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EGLE grant will help bring new low-income housing to Pontiac
July 23, 2025
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is awarding a $1 million Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to a project that will bring 54 new units of low-income housing to Pontiac.
The Auburn Place redevelopment will happen on what is currently vacant land at 454 Auburn Avenue. The property was first developed in 1930 with a home, an apartment building, and a hotel. The hotel added a dry cleaning suite in 1937. All three buildings were demolished by the late 1970s, and the site has been vacant since then.
Site assessments found metals and petroleum compounds in soil and groundwater. The contamination is believed to have come from the drycleaner, from fill material brought on-site following the demolitions, and from neighboring auto garages and gas stations between the 1930s and 2010s.
The EGLE grant will be used to transport and dispose of contaminated soil and to install a vapor venting system, stormwater engineering controls, and a direct contact barrier where landscaping will go.
Auburn Place will be a five-story building with most rental units reserved for households making 30-60% of the Area Median Income. Some will be set aside for tenants who are currently homeless. The city hopes the $30.3 million redevelopment will be a catalyst for further investment in the neighborhood, which the city says has been in economic decline for more than 60 years.
Local support for the project is coming in the form of city tax abatements, city housing vouchers, and Oakland County Housing Trust Fund financing. The Michigan State Housing Development Authority is contributing more than $14 million to the project. Construction is expected to be finished in summer of 2026.
More than half of EGLE’s annual budget supports local projects, protects public health and the environment, and helps create economic growth and jobs for Michigan workers. Redevelopment increases the value of brownfield sites and other nearby properties. In 2024 EGLE awarded $25.1 million in brownfield incentives to 87 projects around Michigan.