Great Lakes Wire

Three community revitalization projects in the Western Upper Peninsula have been announced by the state government.

The cities of Iron Mountain and Calumet will receive $2.7 million from the Michigan Strategic Fund in an announcement from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) earlier this month, according to a news bulletin shared by the state government.

“As governor, I am focused on working with anyone to grow our economy,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) said. “Today’s projects will help us make our communities more attractive places to live, work and play by transforming underutilized properties into productive spaces. They demonstrate our continued focus on supporting projects that bring vibrancy to communities in the Upper Peninsula and every region of Michigan to build a foundation for long-term economic opportunity. Let’s keep getting it done.”

A single-story 4,200 square-foot building on Stephenson Avenue in downtown Iron Mountain will be renovated by Menominee Range Investments, LLC and Barossa, LLC.

The $832,847 facility will be home to the startup restaurant and wine bar Oddfellows Drinkery which will create 16 new jobs. The project is backed by a $334,798 Michigan Community Revitalization Program (MCRP) performance-based grant.

“We are excited to see this new project add to our existing restaurant culture in downtown Iron Mountain,” Dickinson Area Economic Development Alliance Executive Director Lois Ellis said. “We appreciate the significant investment that Menominee Range Investments and the MEDC are making, which is creating additional interest and business activity that benefits the whole area.”

In Calumet, Fire Tower Property Group, LLC is proposing to rehabilitate a historic two-story building located at 104 Fifth Street in the downtown area of the city for Fire Tower Engineered Timber. The development has an estimated construction cost of $644,826 and is backed by a $307,176 MCRP performance-based grant.

“While our historic office building in downtown Calumet managed to survive a fire in 2021 that destroyed the rest of the city block, it suffered extensive smoke and water damage. After running the numbers, it was less expensive to build a new space outside of the downtown area, but the unanimous desire of our entire office staff was to remain downtown,” Fire Tower Property Group Manager Joe Miller said. “With the help of the MEDC’s Community Revitalization Program, a grant from the village, and support from a local bank, we were able to buy the fire-damaged building and begin historically sensitive renovations. Without the MEDC, another building contributing to the Keweenaw National Historic Park would have needed to be razed, but with the MEDC’s help, we were able to put a building back on the tax roll and keep professionals working in the downtown area.”