Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
City Manager Charly Loper updates Downtown Development Authority committee members on what the city has been working on Thursday. Two presentations per year are state mandated to ensure funds are not accumulated and are utilized properly, according to Loper. Pictured left to right are committee member Dustin Filippini, Charly Loper, and committee members Adam Zak, and Doug Olsen. Present also were Dave Osier, Kady Meinke and Kara Bjorkquist.
By KIM E. STROM
Bessemer - Promoting the downtown area and helping local businesses to succeed was the focus of discussion during the meeting of the Bessemer Downtown Development Authority Thursday evening.
City Manager Charly Loper began the meeting with a presentation of what the organization has been doing throughout the year. The state requires two presentations a year. From providing facade funding to helping local business pop up shops to beautification projects and christmas lighting, the DDA is hard at work to attract and retain people in the area.
The city received a $2,000 grant from the Michigan State University Extension through their program "First Impressions Tourism".
According to an MSU website, the program sends people unannounced into the community to assess their first impression and provide feedback and suggestions for improvements. The remaining $807 of the grant will likely go toward marketing, said Loper..
Another grant allowed the city to hire a marketing and design company to take photos and videos of the area, said committee member Dustin Filippini.
There was a 20 percent match with $8,000 given and $2,000 provided by the DDA. "The videos are complete now and going out to the public this fall via social media," Filippini said.
The DDA is also discussing options for access to the Bessemer commons area. Currently two access sites are blocked off. "We'll continue to work on figuring out the next step there," said Loper.
This year, the city will spend a little more on christmas lights, budgeting $2,000 to $2,500. Lights will be added to trees and gazebos downtown. Of the efforts and improvements the DDA is trying to make, committee member Adam Zak said he hopes it will "give people a sense of pride (in their community) again."
