State grant funding has been awarded to Sault Ste. Marie and Cheboygan to add housing units and revitalize downtown buildings.
Cheboygan has been awarded $552,198 in grant funding. Sault Ste. Marie will be receiving $194,625
The city of Cheboygan plans to use the funding to renovate two buildings. One will add a single housing unit. The second will add five units, including an accessible unit for people with disabilities.
One building project will start in January and finish in December, Rainero said. The second project’s construction has already started and is expected to be completed in the spring.
Sault Ste. Marie also plans to add three housing units.
The grants will help historic downtowns with interested private investors address community needs, said Sarah Rainero, managing director of community assistance with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
“Activating opportunities for housing is a critical need we’ve heard from communities across the state,” she said.
It’s the second time that Cheboygan received this kind of funding, Rainero said. It creates what she calls a “ripple effect.”
“We see investments kind of ripple--a ripple effect with investment,” she said. “In this case, we are partnering with a private individual and activating private investment, which is exciting.”