As Van Buren County residents and businesses adjust to the closure of the Palisades nuclear power plant, another $100,000 is being made available to small businesses for technical and financial help. Ashley Breitner with the Economic Growth Institute at the University of Michigan tells us the institute has teamed up with Market Van Buren and the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission for this latest effort. Small businesses that sign up will have a team sent in from the Economic Growth Institute.
“They go in an do an assessment right alongside the leadership of the company,” Breitner said. “They look for opportunities, they look for challenges in those companies. Then they put forward a set of recommendations about how to best spend the funds available in the grant in order to help keep the company resilient and keep them strong at the end of the day when they lose this potential business.”
Grants of up to $30,000 are available for small businesses to make the necessary adjustments. Breitner says a U.S. Commerce Department grant makes this aid possible. The deadline to apply is November 1.
To apply or ask about applying, email Mary Hannaford at Mjhannaf@umich.edu.
