$260,880 grant from the Federal Highway Administration
WASHINGTON, D.C.– Today U.S. Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) commended the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for announcing $260,880 in investment funds to MDOT for the Detroit Region Aerotropolis Development Corporation Transportation Planning Project. This funding will allow Wayne County to develop an integrated transportation and land use plan.
“This grant will help meet a critical need in developing the Aerotropolis,” said Dingell. “As air commerce has become increasingly essential to the global economy, the Detroit Region Aerotropolis project is the best strategy for this type of economic development in Southeast Michigan. Implementing this multifaceted plan with unprecedented coordination by local communities is just what Michigan needs for smart development to ensure lasting economic growth and job creation for the 15th District. I look forward to helping this project succeed.”
"The Aerotropolis is one of the most significant and promising strategies for economic development in Southeastern Michigan, "said Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano. "This grant award, secured with the support of our congressional delegation, especially Congressman John Dingell, is an important step in the Aerotropolis achieving its potential of bringing new companies and thousands of new jobs to Southeastern Michigan."
The Aerotropolis is an initiative to develop the 60,000 acres surrounding the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and the neighboring Willow Run Cargo Airport with the goal of creating a global hub for logistics and goods transport, and attracting a variety of domestic and international businesses. This award will allow the Aerotropolis to provide funding for a multijurisdictional planning effort in the Aerotropolis development area including Wayne County, Washtenaw County, the Wayne County Airport Authority, the cities of Belleville, Romulus, Taylor, Ypsilanti, and the townships of Huron, Van Buren, and Ypsilanti. This initiative to develop one of the largest air transportation hubs in the world has the potential to create 70,000 new jobs and generate $9.6 billion a year for Michigan’s economic growth.
The discretionary grant program provides FHWA the authority to support projects that maintain national roads and bridges and infrastructure investment. The Fiscal Year 2011 budget passed by Congress last April directed that all such funds be discretionary, FHWA awarded these funds through a competitive process. FHWA invited states to apply in June for federal funding from 14 grant programs. Requests were submitted from every state – more than 1,800 applications, totaling nearly $13 billion, which is more than 30 times the funds available; Michigan received more than $9.1 million in these discretionary grants.
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Betsy Barrett
Communications Director
Office of U.S. Representative John D. Dingell (MI-15)
202-225-4071 | 202 -812-0986 cell
