LANSING, MI — The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) announces two state Transportation Economic Development Fund (TEDF) grants that will support a total of 478 new jobs and $3.1 billion of private investment in the city of Detroit and Grayling Township. TEDF grants help finance public highway, road, and street projects that are critical to the movement of people and products, and getting workers to their jobs, materials to growers and manufacturers, and finished goods to consumers.
In partnership with the Detroit Pistons and Michigan State University (MSU), Henry Ford Health (HFH) is investing upward of $3 billion in a project dubbed the Future of Health: Detroit. The Future of Health development includes multiple sites across the area roughly enclosed by West Grand Boulevard on the north, Holden Street on the south, Lincoln Street on the west, and Third Avenue on the east. The various sites that are being developed are on both the east and west sides of M-10 (John C. Lodge Freeway).
The development includes a new 1.2 million-square-foot hospital facility and patient tower, including an expanded emergency department, support services, utility infrastructure, and a new 335,000-square-foot research center for the HFH and MSU Health Sciences partnership. The project also includes the creation of more than 600 housing units, 33,000 square feet of retail and community space located in new residential/mixed-use buildings, and new public recreation and green spaces. The medical component of the project will create 408 jobs and an investment of $3.2 million.
On West Grand Boulevard, the current road configuration is unsuitable for the expected traffic volume and conditions the development will spur. Road work on West Grand Boulevard will modify the median to add a third travel lane in each direction, create a full-service intersection at Trumbull/Lincoln Street, and improve crosswalks. The road work is intended to prevent stopped and queued turning traffic from stalling traffic flow, to improve patient access to the existing and new medical sites, and to ensure emergency vehicles can bypass traffic during congested periods.
Two of the new medical sites (the hospital expansion and the research center) are separated by M-10. The Holden Street pedestrian bridge is the only non-motorized crossing of the freeway within a quarter mile of the development area, creating more than a half-mile detour for employees and patients to traverse between the two buildings. Due to the interconnected nature of these facilities, greater transportation access is needed to allow employees to efficiently operate at both sites. The current condition of this bridge presents safety and longevity concerns. To solve these transportation issues, the Holden Street pedestrian bridge will be rebuilt, including adjacent sidewalks connecting to the bridge.
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The overall cost of this project is $10.2 million with the TEDF Category A grant program providing a grant of $8.1 million toward eligible construction costs. The City of Detroit is contributing $521,325 toward non-construction project-related costs, while MDOT is providing $1.5 million toward non-construction project-related costs.
Saab, Inc. serves customers in more than 100 countries around the globe, with products, services, and solutions from military defense to civil security. The company has operations on every continent, with 22,000 total employees in more than 300 countries. The company is making its first investment in Michigan with a planned integration and assembly facility in Grayling to support the engineering and production of products, which meet the needs of the U.S. military.
A new 140,000-square-foot facility has been proposed, located on Industrial Drive in Grayling. Road improvements are needed on Industrial Drive to accommodate the proposed development because there is no road access to the development site. The project will create approximately 70 jobs and $75 million in private investment. Added financial support for this road project also was made available by the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) and Stoops Freightliner-Western Star, which is currently building a new facility along Industrial Drive.
The Crawford County Road Commission (CCRC) will connect Industrial Street at the Grayling city limit south to 4 Mile Road in Grayling Charter Township. The project is 4.1 miles long and will consist of building a new road from the city limit south to the existing portion of Industrial Drive, which will be rebuilt. The new roadway will also provide access to adjacent property being developed by Stoops Freightliner-Western Star, which has committed $200,000 in matching funds to Crawford County to support the project.
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The overall cost of this project is $8 million. CCRC is contributing $3 million for the project, including $2.8 million through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation's Build Ready Sites program awarded by the MSF and the funding from Stoops Freightliner-Western Star. CCRC's contribution accounts for 37 percent of the overall project cost.
