National Grid continues its enduring support of local businesses in the communities it serves with two economic development grants to businesses in the Village of Greenwich to revitalize the community and encourage economic growth. The grants have helped renovate older buildings along Main Street and provide new services to the community at Clutch Market and Witches Wash.

Funding was earned through National Grid’s Main Street Revitalization program, which provides grants to eligible property owners, municipalities and nonprofits that are transforming vacant structures into vibrant, state-of-the-art buildings that symbolize growth in New York’s business districts.

“Many of our customers see potential in older, vacant buildings that can be converted into thriving commercial or retail stores,” said National Grid Regional Director Kim Ireland. “National Grid supports these investments in the cities, towns and villages we deliver energy to across New York state. When the communities we serve thrive, we all thrive.”

Clutch Market and General Store at 103 Main Street has been open for several months providing locally sourced products, everyday items and quick, quality food. The building has had a long history in the community as a former clothing shop and other businesses. When the building was purchased several years ago, Tom and Ruyln Graves, had a vision to expand some of the pop-up shopping events they held over the years at their property next door, Gather. Their initiative earned a $25,000 Main Street Grant from National Grid.

“We wanted to feature local products in a way that represented the small-town feel of the Village of Greenwich and provides a gathering spot where you could do some local shopping while grabbing a sandwich or coffee,” said owner Ruyln Graves. “It was a large project to renovate this building for this use. Support from programs like National Grid’s helped make it a reality.”

Down the street at 49 Main Street is Witches Wash, which offers clothes washing in a safe environment conveniently located. The buildings the business now occupies required major renovations to accommodate the 12 large washers and 12 dryers. To be able to support the equipment in an older structure, new framing and support were built within the existing building.

Witches Wash owner Brian Bagdasarian said, “My wife and I have been residents of Greenwich for some time and it has meant a lot to us to be able to renovate these buildings while providing a service the community. With the work that went into revitalizing the structures, the $25,000 grant from National Grid was critical for being able to complete the project.”

The Village of Greenwich has seen increased investment in recent years and economic support from businesses like National Grid can help sustain this growth.

“The addition of Witches Wash and Clutch Market to Main Street shows how innovative, community-focused businesses are transforming Greenwich in meaningful ways,” said Village of Greenwich Mayor Amanda Hurley. “A modern laundromat like Witches Wash provides a critical service in a clean, accessible space, meeting a need that’s been missing in our community. Clutch Market has created a hub for shopping local and celebrating our small-town values. When we shop local, everyone wins. We are so grateful for the vision of these entrepreneurs and the support of National Grid’s Main Street grants, which make these projects possible.”

More About National Grid’s Economic Development Grant Program

National Grid has been recognized by leading economic development industry publication Site Selection Magazine as a Top Utility in Economic Development, selected from a pool of approximately 3,300 electric utilities from across the country. Of the 20 companies named by Site Selection, National Grid is the only utility to make the list with operations in the Northeast.

Since 2003, the company’s robust suite of 18 economic development grant programs has provided more than $154 million in assistance, helping to create or retain more than 67,000 jobs and supporting $11.7 billion in private and public investment across upstate New York. More information about National Grid’s suite of programs, including the program application, is available at www.shovelready.com.

About National Grid

National Grid (NYSE: NGG) is an electricity, natural gas, and clean energy delivery company serving more than 20 million people through our networks in New York and Massachusetts. National Grid is focused on building a smarter, stronger, cleaner energy future — transforming our networks with more reliable and resilient energy solutions to meet state climate goals and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.