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Grant program helps small businesses on MLK Jr. Drive
JVlayor Kasim Reed with
grantTecepients City Half
The 14 winners of the MLK Ignite Capital
Grant program, which awards $100,000 to
small businesses located on Martin Luther
King, Jr. Drive, was revealed by Mayor Kasim
Reed during a ceremony in November.
Reed directed Invest Atlanta, the city’s
economic development arm, to create the
grant program as part of the city’s overall
efforts to revitalize the Martin Luther King, Jr.
Drive Corridor. The 14 small businesses will
receive $5,000-$10,000 each to meet their
immediate, short-term needs, such as building
facade upgrades, property improvements and
equipment purchases.
“The street honoring Dr. King’s legacy in
Atlanta should and will be one of the most
attractive, vibrant and important streets in
our city,” Reed said. “By investing in small
businesses along the Martin Luther King,
Jr. Drive Corridor, we are supporting the
women and men who have supported their
communities for years. These businesses offer
local residents more choices to shop, dine and
work closer to home. I congratulate each one
The grant recipients are:
* Latifah Allah, Unity Hair Salon;
* Terrance Barron, University Barbershop;
* Khadijah Baynes, The Beauty Industry;
* Phoebe Dawson, Alfonzo Dawson Mortuary, Inc.;
* Kenneth Dean, All-Pro Insurance Agency;
* Marion Hargett, Jamal’s Buffalo Wings;
* Imani Maisonelt, Imani’s Too Hair & More Salon;
* Edward Martin, Murden’s Barber Shop;
* Jaseph Moultrie, Jr., Aesthetic Ink & Design;
* Dr. Charles Nichols, Alphia Health & Wellness Solutions;
* Corey Reeves, Aldridge Services, Inc.;
* Hope Stoney, Hope Health & Wellness Center;
* Andrew Taylor, Pro Cuts ATL; and
* Pauline Warrior, Warnun Industries, Ltd.
of our grant recipients, and look forward to
the changes and improvements they make
with the support of the MLK Ignite Capital
Grant.”
Each small business was required to
provide 30 percent of the cost of the capital
investment they proposed to make for
their business. The grant award covered the
remaining 70 percent of the capital cost. The
grant funds come from the $10 million federal
TIGER VII grant awarded to the City of
Atlanta in August 2016, and is the centerpiece
of the $35 million renovation to improve
safety and mobility and promote economic
development along more than seven miles of
this this historic street.
“The future strength and equity of
Atlanta’s economy depend largely on making
effective investments in commercial corridors
like MLK Drive,” said Dr. Eloisa Klementich,
President and CEO of Invest Atlanta. “The
work we’re doing to support businesses
through this program goes hand in hand with
our economic growth strategies to increase
small business activity and provide access to
retail amenities in target areas throughout the
• _ >5
city.
The MLK Capital Ignite Grants were
funded through the Economic Opportunity
Fund for Business Retention and Expansion,
approved by the Atlanta City Council in
November 2016. Under the leadership of
Mayor Reed, the Invest Atlanta board of
directors gave final approval for the funding in
August 2017. 03
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22 December 2017 \UH
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