Oxford Jewelers grant contingent on ownership change
By Joseph Goral
Staff Writer
jgoral@mihomepaper.com
OXFORD — The Oxford Downtown Development Authority unanimously approved two sign grants worth up to $1,500 each during their meeting on Monday, Oct. 21.
Board Member Leigh Ann Knaus was absent.
The first sign grant listed in the meeting’s agenda packet is for two signs at Scots Toys located at 2A S. Washington St.
According to a DDA sign grant application, the estimated project budget is $3,000 with the project funding source listed as personal. One grand total in the agenda packet is $3,086.45 while the second is $3,415.28.
Board Member and Township Representative Catherine Colvin said it is possible for the store to get the signs for less than $3,000, in which case, the DDA would only match up to 50% of the cost.
The first sign included in the meeting’s agenda packet is 36 inches by 72 inches while the other is 9 inches by 24 inches. The larger is a non-illuminated wall sign that will be placed on the building’s northern wall, while the smaller is a double-sided blade sign that will hang on the North West side of the building.
The signs are estimated to be completed and installed 45 days after the approval, making the completion date Dec. 5, according to the sign grant application.
The second grant listed is for Mark A. Young Jewelers, which will be changing ownership.
The proposed plan for the new sign reflects the change in ownership, replacing the sign’s wording of “Mark A Young Jewelers” with “Oxford Jewelers,” according to the meeting’s agenda packet.
Colvin made the motion to approve the grant “for 50% of the total cost of the maximum of $1,500 contingent upon the jeweler changing ownership.” The contingency was added to the motion because the DDA board could not confirm whether the jeweler changed ownership at the time of the meeting.
The contingency also meant the jeweler’s owner would not need to wait until the DDA’s next meeting for the grant if the ownership change occurred before then, according to Board Member Scott Taylor.
The sign is estimated to cost $2,978, according to the business’s DDA sign grant application. The grand total listed is $3,792.88.
Its completion date is Nov. 1, according to the grant application. Oxford Jewelers is located at 31 N. Washington St.