The LSCP and Multiple Partners Receives $3.4 Million Grant for Central Upper Peninsula Small Business Support Hub

Posted by on November 10, 2023

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) announced grant recipients for its Small Business Support Hub program. Lake Superior Community Partnership (LSCP), along with several partners, was awarded $3.4 million of these grant dollars, $400,000 of which will be deployed in direct grants to small businesses during 2024.

The funds will be used to create the Central Upper Peninsula Small Business Support Hub (SBSH). The SBSH will amplify existing support for small businesses and entrepreneurship within Marquette County and expand that support to six additional counties – Alger, Baraga, Delta, Dickinson, Menominee, and Schoolcraft – by placing additional staff on the ground to meet businesses in their own communities. The SBSH will offer 1:1 support, access to technical assistance, networking, and education. Among the available technical assistance opportunities will be supporting the creation of the NMU Main Street Academy, a program which will connect teams of students to small businesses to help solve identified issues.

The SBSH will be housed at the LSCP but overseen by an advisory council comprised of strategic partners, all of whom assisted in the application process: LSCP, Accelerate UP, Innovate Marquette SmartZone, Northern Michigan University, Small Business Development Center Upper Peninsula, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, and Sault Tribe Inc.

LSCP CEO Christopher Germain had the following to say:

“The economic momentum in the upper peninsula is very real and this is yet another example of what’s possible when we collaborate as partners to bring resources back home. The LSCP is honored to bring together and lead this coalition but we’re most excited for what’s yet to come. Not only will small businesses from across the region benefit from greater access to the system we’ve already built, but we’re adding new tools to the mix and formalizing new partnerships.

The LSCP could not have done this alone and we are grateful to all our partners for committing their own time and resources to this endeavor that will benefit us all for years to come. And of course, we are always appreciative of the investments MEDC continues to make in our region.

Read the official announcement from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation here.

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