Increased funding is being made available for an innovative program in Las Cruces repairing storefronts.
The program, which was inaugurated two years with a vote of the Las Cruces City Council, committed $400,000 to the storefront work, funding which came out of a $24 million grant the city originally received through the American Rescue Plan Act.
That act was designed to help businesses during the Covid 19 pandemic and national economic shutdown and made available grants of $2,500 for stores that were subject to vandalism during that period of time.
While the Las Cruces effort was tapped into by businesses with 40 employee or less, around $248,000 in funds were never used.
Now members of the city council have voted to approve a proposal increasing the grants to $5,000. In making the grants larger, Las Cruces is “recognizing the ongoing challenges faced by small businesses and the increasing cost of repairs,” Celina Morales, deputy director of economic for the city, told the council.
What is officially called the Small Business Store Front Repair Program specifically addresses property damage related to “broken windows, broken doors, graffiti, broken locks, damage to landscaping, and etchings on windows.”
Studies have shown that damages to stores increased nationally during the pandemic for the simple reason that the stores were closed up, and such properties always attract vandalism. Other reports indicate that stores owned by Asian Americans were particularly targeted because Covid 19’s origins were in China.
May 16, 2025
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy of Unsplash
