Feds boost depot plan - grant adds $140,000 to restoration coffers
Friday, November 9, 2001
By Chad Swiatecki
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Holly - A financial windfall from the federal government has boosted efforts
to restore the village's rail depot.

With the aid of $140,000 included in a bill approved by congressional
appropriations committees this week, restoration organizers said the
historic Grand Trunk Western depot could be fit for use by the end of next
summer.

"This is really fantastic and gets us well into being able to pay for the
project," said Bill Cousins, Holly's community development director.
"We've got to wait on the specifics of when we can get and use the money,
and until then it'll be a race to the mailbox every day to see what's to
come."

The latest grant, combined with $87,450 from the Michigan Department of
Transportation last year, puts organizers more than half way toward the
$360,000 needed to renovate the 1,700-square-foot building.
The cost of landscaping and a new parking lot pushes the project's cost over
$500,000.

Bought by the village from the Canadian National Railroad for $1 in November
1999, the depot stopped servicing rail traffic in 1954 and served as a
storage site for signaling equipment.

The years of neglect have taken their toll, but Cousins said the village
will schedule exterior work - new masonry, windows, doors and lighting - for
early spring and completion by July. A new furnace, plumbing and wiring will
follow, making the building suitable for volunteers to do cosmetic interior
work in the winter months.

Cousins said a final use for the restored depot hasn't been determined, but
some ideas include hosting a Grand Trunk historical museum, office space for
the Holly Area Chamber of Commerce or a site to display local art.

The village expects to open bids for the exterior work in January.
Fund raising for the project is ongoing, and the federal money serves as a
big stimulus, said Greta Mackler, chairwoman of Holly's Depot Restoration
Committee.

"We've got more than 100 hours of volunteer labor put in on the depot
already, but the fund raising is our top priority," Mackler said. "This will
restore our excitement and give us just the shot in the arm we need."


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