NISULA, Mich. (WLUC) – Red Hen Foods & Goods in Nisula, Houghton County, has been approved for a $25,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG).
The county board passed a resolution approving the loan funding resolution at its regular meeting on Tuesday.
The resolution states that the county treasurer will submit an application for this funding to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and sign the loan agreement.
The Houghton County Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) and the Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance (KEDA) recommended that this resolution be approved.
The funding will cover furnishings and appliances at the under-construction business. When completed, Red Hen Foods & Goods will offer grocery services, grab-and-go meals, animal feed and retail items.
Owner Alison Kirksey and her husband are putting it together.
“We found ourselves here ten years ago, and the building was run-down and available just two miles from our home,” Kirksey said. “So, we purchased it and started refurbishing it with the idea that someday I would do something with it with food.”
Kirksey says work on the business began in 2020 and has picked up over the last year. During that time, a storm came through and blew down a barn she and her husband owned. They came up with the idea of using the barn’s wood and metal as furnishing for the business’s interior.
According to Kirksey, it is a roughly $150,000 project.
“Folks in the area are excited about having new opportunities for new stories and a gathering place,” continued Kirksey. “The response of the neighbors in the area has been overwhelmingly favorable, I’m so grateful.”
Kirksey says she hopes to have the business up and running within the next two months. kirksey notes that she is working to include nearby farms and produce to bring something special to the area to eat.
“Each day, I will make fresh foods,” Kirksey added. “So, there will be fresh soups, there will be different things featured, so I want people to know that they can stop by and get quality food from as many farm-to-table products as possible.”
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