The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has announced grants totaling $3.5 million to Communities First, Inc. to acquire and renovate two historic, condemned structures in downtown Flint.

The funding will enable Communities First to purchase the buildings and renovate them for office and commercial use, including relocating its own offices into one of the spaces. With a $3 million grant, Communities First will renovate the Paterson Building, located at 653 S. Saginaw St., and a $500,000 grant for the renovation of another building doors away on the same street. The project will begin with restoration of the Paterson Building, including repairs and updates to the exterior brick, heating, fire suppression systems, windows, elevators, and ventilation and air conditioning. The interior space also will be renovated and finished to accommodate tenants. Communities First is working to formalize renovation plans with an expected completion date by the end of 2024. The organization acquired the other building, which had been condemned, in 2023, and will begin renovations with help from a $500,000 grant from the foundation.

“Communities First has a strong track record of acquiring and renovating old, abandoned buildings and bringing them back to life for new purposes,” said Mott Foundation president and CEO Ridgway White. “It’s fitting that the organization will soon be able to call the historic Paterson Building home and open the doors for more businesses and organizations to move downtown.”

(Photo credit: Cristina Wright | Charles Stewart Mott Foundation)