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Council and mayor outline MLK Corridor investments and plans to bring a grocery store to Jackson's South Side
Summary
Officials described the MLK Corridor Improvement Authority's grants, ARPA investment to the corridor and a proposed grocery store site that is one block outside Ward 1; Consumers Energy is involved in property remediation discussions.
Jackson leaders used the 2025 State of the City address to describe ongoing investment in the MLK Corridor and early steps to bring a full-service grocery store to the South Side.
First Ward Council member Arlene Robinson said the city created the Martin Luther King Corridor Improvement Authority and secured $4,500,000 in ARPA funds for neighborhood investment; she said the city had invested about $1,000,000 in existing and new businesses in Ward 1. "We have developed more the developers looking for more attraction to their business," Robinson said, noting efforts to address a long-standing food desert in the ward.
Robinson and Mayor Daniel J. Mahoney said a grocery location had been identified one block outside Ward 1 boundaries because it provides a larger footprint more attractive to grocers than a city-owned property on Prospect. Mayor Mahoney said the city is "working with Consumers Energy to purchase and remediate the property" and with a developer interested in partnering with the MLK Corridor Improvement Authority to bring the store to fruition.
The mayor characterized the MLK work as a promise to reinvest in communities that had been divested. "It was important for me to stand behind the name change, that it was not just a name change, that it was a promise to reinvest in the communities most divested in part of the city," Mahoney said.
Mahoney also announced a RAISE grant that will fully reconstruct MLK Drive, a two-year project that includes underground infrastructure, sidewalks and streetscape work. Officials said the work will begin this year and described the reconstruction as part of broader corridor investment.
Council and staff said the corridor authority awarded more than $1 million in grants to corridor businesses and emphasized partnerships with developers, Consumers Energy and other stakeholders to address land size, remediation and infrastructure needs. Officials said the grocery site was chosen for its ability to accommodate a full grocery line of produce and staple goods, compared with smaller city-owned parcels.
Speakers noted that corridor investments combine capital grants, infrastructure reconstruction and business support including corridor cleanups and technical assistance for entrepreneurs. The city invited the public to monitor forthcoming project timelines and said formal procurement and developer agreements will determine next steps and required approvals.
