LANSING, Mich., April 17, 2023 — Earlier this year, the Michigan House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 7, a budget supplemental that allocates $25 million for the Transportation Economic Development Fund, a match grant road funding program for cities and villages with fewer than 10,000 people. State Rep. Betsy Coffia (D-Traverse City) issued the following statement, after learning that four areas within her district have the opportunity to receive funds:

“As the grant applications are now open, the villages of Empire, Lake Ann, Northport and Suttons Bay have the chance to secure funds that will directly impact the safety and convenience of our communities’ infrastructure. The state has offered to match the amount that these villages allocate to their road improvement plans — this means we can get double the work for half the financial burden. I encourage these four villages to apply for these grants, which will provide direct impacts toward more functional and smooth mobility and transportation throughout our state. I voted for this supplemental in part because I knew it included funds that would assist infrastructure efforts in my district and smaller communities across the state.

The grants will offset the costs of fixing roads in communities around the state and invest in reconstruction, replacement, rehabilitation or preventive maintenance projects.