Council Acts to Give Downtown Business an Assist

Hoping to boost business activity downtown, the City Council this week allocated $10,000 to a merchant group and agreed to waive fees for some new construction.

With the money, the Downtown Business Assn. will be able to hire a consultant to help market the area, known as Old Town Tustin, and launch fund-raising projects to help revitalize it.

“With economic conditions of the last several years, there’s a desire to see some level of increased activity downtown,” said Christine Shingleton, assistant city manager.

As an incentive for business owners to upgrade their facilities, the city will waive permit fees for new construction projects valued at up to $85,000. Those permits would generally cost $1,500 to $2,000, officials said.

City officials, who have been meeting with downtown business owners for several months, said they see the move as a first step in the revitalization of downtown.

Council members said they will also consider further assistance, such as a loan, for the merchants group.

Among other endeavors, the group plans to start an aggressive marketing campaign to attract new businesses to the area, bordered roughly by the Santa Ana and Costa Mesa freeways, Newport Avenue and First Street.

“We haven’t seen the growth downtown in the last few years that we’d like to see,” Councilman Jeffrey M. Thomas said. “We need to move forward on this.”

Councilman Jim Potts added, “We will reap the benefits tenfold.”