Big Promises, Big Spending—Nothing to Show for It

The State of Michigan spent millions prepping land for a company that never showed up—now taxpayers are left holding the bag.

GENESEE COUNTY, Mich. — A state-backed project once touted as Michigan’s next big job creator is now under fire after the company expected to build at the site backed out, leaving taxpayers on the hook for $259 million — and no jobs to show for it.

The so-called “mega site” in Genesee County was part of a broader initiative to attract large industrial employers with taxpayer-funded land preparation. But as James Hohman, director of fiscal policy at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, told me in a recent interview, the state’s Strategic Site Readiness Program has quickly become an expensive gamble with little payoff.

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“This program didn’t exist five years ago,” Hohman said. “Since 2022, hundreds of millions of dollars have been appropriated to prep land for companies — land they should be preparing themselves.”

Click here to learn more about how corporate handouts usually don’t land jobs as promised.

The concept is straightforward: ready the site, attract a business, create thousands of jobs. But reality hasn’t followed the script. According to Hohman, these programs rarely deliver on promises. In his study “Front Page Failures,” he found that for every 1,000 jobs promised in such state-subsidized deals, only 90 were actually created — a staggering 91% failure rate.

The Genesee County site, now cleared and “turnkey-ready,” was pitched as a future hub for a high-tech manufacturer that never came. Taxpayer funds paid for demolitions, home buyouts, and land prep — all based on a hope that never materialized.

And the spending may not be over. There’s now a proposal to spend another $40 million to buy and move a school that sits on part of the mega site. “That’s a huge amount of money,” said Hohman. “You could fill a lot of potholes in your local community for $40 million.”

One major concern is that site preparation dollars come with no strings attached. “If the company never shows up, that money is just gone,” Hohman explained. “There’s no recourse. No clawback. It’s a one-way transfer of public funds into an empty field.”

Hohman argues that instead of subsidizing individual businesses, Michigan should focus on creating a better climate for all employers. That includes improving utility regulation, reforming occupational licensing, and maintaining competitive tax policies.

As Hohman put it: “Government should not be in the business of picking winners and losers. It should be fostering an environment where everyone has a fair shot.”

The mega site’s failure is now a cautionary tale for policymakers. What was once pitched as a bold economic development plan is now looking like a $259 million monument to misplaced priorities.

“Taxpayer money shouldn’t be used to make a company’s lot square,” Hohman said. “That’s their job — not ours.”