LANSING ? Fourteen checks for more than $7.6 million were handed out Friday by the Michigan Strategic Fund as part of the Downtown Infrastructure Grant program for public infrastructure improvements.
?These grants will improve Michigan downtowns and spur additional economic growth in the surrounding areas,? said Gov. Rick Snyder. ?The DIG program helps make our communities more attractive for investments that create places where people want to live, work and play.?
The communities will provide a total of $2,715,620 in matching funds. All of the projects are located in traditional downtowns, will be completed by December 31, 2014 and will support reactivation of public spaces and incorporate design elements.
The MSF received 45 applications requesting a total of $18 million with a total of $5.5 million in matching funds and additional $1 million in leveraged funds.
The communities chosen for awards today are the Boyne City, Big Rapids, Durand, Evart, Harrison, Ithaca, Lapeer, Olivet, Owosso, West Branch, Michigamme, Constantine, Kalkaska and Mattawan.
?The DIG program provides communities with a chance to grow and attract new business development in the downtown districts,? said MEDC President and CEO Michael A. Finney. ?We look forward to working closely with these communities to contribute to their success.?
DIG, a Community Development Block Grant program, provides public infrastructure improvement funding to projects located in a traditional downtown. The program is intended for Michigan non-entitlement communities ? specifically low to moderate income communities that do not receive funding directly from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Projects must benefit the entire community to be eligible for the funding.
