Michigan City has been under the leadership of new mayor Angie Nelson Deutich (D) for the last year.

Her efforts to achieve her vision of northern Indiana have already hit the ground running, so to speak. Those efforts include restoring the city and bring investment back to places she says past administrations have neglected.

Deutich told WISH-TV that that starts with giving people who live there or maybe aspiring to live there a proper place to live.

“I want to make sure that the families that are here feel supported and that they have the same opportunities any new resident will have,” she said.

The city is in the midst of a housing blitz, renovating several old buildings in the downtown area of the city into several new mixed-use developments. In all, Deuitsch said a total of 1,800 new housing units are planned in her city over the next five years, ranging from apartments to single-family homes.

One of the main developments is at “The Franklin”, which will be a conglomeration of apartments and retail space where the city’s main train station along the South Shore line once stood. The development will soon be a part of the South Shore’s two new stops in the downtown area.

Deutich said is to fill the gaps in available services not only for the people who move to Michigan City but also for people who already live there. This will also include tackling food deserts throughout the city.

“We know that groceries and healthy food and all those things are important. Any type of revitalization is going to require that we make a conscious effort to fill those gaps,” Deuitch said.

On top of what is already in the works, Deutich said she and the city have many other ideas on paper at the moment for areas near City Hall, as well as where the Indiana State Prison and NIPSCO’s coal-fired power plant are. Both are expected to close within the decade.