Odie’s Deli in Soldotna is undergoing exterior renovations as the newest business to partake in the city’s Storefront Improvement Program.
Director of Economic Development and Planning Stephanie Queen said Odie’s and Mossy Oaks Properties on K-Beach the two most recent additions to the successful program.
Queen: “So we created it in 2012 and it was one of several strategies we focused on to try and put more energy and vitality back in our commercial downtown, we have been investing in the parks, investing in programmings, we’ve been focusing more on economic development and the storefront program is just one piece of that strategy that assists private business owners with sprucing up their existing business facades.”
The goal of the program is to assist up to three businesses a year and has helped nine businesses.
Queen: “Including the ones currently under construction, I think total private investment in the program has been about $250,000, of which the city has reimbursed approximately $50,000 to those nine business owners.”
When participating in the program, businesses fund the improvements initially and then are reimbursed up to $7,500.
Odie’s Deli reportedly plans to create a new color scheme and add some outdoor awnings to transform the look of their building.