Tens of thousands of dollars were infused into the downtown economies of Cadillac and Lake City within the course of a couple hours last week.
Businesses in both cities participated in the âOur Townâ program created by Consumers Energy that matched the amount that customers spent on gift vouchers to be reimbursed at those businesses.
In the Our Town program, Consumers Energy allocated $500,000 to 55 communities throughout Michigan to be used as a dollar-for-dollar match for gift cards people buy through local Chambers of Commerce and downtown organizations, doubling the amount they can spend in downtowns across the state.
In Cadillac, Consumers Energy matched $12,000 worth of vouchers and in Lake City, the utility company matched $6,500 worth of vouchers â bringing the combined total going to local businesses in this area to $37,000.