Mineral Wells Area News

MINERAL WELLS, Texas — The Mineral Wells Economic Development Corporation is launching a new Facade Grant Program with $125,000 in funding to help businesses improve their exteriors throughout the city.

City Council is expected to approve the program next week, which is funded through sales tax revenue. Applications will be available immediately after approval.

“We are budgeting $125,000 this year for exterior renovations in our Facade Grant program. That’s for new windows, awnings, signage—whether your building is stucco or brick—whatever needs attention,” said David Miller, Deputy Director for Economic Development.

The program offers several matching grant options based on specific improvement types. The main facade grant provides 50% matching funds up to $10,000 for projects totaling $20,000.

Additional matching grants include $2,500 for awnings, $1,000 for fencing and screening, $2,500 for signage, $5,000 for sidewalk improvements and $2,500 for murals.

“By separating out awnings and other items, we’re basically encouraging people to do more than just one thing,” Miller explained.

The program isn’t limited to downtown businesses but applies to all commercial properties within Mineral Wells city limits.

“This is not just downtown. This is a problem all over,” Miller said, referencing widespread aesthetic challenges.

The sidewalk grant offers particularly strong support for enhancing pedestrian areas, especially in the historic district.

“Sidewalks is one of the key pieces, especially downtown. You’ve got a lot of old sidewalks, and so we’ll match $5,000 worth of sidewalk work done around your business,” Miller said.

While sidewalk improvements require permits and city approval, Miller noted they’re often overlooked in public budgets.

“Cities don’t often pay to replace sidewalks. They’re not a high priority. So if a citizen came to the city and said, ‘Hey, we’re going to redo this section of the sidewalk,’ the likelihood of getting city approval is strong,” he said.

Miller cited a similar grant program in Breckenridge, Texas, as inspiration. “That facade program with just one building sparked 14 more building improvements in their downtown,” he said.

The goal is to generate a similar ripple effect throughout Mineral Wells.

“Investment breeds more investment. People see action—they want to be part of it. They say, ‘Hey, this seems like a healthy place to invest our money,’” Miller said.

For downtown projects, the Main Street program will help oversee applications to ensure compatibility with historic and design standards.

“That’s the benefit of having Main Street oversee improvements downtown. When you incentivize something, you’re trying to make it better—and not everything people do automatically makes things better,” he said.

The program requires comprehensive upgrades—not just cosmetic fixes.

“We want to make sure we’re truly incentivizing something better. If you want to paint the outside of your building, but your second-floor windows are all broken, you’ll need to fix all visible blight—not just part of it,” Miller said.

Reimbursements are only issued after work is completed and inspected.

“If we come back and say, ‘You painted your building but didn’t fix the windows,’ you’re not eligible until that’s done,” he said.

Miller expects strong demand due to the limited funding and urges interested businesses to apply as soon as the program opens.

“We need people to know. The biggest thing is awareness,” he said. “Even after two years of doing this in Breckenridge, there were plenty of people who still didn’t know it existed.”

While beautification is one aim, the program’s greater goal is to fuel ongoing economic development.

“We don’t beautify just for beauty’s sake,” Miller said. “This is about creating momentum. You’re going to see buildings become available that hadn’t been in years. A lot of local work could happen as a result.”

To apply for the Facade Grant Program, download the application here:

For more information, contact David Miller. His email is dmiller@mineralwellstx.gov or 940-521-8809. You can also download the application HERE.