Community Growth Grants Announced for 2012

The Northwest Michigan Council of Governments (NWMCOG), in partnership with the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce, announced this year’s recipients of Community Growth Grants Tuesday at the Grand Vision Your Action event last September.

These awards, provided in part with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, offer funding and/or technical assistance to local units of government for projects that pursue the principles of The Grand Vision as a means to increase economic prosperity and growth in their community.

"Community Growth Grants are intended to provide support for local projects that can have a big impact on the region," said Matt McCauley, director of regional planning & community development at NWMCOG.

One project from each of the six Grand Vision counties were awarded grants as follows:

Village of Mesick – awarded technical assistance for the purposes of rewriting and updating their master plan.

Elmwood Township – awarded $10,000 to develop a corridor plan for the Greilickville business district to emphasize a user friendly growth strategy.

Village of Kalkaska DDA – awarded $10,000 and technical assistance to enhance downtown commerce and pedestrian traffic by promoting Kalkaska’s placemaking investments.

Acme Township – awarded $10,000 and technical assistance to develop a waterfront smart growth plan for the Acme shoreline district.

Village of Honor – awarded $10,000 to complete a village-wide recreation plan and implementation strategy that is consistent with its new community revitalization strategy.

Village of Ellsworth – awarded $5,000 to continue to develop and raise awareness of downtown Ellsworth through strengthening its Farmers’ Market and downtown marketing measures.

Village of Elk Rapids - awarded $7,000 to hire professional expertise (engineering firm) to help them plan and design for the re-use of a recently foreclosed waterfront development.

All of last year’s award recipients were featured in video format at The Grand Vision, Your Action event at the State Theatre in Traverse City. Last year’s recipients included: Village of Empire, Village of Kalkaska, City of Cadillac, Village of Beulah, Green Lake Township, Village of Elk Rapids, and Village of Suttons Bay.

"It’s exciting for so many communities in the region to embrace The Grand Vision at a local level," said McCauley.