Consumers Energy Foundation Awarded Grant to Monroe County Link
We are pleased to share with you our exciting news! The Monroe County BDC has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the Consumers Energy Foundation for financial assistance with The Monroe County Link Plan.
The following is a copy of the Press Release from January 12, 2018
PRESS RELEASE
Monroe County Business Development Corporation Receives Consumers Energy Foundation Grant for Monroe County Link Program in Southeast Michigan
MONROE, January 12, 2018: The Monroe County Link Plan’s Management Team is pleased to announce it has received $200,000 from the Consumers Energy Foundation. The Monroe County Business Development Corporation (BDC), the grant recipient, will use the $200,000 to help seek economic development opportunities in Monroe County.
“We are pleased and excited that the Consumers Energy Foundation has provided this critical seed funding for the Monroe County Link Plan,” stated Tim Lake, President and CEO of the BDC. “Without this financial support from the Consumers Energy Foundation, we would certainly have been delayed in completing this most important initiative”, continued Lake.
“We know that serving a community means more than just providing reliable and affordable electricity. That’s why we’re proud to support the Monroe County Link Program,” said Dennis Dobbs, Consumers Energy’s vice president of enterprise project management and environmental services. “After we closed the Whiting plant in 2016, we still remained committed to Monroe County. We might have closed Whiting’s door, but we haven’t closed the door on our friends and neighbors.”
The County of Monroe along with other public and private investors, including Consumers Energy, recently completed a comprehensive study of the I-75 corridor within the boundaries of Monroe County The purpose of the study was to determine the potential opportunities that will occur as a result of the new international border crossing between Detroit and Windsor, Canada. The Gordie Howe International Crossing is scheduled to begin construction later this year.
The stakeholders, in the study, developed 6 pillars with corresponding action steps. The program has been officially branded the Monroe County Link Plan. This plan will be led by a Management Team and Action Team Captains, The Management Team will be responsible for raising the necessary matching
Contact: Tim Lake Monroe County Business Development Corporation Phone: (734) 241-8081 102 E. Front Street Monroe, MI 48161 https://monroecountybdc.org/
funds to move the program to completion and provide guidance for the program. The BDC will be the fiduciary of the program and provide administrative services to both the Management Team and the Team Captains. The Plan’s estimated five-year budget is projected at over $550,000.
About Monroe County Business Development Corporation
Monroe County BDC is Monroe County’s leading economic development organization and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s local partner. The Monroe County BDC is dedicated to attracting new businesses, retaining and expanding existing businesses and serving as a catalyst for capital investment and quality job growth in Monroe County. The Monroe County Business Development Corporation is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Formed in 1982, Monroe County BDC operations are overseen by a 17-member Board of Directors consisting of the area’s top leaders, including representatives from manufacturing, banking, utilities, labor, education and local government.
About Consumers Energy and the Consumers Energy Foundation
Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.7 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. The Consumers Energy Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Consumers Energy, giving Michigan cities, towns and neighborhoods the extra support needed to build communities. The foundation provides grants and mobilizes volunteers to strengthen local education, social services, the environment, and community, economic and cultural development.
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