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EGLE grant will help turn a contaminated site into a new restaurant and new jobs in Petoskey
August 15, 2025
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is awarding a $315,000 grant to a brownfield redevelopment project that will bring new jobs to Petoskey.
A developer plans to turn a contaminated former gas station and auto repair shop at 575 West Mitchell Street into a Jimmy Johns restaurant employing as many as 30 people.
The property was home to a gas station from the 1920s until 1989, and a repair shop from the 1960s until 2021. An underground storage tank (UST) leak was reported in 1989. Six USTs were and 400 cubic yards of soil contaminated with petroleum compounds were removed from the property. Two more USTs and more contaminated soil are still beneath the auto shop building. The EGLE grant will pay to demolish the building, remove the USTs and up to 250 tons of soil, and perform new site assessments.
Redevelopment plans call for a 1,250-square-foot restaurant to replace near the busy intersection of U.S. 31 and U.S. 131. The $1 million project fits into the city of Petoskey’s plans for the area by filling a vacant spot in a busy commercial corridor. The new Jimmy Johns will be within walking distance of downtown Petoskey, multiple neighborhoods, and of McLaren Hospital. Construction is scheduled to be finished in the fall 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.
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