By Sophia Sloane and Marco Iafrate. July 21, 2025

The Mason County Land Bank Authority is interested in the empty land behind the downtown Wesco in Ludington. Their intentions are to construct an apartment complex of 12-20 units.

Treasurer Andrew Kmetz said that the Land Bank is in talks to receive the property as a donation from the proprietor, who he did not voluntarily name.

A familiar not-for-profit is waiting on this transaction, called Michigan Community Capital. They are the organization that made Lofts on Rowe come to be.

In 2023, the proprietors of what was once a factory, donated the building to Third Coast Development and Michigan Community Capital to have it re-developed into Lofts on Rowe. This is according to an old Ludington Daily News article.

In an interview with INS, Mason County Treasurer Andrew Kmetz, also the Land Bank Chairman, said he imagines this transaction structure is common throughout the state.

MCC gets loans from a fund in the U.S. Department of Treasury, known as the community financial institutions fund. MCC distributes uses that money to build affordable housing in communities like ours.

Often, as in this case, the department of treasury is involved. So is a donor, a county land bank, a developer and sub-contractors. City councils are typically involved as well, as it is their approval which gives the OK for the whole process in the first place.

The Ludington City Council will indeed be voting on this.

Janet Andersen was appointed vice president of the Land Bank on July 10, she is also the Chair of the Board of Commissioners, which in April, gave the Land Bank $300,000 dollars for affordable housing projects.

In a telephone interview with INS, she said Land Bank projects even involve the funding foundations local to the community.

For example, the county foreclosed on two properties in Branch Township and has been recently been working with the Mason County Community Foundation, one of their grantees, to build affordable housing there.

All of this serves to bring housing to those who need it, which Andersen said are mostly, “out of towners.”

At their July 10 meeting, the Land Bank met with MCC’s vice president of project developments, Marilyn Chrumka. She expressed MCC’s intention.

“We are interested in doing our investments in the City of Ludington and Mason County,” she said.

Photo by Marco Iafrate, Independent News Service Reporter.

Fabian Knizacky, the former Mason County Administrator, talks over the meeting with MCC with Chairman Andrew Kmetz at the Land Bank meeting. Ludington Mayor Mark Barnett writes down a note.

When MCC completes a project, they staff it with their own people. INS telephoned Alyssa Zank, the Community Manager of Michigan Community Capital, who is also positioned as the apartment manager for Lofts on Rowe.

Zank said Lofts of Rowe was an affordable housing project.

Lofts on Rowe opened up in October of 2022 and had listings between $850 and $1,600 at that time, according to the interview with Zank.

According to current prices on Apartments.com and ForRent.com, the listings are between $1,081 and $1,857.

As for the vacant property, which is at 302 W Loomis St. The protocol before any development can begin is to have it first analyzed by local stakeholders as well as the local authorities.

Andersen’s filling of the vice president seat came at the same time of Jim Riffle’s resignation from it.

“Now that things are getting more complex with multiple projects I have found it increasingly difficult to stay “up to speed” in a timely fashion,” Riffle wrote in his resignation letter.

Riffle was the Mason County Clerk before Cheryl Kelly.

Branch Twp Construction

The Land Bank approved for a land surveyor to make an analysis of the two Branch Township properties they foreclosed upon on Stephen Avenue. Their choosing was PM Land Surveying to conduct one for $1,200.

Three New Homes

The Land Bank has added three new homes to their catalogue.

1. Hamlin Township.
2. Fountain.
3. The last one is in Ludington.

Editor’s Note:

This story was written up and researched by Sophia Sloane and some of the research is credited to Marco Iafrate. They are our youngest reporters on the staff.

-Dr. Beryl

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