Department of Environmental Quality Director Steven E. Chester announced today that two grants have been finalized and awarded to the city of Lansing for work associated with the revitalization of the downtown riverfront. The grants include a $3,197,970 grant associated with the redevelopment of the Ottawa Street Power Station for Riverwalk construction and a $1,000,000 grant to address environmental concerns and facilitate the redevelopment of the City Market site.

The former power station will become the site of the world headquarters for the Accident Fund Insurance Company, a project that will result in $117,000,000 in private investment and the creation of at least 500 full time jobs. The grant from the DEQ's Brownfield Redevelopment Grant and Loan Program will be used for the construction of walkways and boardwalks along both the east and west sides of the Grand River, outdoor seating areas, signage, and decorative lighting.

Construction of a new City Market, to be located adjacent to the riverwalk and Rlverfront Park, will soon be underway. Following the relocation to the new site, redevelopment of the current market, the Market Place Development project, will begin. The project will be a mixed-use development that will include retail, dining, and residential. The development is expected to leverage $28 million in private investment and create 50 full-time and 20 part-time jobs. The DEQ grant associated with this project will be used to perform environmental cleanup activities on the property, thus helping to facilitate the redevelopment.

"In these difficult economic times, it is important for us to encourage Michigan cities to make their communities places where people are eager to live, learn, and earn," said Director Chester. "Unfortunately, these projects represent nearly the very last of the remaining brownfield grant dollars available and underscore the need to find a new revenue source for Michigan's brownfield and cleanup funds."

Since its creation in 1988, the DEQ cleanup and redevelopment program has provided approximately $21.3 million on 108 projects in Ingham, Eaton, and Clinton Counties alone. These projects include funding for the development of Oldsmobile Park and the former Diamond REO site in Lansing and the $2.6 million cleanup of the Americhem Corporation site in Mason.

To date, the program has been primarily funded by voter approved bonds passed in 1988 and 1998. The last of the bond money will be exhausted by the end of 2008, leaving the $95 million a year program without continued operating funds.

An unfunded cleanup program means that ongoing cleanups will cease; the number of unaddressed contaminated sites will grow; unaddressed contamination at these sites may spread to adjacent properties; and redevelopment projects that create much needed jobs and private investment in our state, such as the Lansing Riverfront project, may be jeopardized.

Editor's note: DEQ news releases are available on the department's Internet home page at www.michigan.gov/deq.

"Protecting Michigan's Environment, Ensuring Michigan's Future"

Revised September 25, 2008 by Pat Watson