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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug. 7, 2023
Jill Greenberg, EGLE spokesperson, GreenbergJ@Michigan.gov, 517-897-4965
EGLE Media Office, EGLE-Assist@Michigan.gov, 517-284-9278
EGLE awards funding to four new housing developments across Michigan
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is awarding brownfield redevelopment funding to new housing developments in Coldwater, Jackson, Kalamazoo, and Plymouth Township. The combined $3.38 million in state funding is expected to draw more than $76 million in capital investment and help create 274 affordable and workforce housing units.
Coldwater Senior Villas, 95 South Fremont Street, Coldwater
The 5-acre site used to be home to Franklin Elementary School but has been vacant since 2015. The soil is contaminated with metals and the property was likely used as a makeshift landfill from the 1930s to 1950s. An $830,000 EGLE Brownfield Redevelopment Grant will be used to dispose of contaminated soil, install a barrier to prevent direct contact, and install a vapor mitigation system. The Michigan State Housing Development Authority and the city of Coldwater have also awarded financial incentives. Redevelopment plans call for 40 affordable senior housing units near downtown Coldwater. The project is scheduled to be finished in fall 2024. Contact EGLE Brownfield Coordinator Doug Koop, KoopD@Michigan.gov, 517-245-5054, for more information.
The Greenwood, Jackson
EGLE awarded a $675,000 Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to a project that will result in more than 50 workforce housing units on seven parcels of land on Greenwood Avenue, West Wilkins Street, and West Biddle Street. Those plots had several historic uses including homes, a school, a drug store, and a gas station, leaving the ground contaminated with metals and petroleum compounds. The EGLE grant money will pay for disposal of the contaminated soil, leftover landfill material, underground storage tank system, and concrete from the gas station. It will also pay for the installation of a vapor mitigation system. The developer plans to have 51 units of workforce housing finished by winter 2024. Contact EGLE Brownfield Coordinator Holden Branch, BranchH1@Michigan.gov, 517-331-0993, for more details.
Rose Place Senior Living, 530 South Rose Street, Kalamazoo
This land was historically used for housing and later as a surface parking lot. Fill material placed on the site following the demolition of the homes is contaminated with metals and petroleum compounds. EGLE awarded a $350,000 Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to be used to demolish the asphalt and dispose of the contaminated soil. The sand on the property is too loose to support conventional foundations, so more expensive specialized foundations will be needed. A coalition of partners including the city of Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority are providing funding to help with the cost of the redevelopment. It’s expected to have 64 units, most of them affordable senior housing, when finished in early 2025. Contact EGLE Brownfield Coordinator Doug Koop, KoopD@Michigan.gov, 517-245-5054, for more information.
41661 Plymouth Road, Plymouth Township
The long-time home of two former restaurants will be turned into 120 apartment units with help from an EGLE grant and loan. The site is contaminated with metals and petroleum compounds and has debris in the ground leftover from its use as a landfill prior to 1930. EGLE awarded a $535,000 Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to install a vapor mitigation system. A separate $1 million EGLE Brownfield Redevelopment Loan will be used to offset the cost of special deeper foundations needed on the land. The redevelopment will connect to Hines Park and the Middle Rouge Parkway. It’s scheduled to be finished in December 2025. Contact EGLE Brownfield Coordinator Ari McKeever McKeeverA1@michigan.gov, 517-388-4515 for more details.
Overall, in 2022 EGLE provided $20.7 million in brownfield funding to 67 projects statewide. More than half of EGLE’s budget each year flows into Michigan communities through grants, loans and other spending that supports local projects, protects public health and the environment, ultimately creating economic growth and jobs for Michigan workers. Redevelopment of brownfields – vacant or abandoned properties with known or suspected contamination – increases property values both on the revitalized site and on other nearby properties.
EGLE’s Remediation and Redevelopment Division provides financial and technical assistance including grants, loans, tax increment financing and free site assessments to facilitate the redevelopment of brownfield properties.
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