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After years of waiting, the city is finally unveiling its newest and most ambitious program to rehabilitate the facades of older buildings Downtown.

At Tuesday's City Council meeting, Assistant City Manager Karen Masbruch will unveil details of plans to give grant money — which must be matched by the business owners — to help older buildings retain some of their historic character and charm.

The project will use $530,000 that has been sitting in an account at the Business Development Finance Corp. to fix up the exteriors of Downtown buildings constructed before 1948.

The program could be noteworthy because it could provide residents with visible progress Downtown — something that city leaders are desperately hoping for — at a relatively low cost, Masbruch said.

"I think it could have a lot of impact, especially if it's a prominent building" that is being restored, Masbruch said. "I think it could have a lot of visual impact for a relatively small amount of money."

Mayor Bob Walkup said he supports the program because he wants residents to see progress taking place Downtown.

"I'll listen to any proposal that will show progress," Walkup said. "That's very important."

Masbruch said about 40 buildings could be included in the program area, which runs from the north side of Pennington Street to the south side of Congress Street, and from Church Avenue to Toole Avenue.

"That's the area of focus — mainly around the streetcar alignment," Masbruch said.

The first phase of the program will give up to eight applicants $7,500 to come up with design plans to refurbish the exterior of their buildings. The city will have five yet-to-be-determined architects who have experience with historical buildings on call to come up with the designs for refurbishing the facades.

The deadline to submit applications for the $7,500 is July 15, Masbruch said. The eight finalists will be picked by Aug. 1.

After being selected for the architectural work, each business will submit a more detailed plan and indicate how much money it will match from the city grant.

Masbruch said a business can apply for up to $90,000 if the building is located mid-block, and for up to $110,000 for a more prominent corner location.

She noted that both the $90,000 and $110,000 grants must be matched by the business owners.