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Hudsonville staff update commissioners on grants, brownfield authority and Village Green plans
Summary
Economic development staff reported grant resubmissions, formation of a Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, work on the Triangle property and downtown restaurant recruitment; staff will bring a purchase-and-development agreement to the commission in November.
Jacob, Hudsonville's economic development staffer, briefed the City Commission on Oct. 14 about the city's grant strategy, downtown vacancies and development projects, including brownfield planning and early work on a Village Green civic project.
Jacob said the city closed its window Oct. 1 to resubmit grant applications to state programs and expects point improvements from sustainability elements such as adding recycling to score higher. "We're expecting to get hopefully 15 to 25 more points on both of those applications," he said, describing the work with program representatives.
He reported the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority bylaws are drafted and appointments will follow, enabling future municipal brownfield tools for site remediation and development. Jacob said staff are negotiating an "extreme maintenance" parking-lot agreement with several property owners to clarify responsibilities for major repairs beyond routine upkeep.
On downtown activation, Jacob said staff continue recruitment for a restaurant space at Terra Square and noted that community engagement staff Lindsay Hicks has returned from maternity leave to support those efforts. He described recent site visits for a proposed Village Green civic center, citing Royal Oak and Birmingham as case studies and promising a purchase-and-development agreement for the commission in November.
Mayor Mark Northrop said he wants Hudsonville to get more attention from Lakeshore Advantage, the regional economic development partnership the city pays to join. Jacob said he and staff will meet Lakeshore Advantage on Oct. 28 to review local project activity and expected return on investment.
The commission received the updates and had no formal direction beyond asking staff to continue negotiations and to provide the purchase-and-development agreement at next month's meeting.
