Commission OKs Shophouse Park project
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MARQUETTE -- The Marquette City Commission gave the go-ahead to the new Shophouse Park complex during its Monday meeting.
Commissioners unanimously approved the Shophouse Park complex, which is slated to be a mixed-use complex that is focused on outdoor recreation and will feature 14 buildings that aim to serve as a home for startups and corporations to work with an eye on the outdoor sector.
The proposed location for the complex, which is estimated to cost between $8 million and $10 million, is near the Kaufman Sports Complex in north Marquette at 480 River Park Circle.
The project developer, David Ollila, was in attendance at the meeting to field questions and comments from the public and the commission.
"It's new and it's innovative and often times those things are difficult to digest," Ollila said. "We have an emerging effort to target the outdoor technology and mobility sectors. This is an opportunity for attraction, utilizing key assets from both peninsulas in an industry that is highly complementary to our mobility and technology investments throughout the state. Shophouse Park is the potential nucleus of this effort."
With a target opening of 2024, the project received a boost in December after the Michigan Strategic Fund Board approved a $3 million grant to kickstart the project.
Ollila says that the Upper Peninsula is uniquely situated to be home to a project like Shophouse Park, which aims to be a business incubator.
"The U.P. has this incredible asset of over 8 million acres of forest land, connected by thousands of miles of trails, dirt roads and routes that can serve as a resource for companies investing in research and development in this space," Ollila said. "This is a statewide project, not just a Marquette project and not just a U.P. project. This is a statewide project that will garner national attention by connecting the Upper and Lower Peninsulas, our rural and urban centers and nearly $900 billion outdoor industry to our global mobility powerhouse."
Members of the commission were supportive of the project.
"This has certainly been a project that's been going on, the planning of it, for some time," Commissioner Frederick Stonehouse said. "I think perhaps what makes it more important that it has been able to garner the funding and support from the state of Michigan to help make this a reality. It looks very strongly to the future. If we look at where we're going to be in 10 years, where we are going to be over this next mountain, this speaks loudly to that."
More information about the project can be found at www.shophousepark.com.