HAWLEY, PA — Between now and early June, 21 separate buildings on Main Avenue in Hawley will be repainted, courtesy of a coordinated community effort and a public/private partnership that took off when the borough won a contest called “Main Street Matters.” Sponsored by Benjamin Moore, the paint manufacturing company, the contest will pay for painting the ground floor/street level of these downtown buildings. (Hawley was one of just 20 communities throughout the U.S. and Canada to win the contest.)

In addition, since last year when the contest winners were announced, Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) has awarded a matching grant of up to $5,000 per property for additional capital investments in these buildings, to include the painting of their upper stories, repairing stone and brick work, carpentry repairs, purchasing new awnings, replacing signs and more. The DCED grant application came from Hawley Borough Council, and the Downtown Hawley Partnership is the grant administrator.

Preliminary work already started before Memorial Day, under the supervision of general contractor Grimm Construction Inc. of Waymart, with painting underway in earnest after the three-day holiday weekend.

The project is also providing work to local and regional subcontractors, including Perfect Professional Painters of Hawley, Bob Goldate Painting Co. of Clarks Summit, Reeves Awnings of Mayfield and Hunt Signs of Honesdale. Design consultant Nina Magnani (Magnani Designs of Waverly), in collaboration with historical preservation experts Hemmler and Camayd Architects of Scranton, has been working with property owners to choose fabrics for new awnings, new lighting fixtures and in some cases, new door selections.

On June 13, the community will celebrate the downtown area’s facelift with a party on Keystone Street with a ceremonial last swipe of paint and a large cake. Among those attending will be representatives of Benjamin Moore (who will provide paint color advice and painting tips to anyone who asks), community officials and many of the people whose votes helped Hawley with the contest.

Benjamin Moore has announced that there will be another contest in 2014. For details about the social media campaign to vote for your town (Hawley residents need not apply), visit www.paintwhatmatters.com, or see the hash tag #paintwhatmatters on Twitter.