In 2019, the Department of Commerce is celebrating 10 years of the Storefront Improvement Program (SIP), a grant program that offers reimbursements for facade improvements on commercial properties. Follow along this year for more stories of SIP’s impact on Philadelphia businesses and neighborhoods.
Grace Tavern has a long history. The building in Southwest Center City dates back as far as the 1890s. The establishment was previously owned by two different families before Fergie Carey, James Fernandes, and Tom Peters purchased and reopened the bar in 2004.
Inside Grace Tavern, you’re greeted by decorative 1930s pressed tin ceiling and walls. The interior is full of character, while for many years, the rough exterior prevented some from stepping inside the establishment. Barred windows, two constantly-dripping window unit air conditioners, and a Plexiglas front door were just a few of storefront’s features.
“We never did anything to the facade, and this building is dated back, as far as I can tell, to 1890. We restored the interior, but we never did anything to the exterior,” LuLu Maynard, Grace Tavern’s long-time day manager who became part-owner in 2016, expresses. “We wanted to change with the neighborhood.”
Once LuLu became a part-owner upon Tom Peters’ retirement in 2016, she made plans to upgrade the business. LuLu had worked in the bar since 2005. “I loved this place and it made me very happy,” she says.
With the support and connections of PIDC, The Merchants Fund, and the Department of Commerce, LuLu was able to find resources to make improvements to Grace Tavern.
LuLu submitted her application for the Storefront Improvement Program in 2017, and over the span of the year, made $30,000 in upgrades to the bar’s exterior. The Commerce Department, The Merchants Fund, and Grace Taverns’ owners, each paid for one third of the $30,000 improvements. Grace Tavern also installed security cameras through the Business Security Camera Program.
“They want to give you money, they really do. Directions were very clear and it was very easy [to apply for the Storefront Improvement Program],” LuLu expresses “They want to make the city pretty. It was a very simple process.”
By the end of the year in 2017, Grace Tavern’s facade finally matched its interior. “We wanted to keep with the original decor, just update it a little bit more,” LuLu says. The more than 100-year-old building’s original colors were black and red, so the storefront was restored to match.
“[After the improvements,] I noticed a lot of new patrons coming in from the neighborhood,” LuLu recalls. “I feel like sometimes it’s almost shocking when someone says, ‘Wow, I just noticed this place, how long have you been here?’”
To continue growing the business, last year LuLu and Fergie both enrolled in 10,000 Small Businesses program. “We’ve always wanted to expand, but now I actually know how to do it,” LuLu says of her experience.
They hope to continue growing Grace Tavern and supporting the community that they call home, along with the patrons who themselves find home within their establishment.
“One of my good friends, she had moved to California,” LuLu shares. “She said, ‘I can’t find any bar like Grace that has that feel of home.’”
