If you run a shop, restaurant or office in Morris Park, Van Nest, Westchester Square, Indian Village, Little Yemen or along Pelham Parkway, the state has set aside $1 million to help businesses like yours fix up their storefronts. Most of it, $850,000, is for grants to businesses. No application date has been announced.
The money is part of a combined $20 million state Downtown Revitalization Initiative and NY Forward award for Greater Morris Park, announced in February 2025. Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson's office applied before the state's Oct. 18, 2024, deadline.
A local planning committee co-chaired by Gibson and Bronx Chamber of Commerce President Lisa Sorin drew up a list of projects. In May 2026, the state announced the 10 it will fund, using $19.4 million of the $20 million.
The storefront fund is the only one of the 10 that pays businesses directly.
What the money can pay for
The fund will pay for facade and storefront improvements, signs and awnings, and some interior work, including heating and air conditioning, permanent commercial equipment and entry upgrades, according to the Strategic Investment Plan, the state-approved document that lays out the projects.
Some of that work may need a standard permit from the city Department of Buildings, the plan says.
Who can apply
Every business in the program's area will be eligible to apply, including property owners and businesses with an active lease, the plan says.
In its application, the Borough President's office described the area's approximate boundaries as Pelham Parkway on the north, East Tremont and Westchester avenues on the south, Bronx Park and White Plains Road on the west, and the Hutchinson River Parkway on the east. The plan lists the neighborhoods as Morris Park, Van Nest, Westchester Square, Indian Village, Pelham Parkway and Little Yemen. The plan describes the final edges a little differently.
No agency has published an address lookup. If you're near an edge, ask one of the three business improvement districts listed below, which the plan names to help owners apply.
What you'd put in
Each business that gets a grant must put in a match of at least 25%, according to the plan. The match is on top of the $1 million: the plan expects owners to put in $212,500 combined against $850,000 in grants. On a $10,000 grant, that's at least $2,500 of your own.
Who runs it
The Bronx Economic Development Corporation, known as BxEDC, will run the fund. It plans to hire an outside grant administrator to process applications, check eligibility and pay out the money.
A selection committee of community members will review applications and recommend which ones get funded, judging the design quality and impact of each proposal. The other $150,000 of the fund goes to running it: $80,000 for grant administration, $50,000 for a design services provider, $15,000 for small business engagement and $5,000 for program administration. The plan does not say whether owners will get design help directly.
BxEDC has not said publicly who the administrator will be or when it will be hired.
The plan names three business improvement districts to reach out to businesses and help owners and tenants apply: the Morris Park BID, the Westchester Square BID and the White Plains Road BID.
Morris Park BID: Morris Park Avenue from Unionport Road and Amethyst Street to Williamsbridge Road. 718-684-6425, ed.morrisparkbid@gmail.com, morrisparkbid.org.
Westchester Square BID: 43 Westchester Square. 718-597-4629, wsbid.org.
White Plains Road BID: the Pelham Parkway and White Plains Road shopping district. 708 Lydig Ave., Suite 206. 917-440-6076, directorwhiteplainsroadbid@gmail.com, pelhamparkway.com.
What hasn't been announced
The state's announcement, the plan and the program's website, gmpdri.com, do not say how much a single business can receive, what the largest grant will be, how many businesses will be funded or when applications open. The plan also doesn't say whether grants are paid up front or after the work is done, whether applications are first-come or judged together, whether a tenant needs the landlord's consent, or who will sit on the selection committee.
BxEDC's last storefront grant program, near Yankee Stadium, was also a $1 million state grant. It funded eight businesses. News 12, which reported the recipients, did not say how much each one received or whether all of the money went to grants.
The plan gives the fund 17 months from start to finish, but no start date.
What to do now
- Get in touch with the nearest of the three business improvement districts and ask to be told when applications open.
- Write down what you'd fix first: the sign, the awning, the front, the heating or air conditioning.
- Work out where your match would come from: at least $1 for every $4 of grant.
- Before you start any work you hope the grant will cover, ask your business improvement district whether work done before you apply will count.
The rest of the $19.4 million
The 10 funded projects, as the state announced them:
| Project | Amount |
|---|---|
| Former St. Francis Xavier School becomes a community resource hub with a preschool and gym | $3,500,000 |
| Matthews Muliner Playground | $3,500,000 |
| Bronx Excellence Middle School, new kitchen and safety upgrades | $2,822,000 |
| New public plaza at the planned Morris Park Metro-North station | $2,750,000 |
| Pelham Parkway-Van Nest Library, 2147 Barnes Ave. | $2,260,000 |
| Bronx Excellence Elementary School, kitchen, cafeteria and gym | $1,140,000 |
| Small Business Improvement Fund | $1,000,000 |
| St. Peter's Westchester Square Community Engagement Center | $938,000 |
| Morris Park Avenue street trees, planters, tree guards and banners, Unionport to Williamsbridge Road | $750,000 |
| Vacant building at 2405 E. Tremont Ave. turned into a workspace for new-hire training | $740,000 |
If your business is on Morris Park Avenue between Unionport and Williamsbridge roads: the street tree, planter and banner work planned there, sponsored by the Morris Park BID, runs 30 months in the plan, with no start date. Ask the BID when it starts if you're timing your own storefront work.
We'll keep this updated
When BxEDC or the BIDs announce grant sizes and an application date, we'll add them here.
Thanks. We'll tell you when applications open.
Sources: Office of the Governor, Feb. 27, 2025, and May 13, 2026, "Governor Hochul Announces 10 Transformational Projects in New York City as Part of Downtown Revitalization Initiative"; Greater Morris Park DRI Strategic Investment Plan (ny.gov, May 2026), pages 7, 17, 19, 78, 92, 152–156; Office of the Bronx Borough President, Greater Morris Park DRI application (2024) and Dec. 18, 2024, release; News 12.