Now that getting people to build in downtown Ann Arbor isn't as challenging as it once was, the city's DDA is looking to encourage them to build green.

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A decade ago, Ann Arbor's Downtown Development Authority was in the business of providing substantial grants to private development projects like the Ashley Mews building on Main and William streets.

Today, despite the economic slump, DDA officials say there's no longer reason to grease the skids for such developments.

"The consensus is that the marketplace is pulling those kinds of projects forward," said DDA Executive Director Susan Pollay.

Although it continues to offer a range of facade improvement, parking and other programs, the agency has eliminated the kind of general "partnership grants" that previously paid for amenities like the public courtyard or walk-through at Ashley Mews.

Instead, the DDA board is opting for a more focused approach.

For at least the next two years, that focus is on energy conservation.

"The board members wanted to target grants rather than passively waiting for someone to come to us with a project," said Pollay. "They wanted to try to accomplish a goal, and have made that goal trying to make downtown businesses and buildings as green as possible."

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