New London — City officials say a newly revitalized city façade improvement program is providing financial incentives for the rehabilitation of aging downtown structures is paying dividends.

Three downtown building owners were recently awarded matching grant funds for their work at 107 State St., 140 State St. and 38 Green St.

The owner of 140 State St., Dana Rowen, was awarded $11,500, half of the cost of the exterior painting and masonry work completed on the building. Rowen, under the name 140 Nutmeg Associates LLC, purchased the building in 2018 for $450,000, city records show.

The owner of 38 Green St., working to complete plans for new apartments, was awarded $50,000 — the maximum allowed under the program for ongoing work there.

“It’s great to see these investments more than double and triple with construction improvements,” Felix Reyes, director of the city’s Office of Development and Planning, said of of the grants.

Tom Bombria, the city’s Community Development Coordinator, said the money used in the program is derived from federal funds awarded each year as part of the Community Development Block Grant program.

The facade program provides matching grants up to $50,000 per building fronting a street and located in an area that encompasses much of Bank, State, Huntington and Water streets.

Since the buildings are in a historic section of downtown, the planned work is reviewed by the Historic District Commission and Design Review Board.

The 107 State St. building is the future home of offices for the law firm Messier, Massad, Burdick & Flynn, LLC, who plan a move from their 21 Huntington St. location in the coming weeks.

The purchase of a vacant building at 107 State St. started as a real estate investment by three of the partners — Gregory Massad, Kathleen Flynn and Jason Burdick. City records show the purchase price at $443,500 under the name 107 State Street Legal LLC.

The partners, who have invested heavily in the rehab of the building’s interior and exterior, looked no further than their own firm when it came time to fill the space. Work has included new windows, doors, landscaping and work to the roof and mechanical components.

Massad said the firm was looking for more space and had considered Waterford but wanted to stay close to the downtown. He added his firm is benefitting from a more prominent location and the city is getting another revitalized structure downtown.

“We wanted to invest in the downtown. We killed two birds,” said Massad.

The law firm, which also has an office in Rhode Island, will be joined in the space by its new tenant Sumner & Sumner Insurance, Inc.

Massad praised the city for its assistance throughout the process and said officials made it very clear they are interested in partnerships with business owners.

g.smith@theday.com