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BUCHANAN — The conditions on the ground might not be good right now in downtown Buchanan with the $19 million infrastructure project in full swing, but local officials are confident the city will come back stronger than ever once the current construction work is done later this year.

       Buchanan City Commissioners took action Tuesday night on two items that should help make the downtown revitalization become a reality. Commissioners approved the members of the newly reconstituted Downtown Development Authority as well as an economic incentive grant for a new downtown coffee shop/restaurant.

       City Commissioners voted to bring back the DDA at their commission meeting earlier this month after holding a public hearing. The DDA had been disbanded in 2020 after differences arose between DDA members and city officials. Commissioners began talking about restoring the DDA last fall and have been working since then to do just that.

       The city commission is taking the action now to restore the DDA and appoint members in order for the DDA to once again start capturing taxes from new development under its tax increment financing authority.

       People appointed to the DDA Tuesday were Thistledown & Row general manager Shawn Renfro, real estate agent Joseph Williams, McCollum Livery boutique hotel developer Michael Reed, Precept Partners owner Jeffery Antisdel, Stranger Wine Company owner Sidney Finan, real estate agent Julie Capron, Cannavista Wellness owner Richard Paniagua, Buchanan Area Chamber of Commerce representative Fran Terry and Mayor Mark Weedon.

       The newly constituted board is expected to hold its first meeting in June to start developing plans to promote economic development. A total of 14 people applied to be on the DDA board earlier this month and were interviewed by Weedon and City Manager Tony McGhee.

       Tuesday, Weedon expressed high hopes for the new DDA board and urged the other applicants to stay involved.

       “Sitting through three days of interviews really made me aware of the amount of skill and talent we have here in Buchanan,” he said. “People spoke about what the city means to them and the importance of the community. I didn’t think we would get all these applicants are our five year pause. It will be exciting to see the rebirth of the DDA.”

       On the business front, commissioners approved a $20,000 economic incentive grant/forgivable loan to a new coffee shop at 108 West Front St. Community Development Director Rich Murphy reported that Niles business owner Dustin Jankoviak is investing $435,000 in the renovation of the West Front Street building to put in the coffee shop.

       The new coffee shop is expected to open early next year in the former Harger building next door to the Buchanan post office. The building is currently home to the Home Source Group realty company.

       Jankoviak said he opened the 2nd and Main business in downtown Niles to create a gathering place for the community and he wants to do the same thing in Buchanan. He noted that he’s no stranger to Buchanan as his father had a business in town for 20 years and he worked in Buchanan himself in the past.

       He told commissioners that it won’t just be a coffee shop but will have a full kitchen and offer breakfast and lunch meals. He said he owns three or four other buildings in Buchanan and plans to transfer some of his other Niles businesses to Buchanan.

       McGhee said the city has restructured its economic incentive program to be a forgivable loan program and to provide money to assist a project that already has other financing in place.

       Tuesday’s commission meeting also featured action on other items including the new 2025-26 budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. The general fund will have $3.95 million in revenue and $3.88 million in expenditures.

       McGhee outlined what the new budget will look like including not only the general fund but the water and sewer, local and major streets and capital improvement budgets. New items in the budget include starting a sidewalk repair program and doing more code enforcement including building demolition.

       “Our primary focus will be on completing the many construction projects currently in progress,” he said. “While we are getting those wrapped up, we plan to take a step back and engage in long-term capital improvement and operational planning. This strategic pause will help us prepare to approach future projects more proactively, starting in the 2026–2027 fiscal year.”

       One of the 2026-27 projects the city wants to get done is the reconstruction of Remus Drive and Detroit Street on the north side of the city. The commission Tuesday applied for a $250,000 Michigan Department of Transportation Community Service Infrastructure Grant to help pay for the $1 million project.

       McGhee also gave a downtown construction update. He said the Front Street retaining wall will be done by June 6 as will the Days Avenue culvert repair. Some work including paving on Liberty and Rynearson will be done by mid-June. The second phase of the infrastructure project has started and is now expanded to Front Street.