By MARCIE SCHELLHAMMER

marcie@bradfordera.com

Bradford’s downtown historic district got a boost from T-Mobile on Thursday with the announcement of a $50,000 grant to help out small businesses.

The Office of Economic and Community Development applied for the Hometown Grant from the ‘Un-carrier,’ which kicked off its fiveyear commitment to small towns and rural communities in April 2021.

Since then, T-Mobile has provided more than $16 million in grants to 375 communities across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

Karen Costello-Pecht, executive director of the OECD, shared the news at an event held at the Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce.

‘As you may recall, last year the OECD conducted a survey to collect feedback from our historic downtown district merchants aiming to understand their needs around facade improvements and

Grants… page A-10

Karen Costello-Pecht, executive director of the Bradford Office of Economic and Community Development (OECD), and Douglas Allbright with T-Mobile unveil a $50,000 Hometown Grant on Thursday at the Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce.

Era photo by Sara Furlong microgrants,” she said. “We received 13 responses. Notably, there were over $128,000 in requests for the microgrant alone.

“The microgrant covers interior improvements, hardware and software upgrades, connectivity enhancements, and professional marketing and promotional activities,” she continued. “The OECD understands how crucial it is to maintain our downtown area to stimulate private business investments and facilitate business attraction, retention and expansion in the central business historic district.”

Therefore, they sought a Hometown Grant from T-Mobile. Pecht said they learned the news a month ago, but had to keep it under wraps until Thursday.

“This grant will be a matching grant fund that will be paid to the applicant by paying half of all invoices up to a maximum of $5,000, allowing us to distribute funds to as many businesses as possible,” she said.

The Hometown Grants project has sparked more than 150,000 volunteer hours, bringing people together to uplift their communities in big ways.

“When we started Hometown Grants nearly four years ago, we knew T-Mobile could make a real difference in small towns across the country, but the impact has exceeded all expectations,” said Jon Freier, president, T-Mobile Consumer Group, in a press release. “With this latest round of grants, communities will be able to fund everything from new fire hose technology to expanded food pantry space — creating important, life-changing improvements for the people who call these towns home.”

T-Mobile teams up with Main Street America — a nonprofit organization that works to advance shared prosperity, create resilient economies and improve quality of life through place-based economic development and community preservation — to bring Hometown Grants to life.

Grant applications are reviewed based on their level of detail, community impact, feasibility and other considerations.

“T-Mobile’s Hometown Grants program is bringing critical resources to small towns and rural communities across America,” said Erin Barnes, President and CEO, Main Street America. “These investments are transforming local landscapes and creating new opportunities for growth and connection.”