in matching funds for 21 projects across the state.

More information on the funding program is available here.

Did you find this article useful? Invite a friend to subscribe to Patch.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)