Northern Lakes Economic Alliance (NLEA) is a 501(c)(3) regional economic development organization with a four-county service area: Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, and Emmet counties. Our mission is to drive economic resiliency by ensuring the resources, infrastructure, and policies exist to fuel business growth and community prosperity.
NLEA provides businesses with the resources, connections, and strategic support they need to expand, innovate, and thrive in Northern Michigan’s evolving economy.
We work with communities to identify and navigate site readiness hurdles such as infrastructure needs, utility capacity, cost, and more to encourage and prepare for strategic development. NLEA manages MEDC’s Site Selector Database of available sites for our four-county service area, monitoring and responding to active site searches by businesses and developers.
NLEA collaborates with local leaders and organizations to strengthen communities, enhance infrastructure, and create sustainable economic opportunities for long-term prosperity.
Deliver expert economic development services to businesses, local governments, and developers invested in our region’s success.
“Our mission is to enhance the economy in our four-county service area by acting as a resource to help communities and entrepreneurs retain and create quality jobs in Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, & Emmet Counties.”
We assist businesses and entrepreneurs and have a variety of tools and resources targeting new and existing businesses that possess the desire and potential to create family-supporting jobs (base jobs) with benefits.
We assist communities in finding the most effective approach to meet their needs to support business, industry retention, and growth.
The NLEA works directly with local units of government on infrastructure projects, facilitates local company growth and expansion, and assists many local companies on a wide range of issues that help retain existing jobs and create new jobs.
We proactively approach economic development as a “team sport” and work hard to strengthen partner relationships, network public and private sectors, and work collaboratively to address economic development challenges and opportunities in our area.
Our newsletter offers up-to-date information on events, funding opportunities, and other resources
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