Pilot Commerce Grant to Support Renovating Industrial, Manufacturing Buildings  

Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland today announced the launch of the Industrial Renovation for Opportunity and New Economic Development (IRONED) pilot program, a funding opportunity designed to help rural Kansas communities revitalize underused industrial and manufacturing buildings and prepare them for new or expanding businesses. 

A total of $200,000 in funding is available through IRONED for Kansas communities with a population of 50,000 or less. Grants up to $100,000 will support projects already in the planning phase that preserve and bring new economic activity to underutilized, vacant or dilapidated industrial and manufacturing facilities. The grants are intended to close financing gaps. 

“There are plenty of industrial buildings throughout Kansas with the potential to support new business ventures if they can be brought back to productive use,” Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland said, “By providing targeted support for renovation costs, Commerce can help rural communities move innovative projects across the finish line and start driving local economic growth.”

The IRONED program is administered by the Kansas Office of Rural Prosperity at the Department of Commerce. The application window opens March 18 and will close at 5:00 p.m. June 17. Awards will be announced in August. 

For those interested in applying for funding, there will be a webinar at 4:00 p.m. Monday, March 23. Registration is required (click here). 

The Office of Rural Prosperity will host virtual Office Hours from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. April 16, May 14 and June 11. To sign up, click here. 

For additional information about the IRONED program, click here.