The Mt. Airy Business Improvement District (BID) has conceived of a way to make the Germantown Avenue business corridor here more enticing for shoppers and visitors.

The BID, which used to be run by Mt. Airy USA on a limited, 10-hour per week basis before becoming more independent this year and hiring a 30-hour per week staffer, is using some of its money to support what it's calling a "Clean and Green Program," which is intended to give groups money to clean sections of the avenue.

Here's the way it works: Individuals, businesses or organizations can apply for grant money that would allow them to undertake a cleaning or beautification project along Germantown Avenue or along adjoining sidestreets between Cresheim Valley Road and Washington Lane. Either way, the project must be within view of the Avenue, which is under the BID's jurisdiction.

Projects must focus on the area between building facades and the street. In total, the BID is giving out $3,000 in grants through the program, though applicants can request any amount of money for their particular proposal.

BID Executive Director Hollie Malamud-Price said that projects should be sustainable. For example, she said, any project application that involves planting flowers should focus on planting perennials, not annuals.

"This basically is an opportunity to build upon the facade improvements that have been done (along the Avenue)," Malamud-Price said.

Businesses or groups that apply for grants don't necessarily have to be located along the Avenue. A school nearby, for example, could apply for money and do a service project in the area.

In a letter from the BID Board of Directors to potentially interested parties, BID Chair Ken Weinstein wrote that he hopes projects can have a lasting effect on the Mt. Airy landscape.

"Although the Mt. Airy BID has made great strides in beautifying our community, we understand that we cannot do it alone," Weinstein wrote. "We need the help of individuals and organizations like you to keep our neighborhood attractive for years to come."

Malamud-Price said she expected applications to begin to filter in to her in February or March and expects most projects to begin in the spring, though she said the sooner entities can get in applications, the better. The organization's fiscal year ends Sept. 30, so the $3,000 must be spent by then.

To apply or to learn more, contact Malamud-Price at 215-844-6490 or at holliebid@gmail.com