MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY: $205,626 EGLE grant will help redevelop Ishpeming property into senior housing

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality issued the following announcement on Aug. 12.

A grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) will help redevelop contaminated property in Ishpeming into senior housing. The Marquette County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority was awarded a $205,626 Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to revitalize and safely reuse the site of a former hospital near downtown Ishpeming.

Soil and groundwater were contaminated by diesel fuel and heating oil that leaked from underground storage tanks, and from contamination that migrated from adjacent property. The brownfield grant will be used to install barriers and a ventilation system to prevent exposure to harmful vapors. The hospital was demolished in 2012, but some of its infrastructure was left in place. The EGLE grant will also pay for demolition of old hospital foundations, parking, curbs and gutters.

Jasperlite Senior Housing, a 36-unit apartment building, will be built on the former hospital property. The $6 million redevelopment will create affordable senior housing within walking distance of downtown Ishpeming services and shops. The new building will be LEED-certified, a designation for buildings that meet strict environmental and sustainability standards.

EGLE partners with communities to protect public health and the environment and revitalize contaminated property. EGLE grants and loans pay for environmental investigation and cleanup on brownfields, which are vacant or abandoned properties with known or suspected environmental contamination.

More than half of EGLE’s budget each year flows into Michigan communities in grants, loans and other spending; this supports local projects, protects public health and the environment and creates economic growth and jobs for Michigan workers. Partnerships between EGLE and communities have created more than $4.7 billion in private investment and 24,000 new jobs over the life of the Brownfield Redevelopment Program. Each brownfield grant and loan dollar invested by EGLE in 2018 to protect residents and the environment is expected to return an average of $42 to the state’s economy. When brownfields are redeveloped, property values increase both on the revitalized site and on other nearby properties. Learn more at Michigan.gov/EGLEBrownfields.

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Original source can be found here.