CADILLAC \u2014 Gov. Gretchen Whitmer joined local leaders and developers Friday morning to break ground on a new workforce housing development that helps to address one of northern Michigan\u2019s most pressing challenges \u2014 housing.<\/p>\n
The Lakelynn Apartments project, led by West Michigan-based KMF Construction, is expected to bring roughly 252 housing units across seven buildings on more than 11 acres within walking distance of downtown Cadillac.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am so happy to be here with all of you to celebrate something here in northern Michigan,\u201d Whitmer said during the ceremony. \u201cI\u2019ve been working through a lot of crises going on up here, but having a moment to celebrate some great work that is happening that is so important for our economy, for the quality of life, for our people, for our future in Michigan, is really a fantastic thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The development is designed as a residential community aimed at workforce housing, with plans that include ADA-accessible units, pedestrian-friendly layouts, and amenities such as a walking trail and dog park once all phases are complete. The site will also preserve open space for public recreation, blending housing with outdoor access, which is a key feature developers say reflects the Cadillac area\u2019s character.<\/p>\n
Whitmer emphasized the broader significance of the project, calling housing affordability a statewide and national issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re focused on building housing everywhere, because it\u2019s a top concern for Michiganders,\u201d she said, noting rising construction costs and limited availability have made it harder for residents, especially first-time buyers, to find homes.<\/p>\n
The state supported the project through multiple programs, including a $1.5 million award from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority\u2019s MI Neighborhood Program, along with brownfield redevelopment incentives. Local officials also backed the effort through a Brownfield Tax Increment Financing plan.<\/p>\n
KMF Construction owner Kyle Friar said the project stems from strong demand identified during early feasibility studies.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s actually a lot of industry up here in Cadillac, and a ton of jobs,\u201d Friar said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of employers that were saying that, you know, they can\u2019t find enough good help. They can\u2019t grow without more housing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first phase of construction will include 36 units in a three-story building. Friar said site work is already underway, with vertical construction expected to begin within the next month and take about six months to complete. Future phases will depend on how quickly the initial units are filled. Friar added that state and local support were critical to making the development financially viable.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want it to be a community that people like and they want to stay,\u201d Friar said.<\/p>\n
Whitmer, who noted this is her final year in office, said she hopes to see continued progress on housing initiatives across the state and even joked about returning someday to visit the site\u2019s future amenities.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is my last year as governor. I\u2019m hoping whomever succeeds me will be here announcing something with all of you next year, and I\u2019ll be able to take my dogs Kevin and Doug to the dog park, perhaps once that gets done,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Gov. Gretchen Whitmer joined local leaders to break ground on the Lakelynn Apartments in Cadillac, a 252-unit workforce housing development backed by state funding and aimed at addressing housing shortages and supporting local economic growth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CADILLAC \u2014 Gov. Gretchen Whitmer joined local leaders and developers Friday morning to break ground on a new…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":591308,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,450,451,3729,3,452,453],"class_list":["post-591307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news","tag-breakingnews","tag-headlines","tag-local","tag-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=591307"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591307\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/591308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=591307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=591307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=591307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}