Looks like Berrien County’s lead economic development agency has beaten the Michigan Economic Development Corporation to the punch this time out. The MEDC earlier this week launched a new Michigan Site Readiness Program, designed to give Michigan cities and sites a competitive advantage in business attraction and expansion projects. Cornerstone Alliance was ahead of that game when they released a request for proposals to build a spec building for exactly the same purpose last month. Nevertheless, the organization says it could help them develop even more options locally.
MEDC calls it part of their ongoing effort to expand the state’s economic development toolkit, aimed at boosting Michigan’s inventory of available properties ready to compete for business attraction projects. The MEDC will work with local partners, like the team at Cornerstone Alliance, to identify areas for improvement.
Greg Vaughn, Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of Business Development for Cornerstone says, “Cornerstone Alliance is continually seeking opportunities to expand business development options in Berrien County. The Michigan Site Readiness Program may provide a new opportunity for us to expand or develop an additional site for industrial development in our community. Cornerstone Alliance has identified a couple of sites that may benefit from an infrastructure grant and will be investigating those options and likely submitting an application to the MEDC for a Michigan Site Readiness Program grant.”
As part of the program, MEDC will provide up to $100,000 in grant funding to a community or other public entity to assist with the development or enhancement of industrial sites to make them more competitive during the site selection process. Applications are now live for the $1.5 million Site Readiness Program for local and regional economic development or community partners that can demonstrate a pathway to a vetted site.
MEDC CEO Jeff Mason says, “This grant program is a key component of collaborating with local partners to highlight the strengths of available sites throughout the state and ensure Michigan is investing in site readiness across our communities.” Mason adds, “The resources provided through the Site Readiness Program underscore the innovative approaches we are taking to foster business creation and expansion here in Michigan.”
Grant funds under the program can be used for activities including site development studies or site material development, site implementation or land assembly activities, and more. A local match is strongly recommended and will be a consideration for a competitive project. More information on the grant program can be found online at the link below. The deadline for applications is May 1, 2019. Here’s the link:
https://www.michiganbusiness.org/featured-sites/site-readiness/
Other recent initiatives highlighting site selection in Michigan include the launch of an updated, dedicated landing page for site selectors. That site serves as a one-stop-shop for any and all site selector needs, from statistics demonstrating Michigan’s strengths as a place to do business to Zoom Prospector data base access. You can see that landing page by clicking this link: https://siteselection.michiganbusiness.org/
Featured site videos from across Michigan are also highlighted on the site selector landing page. Currently, nine sites statewide are showcased, offering visual footage of each location and listing key site information including transportation routes, utilities and workforce availability. The first video on that site showcases the 242 acre opportunity here in Berrien County at Meadowbrook & Yore Avenues. Here’s a link to those videos:
https://www.michiganbusiness.org/featured-sites/
A key component of the Site Readiness Program is the establishment of Vetted Site Standards, a voluntary resource that provides a critical road map to helping Michigan sites achieve “shovel ready” status. These standards include appropriate planning and zoning, boundary survey, proper soil and environmental conditions, and more.
This week’s announcement builds on MEDC’s other business attraction tools including the Speculative Building Program, which offers several incentives and financing programs to encourage the development of new speculative building projects in Michigan. The goal of the program is to further add to Michigan’s inventory of high-quality, readily available space for growing companies.
The Site Readiness Program’s creation was a true collaboration with input from key stakeholders and state and local economic development partners. With the new Site Readiness Program in motion, local partners in conjunction with the MEDC, are continuing to highlight the strengths of Michigan’s cities and sites for doing business.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is the state’s marketing arm and lead advocate for business development, job awareness and community development with the focus on growing Michigan’s economy. For more information on the MEDC and their initiatives, visit www.MichiganBusiness.org.
