IRON MOUNTAIN — Dickinson Area Economic Development Alliance is leading an effort to use grant funds to hire a housing specialist to possibly add housing units and options in the community.

Iron Mountain City Council agreed Monday to contribute $2,000 in matching funds to the proposed Michigan Rural Readiness Grant, while the DAEDA, Dickinson County and the county’s Land Bank Authority will also provide $2,000 each. The grant amount is $25,000.

The specialist would be a contracted worker who will assess existing land bank parcels for housing development potential and help identify projects that may be shovel-ready.

According to the application, the land bank also intends to apply for $500,000 in blight elimination funds that will likely add to the inventory of sites and the potential for housing redevelopment. While the housing position is short-term, the partners expect the contractor to collect information and create processes that can benefit long-term development.

The possibility of creating a permanent position has also been mentioned.

Final applications for the Rural Readiness Grant are due Nov. 2. The Michigan Office of Rural Development has yet to indicate when awards will be announced.

Lois Ellis, executive director of the DAEDA, and Lorna Carey, Dickinson County treasurer, are directing the application process.

Area employers have reported missed chances to hire new talent because of insufficient housing options, which is constraining growth, according to the DAEDA. The alliance is a private-public organization that receives about 80% of its support from the private sector.

In other action Monday, the city council:

— Scheduled a closure of the city’s downtown parking lot at Hughitt, Iron Mountain and A streets from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, for a Pumpkin Walk coordinated by the Downtown Development Authority that will include a trunk-or-treat hosted by Marshfield Medical Center-Dickinson. The event will run from noon to 3 p.m.

— Learned that demolition and removal has begun on an abandoned water tank on city property on Bradley Street. Bill Neuens Excavating of Iron Mountain is doing the work under a contract with the county land bank that’s funded through the state’s blight elimination program. The tank is on the southeast side of Pine Mountain, adjacent to the Tall Pines subdivision.

— Renewed for a year the city’s subscription agreement with Colligo GIS of Iron Mountain to provide geographic information systems mapping at a cost of $3,000.

Jim Anderson can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 226, or janderson@ironmountaindailynews.com.