DDA recommends $300,000 loan to unlock Lions Park grant, approves $5,000 for grant writing

The Grosse Ile Downtown Development Authority voted to recommend that the township board approve a $300,000 interdepartmental loan to help the DDA meet the matching requirement for a place-based infrastructure grant for Lions Park.

Ross, the DDA director, presented the grant application and its requirements, saying the project is “to enhance a public space” and that the DDA has already “invested $200,000 into Lions Park,” which would count toward eligible costs. He told the board the grant requires a 50/50 match and that the DDA will need to show stamped cost estimates that are current within six months. Ross said engineers and SmithGroup will prepare the estimates and renderings and that grant funds must be expended by 2027.

Board members asked how the loan and reimbursement schedule would work. Ross described the mechanics: the DDA would borrow to reach the 50% spent threshold, complete work, and receive grant reimbursements in stages (an initial reimbursement once 50% of eligible costs are expended and a final payment at completion). He said the finance director had quoted a preliminary loan rate near 4.75 percent, which Ross estimated would cost about $43,000 per year in debt service.

After discussion, a motion to recommend the $300,000 interdepartmental loan (contingent on an award from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation) was made and approved by the board. The vote recorded the ayes and the chair stated the motion carried; the recommendation will go to the township board for final approval if the grant is awarded.

The board also approved a separate motion to hire SmithGroup to prepare grant-writing services in an amount not to exceed $5,000. Ross said SmithGroup will help the DDA present economic-impact data and site-readiness documentation required by the grant application.