Michigan Redevelopment Ready Communities

Five years ago, I attended the APA National Conference in San Francisco. Along with the cool ocean breezes, I also took in a session at the conference entitled “Redefining Planning and Economic Development”. In the session, the presenters discussed the successful Michigan Redevelopment Ready Communities program.

After attending the session, I considered how other states have similar programs and how effective they are for rural communities. That led me to write a post about Michigan’s program and how these programs can benefit your own community.

Basics of the Redevelopment Ready Communities Program

The Redevelopment Ready Communities program started in the inner-ring suburbs of Detroit as a way to spur redevelopment in that beleaguered metro area. There were a number of best practices that were developed in the process of helping those communities that members of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation felt needed to keep alive and apply statewide.

Most of the programs take a look at the variety of plans (or lack thereof) that your community has. This includes the community’s comprehensive plan, any corridor improvement plans, downtown plans, housing studies, etc. It is often that developers look at these plans when working through the due diligence process. So take these plans off the shelf, dust them off, and see if they need to be updated.

The Michigan group also takes a look at each community’s Capital Improvements Plan (CIP). This is a good aspect that programs in all other states should incorporate. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation has found several communities that didn’t have CIPs in place. This is an alarming, but unfortunately common occurrence in many small communities, not just those in Michigan.

The program also takes a look at the community’s redevelopment processes. It reviews the regulations and processes to standardize and streamline in preparation for development.

Other Midwest States with Similar Programs

A number of other Midwestern states have similar programs. Nebraska’s program is probably the closest in design. Other states focus more on development sites than the community as a whole. Regardless, each of these programs are useful to your town.

Nebraska – Economic Development Certified Communities

Other Midwestern states have certification programs that are more site-specific. This includes the states of:

Indiana – Indiana Site Certified

Iowa – Iowa Certified Site Program

South Dakota – Certified Site Program

Minnesota – Shovel-Ready Site Certification

Missouri – Missouri Certified Sites Program

Kansas – Certified Sites Program

What’s the Payoff?

Undertaking a program like Michigan Redevelopment Ready Communities strengthens local capacity. Involved communities receive technical assistance, modernize outdated codes, identify priority development/redevelopment sites, and help to align city staff and elected officials for a shared development vision.

Also, certification processes like Michigan’s RRC program improve competitiveness for grants and state/federal resources. It doesn’t guarantee funding, but it positions communities to capture opportunities when they appear.

So if your state has a community certification process, it is highly recommended that you take a look into it. It may not immediately result in development. But it is simply a good process for assessing your community’s readiness for development. For more on Michigan’s program, check out their website.

Looking Forward to an Update

At this year’s conference in Detroit, representatives of MEDC will be hosting this session once again. It’ll be interesting to see how the program has grown since 2019 and the impacts it has had on rural communities in Michigan.