Now it’s official: Mt. Pleasant is redevelopment ready.
The city was recently awarded the Redevelopment Ready Communities (RRC) certification from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
According to a release from the MEDC, Mt. Pleasant is recognized as being "thoroughly prepared" when it comes to, "Planning and zoning to remove traditional barriers and promote opportunities for prospective investors."
Mt. Pleasant is one of 31 Michigan cities to have been recognized as such in this latest round. The city is also the very first from the MEDC’s East Central Michigan region to receive the designation, a region that includes Bay City, Midland, Saginaw and more.
"We have developed and implemented new initiatives in the planning and economic development arena to keep our city attractive to not only current and prospective businesses, but residents as well," says City Manager Nancy Ridley.
"We are happy that the effort, innovative thinking and dedication of our team has been acknowledged, enabling our community to achieve this honored designation."
In becoming certified, the MEDC assessed Mt. Pleasant on community and economic development practices as measured against Redevelopment Ready Communities best standards. This analysis looks for economic development practices that are transparent, predictable, and efficient.
In doing so, the MEDC listed several developments to take place here, including a new city-wide, character-based zoning ordinance; an update to the city’s economic development strategy; improvements to the development review process; and the new brand and marketing strategy Meet Here.
"Our mission at MEDC is to empower communities so they can proactively shape their future; a future built on a solid foundation of retaining and attracting business investment and talent," says MEDC Senior Vice President Katharine Czarnecki.
"Mt. Pleasant’s commitment to continuous improvement and community-focused development will pay dividends for many years to come. We look forward to further strengthening our relationship with the city and its other economic development partners."
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