PLYMOUTH — The Plymouth City Council voted to move forward with the pursuit of a grant to restore the Historic Firehouse on
Center Street in downtown Plymouth.
Shannon McLeod of Baker-Tilly, who has assisted the city in writing grants for other projects as well, came before the Council seeking permission to proceed with the application for an OCRA (Office of Community and Rural Affairs) grant of approximately $750,000. The project cost is estimated at $897,000, with the city covering the additional $147,000 beyond the grant amount.
If the grant is successful, the city would have the further commitment of retaining ownership and keeping the structure open; maintaining insurance, and the utilities for five years.
The project would include major repair of the masonry, replacing the cupola roof and wood parts of the structure, replacing the roof of the main structure, and exterior doors. No windows would be included at this time.
Multiple citizens came forward during the public meeting to support the project, including Heartland Artist Center, which will be using the structure while the renovations of their building on Michigan Street are underway. Anna Kietzman of Heartland told the Council that her group also believed they would have an interest in continuing with some programming in the Firehouse even after their renovation is complete.
The statement that the building was “important to the community” brought a reaction from Councilman Randy Longanecker.
After hearing from those in attendance, the Council voted unanimously to pursue the grant, which should be decided at the end of August.
