One advisor for the town hall and the storefront.
Civic & Main helps small communities and the businesses on their main streets win funding, protect their systems, meet compliance deadlines, and grow. Fixed fees, quoted up front.
Cities & towns
Grant research, writing, and the administration that comes after the award. Cybersecurity and the 2028 ADA web deadline. Project tracking a council can actually read.
Town services and packagesBusinesses & nonprofits
Marketing that produces customers, financial planning that produces profit, financing packages lenders approve, and a grants pipeline that keeps funders coming back.
Business and nonprofit packages- Business degree and more than 20 years founding and growing companies
- Information security background from the Department of Defense
- Based in Linton, Indiana, working with clients across the Midwest
Two deadlines every small town is facing
Website accessibility
The Department of Justice requires every local government under 50,000 residents to bring its website and apps to WCAG 2.1 AA by that date. Most towns have not started. An audit takes about two weeks and produces a fix list your web vendor can price.
Cyber insurance
Insurers now require multi-factor authentication, tested backups, and a written incident response plan before they renew. A security assessment gets those in place and documents them for the underwriter.
What we do
Six practice areas, one point of contact.
-
Grants and funding
Research, applications, and the administration that comes after the award.
- Opportunity research ranked for your project
- State, foundation, and federal applications
- Post-award reporting, procurement, and closeout
-
Nonprofit development
A grants pipeline and fundraising program sized for a small staff.
- Grant calendar and applications
- Annual appeals and giving-day campaigns
- Board fundraising training and funder reporting
-
Security and auditing
Assessments and plans from someone with a defense security background, not a sales rep.
- Cybersecurity and website security audits
- ADA / WCAG 2.1 AA audits and remediation plans
- Incident response planning and handling
- Public statements and media communications after an incident
- Continuity planning and cyber-insurance readiness
-
Marketing and growth
For businesses, and for the towns and cities they call home.
- Market research, positioning, and expansion planning
- Ad creative and campaign management
- Community marketing for towns: branding, business attraction, and tourism
- Public relations and community communications
-
Business finance and transitions
Plans and numbers a lender will say yes to, at every stage of a business.
- Financial planning and profit improvement
- SBA loan packaging, debt restructuring, and alternative financing
- Starting a new business: plan, structure, and funding
- Exit strategy and preparing a business for sale
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Municipal operations
Management help for towns that run lean.
- Project management
- AI in city management: where it fits, how to adopt it safely, and a staff AI policy
- Process improvement for permits, records requests, and citizen inquiries
- Strategic and comprehensive planning support
- Capital improvement and asset management plans
- Economic development strategy and downtown revitalization
- Procurement and RFP support
- Council briefings and research on hard local issues
Monthly packages
Every retainer includes a standing monthly call, a written monthly report, and a shared project board. Three-month minimum, then month to month. Each package is a fixed monthly fee, quoted in writing after the consultation.
| Package | Includes |
|---|---|
| Town Advisor | Monthly funding scan matched to your project list. Quarterly council briefing. Annual website ADA and security check. Priority phone and email. |
| Town Partner | Everything in Town Advisor, plus one full grant application per quarter, a project and department tracking dashboard, a cyber policy set with annual assessment, and one council or board meeting per month. |
| Fractional Director | Acts as your grant administrator or economic development lead. Additional grant applications as needed, post-award administration and reporting, procurement and RFP support, annual security and ADA audits, on-site monthly. |
| Package | Includes |
|---|---|
| Growth Starter | Monthly strategy session. Marketing calendar and four ad creatives per month. Quarterly financial review. Quarterly website security and ADA check. |
| Growth Partner | Two sessions per month. Eight creatives and one managed campaign. Monthly financial dashboard and profit review. Annual security assessment. Financing readiness, with SBA packaging when you need it. |
| Fractional Executive | Weekly working session. Full marketing execution. Financial planning, cash flow, and lender packaging. Expansion or exit planning. Security and continuity program. |
| Package | Includes |
|---|---|
| Funding Foundations | Monthly grant opportunity list matched to your programs. One letter of inquiry or small application per month. Donor communication templates. |
| Development Partner | Grant calendar management. One major application per quarter plus smaller ones. One campaign design per year. Annual board fundraising training. Donor database setup. |
| Fractional Development Director | Full grants pipeline. Campaign and event support. Funder reporting. Monthly board report. |
Fixed-fee projects
For a single need, or as a first engagement before a retainer.
- ADA / WCAG 2.1 AA website audit with remediation plan
- Cybersecurity assessment
- Grant research report
- Grant application, state, foundation, or federal
- Post-award grant administration
- SBA or financing package
- New-business startup plan
- Exit strategy and sale readiness
- Project or department tracking system
- Continuity and incident response plan
- Market research report
- Municipal issue research brief
Grant work is never priced as a percentage of the award.
How an engagement starts
Free 30-minute consultation
You describe the problem. We tell you what we would do first and what it would cost.
Written proposal in three business days
Scope, fixed fee, timeline, and what you get at the end.
Fixed-fee first project
An audit, an application, or a plan. Half up front, half on delivery.
Retainer, if it makes sense
Most clients move to a monthly package after the first project. Some never need to.
About Jake Thatcher
Jake Thatcher is an entrepreneur and civic advisor based in Linton, Indiana. Over more than 20 years he has founded and grown technology companies, advised businesses across a range of industries, and worked alongside city councils, county governments, township boards, and nonprofit boards on funding, projects, and the problems that do not fit neatly into anyone's job description.
On the business side, he founded Node 1 Technology, named Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year in 2013 and later acquired, and has founded several ventures since. Owners come to him for marketing that produces customers, financial planning that produces profit, financing packages that lenders approve, and a plan for what comes next, whether that is a new business, a new market, or a sale.
On the civic side, he provides project management for the A.M. Risher Aquatic Center renovation in Linton and has helped write the grants and secure the funding behind it. He is also leading the grant effort for the Pleasantville Community Gym. He has written and administered grant applications for local governments and community organizations, redeveloped downtown buildings, and advised city and county officials on economic development and infrastructure questions.
His information security background comes from the Department of Defense, where he obtained his CISSP certification. He brings that discipline to cybersecurity assessments, ADA and website audits, and continuity planning for towns and businesses that cannot afford to learn those lessons the hard way.
Jake holds a business degree in Management Information Systems from Indiana State University's Scott College of Business. He works on fixed fees, takes on only the projects he would take on for his own town, and lives in the kind of community he serves.
Start with a free consultation
Thirty minutes, no obligation. Tell us what you are working on and we will tell you what we would do first.
Civic and Main, LLC is based in Linton, Indiana and works with clients across the Midwest, on site and remotely.