Grants awarded to redevelop former Oscar Mayer, GM plants

The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. (WEDC) awarded the city of Madison a $500,000 Idle Sites Redevelopment Grant to upgrade outdated infrastructure on the 67-acre former Oscar Mayer site. The $1.8 million infrastructure project should be completed in a year, and the developer, 910 Mayer LLC, will fund the remaining cost, according to a release.

Work is underway to redevelop the facility into a business and light industrial park called the OM Station (Old Madison Station) that will available to multiple users. At the completion of the six-phase, $18 million renovation project in 2025, the property is expected to more than double its current value.

In June, the WEDC awarded a $500,000 Idle Sites Redevelopment Grant to the city of Janesville to help redevelop the former GM auto manufacturing plant, which has been vacant since 2008. That grant represents about 5% of the total anticipated cost of demolition, but will help offset the costs of razing six buildings on the 114-acre assembly plant site, including the 3.9-million-square-foot main plant.