Dowagiac Hires New Economic Development Liaison

Matt Money to focus on business recruitment, property inventory, and developer support.

Published on Mar. 4, 2026

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The City of Dowagiac has appointed Matt Money as its new economic development liaison, a role designed to support the city's efforts to attract new businesses, foster economic growth, and assist developers with projects. In this position, Money will report to the Dowagiac City Manager and focus on maintaining a real-time inventory of available commercial properties, helping to recruit new businesses, supporting housing development, and assisting entrepreneurs with state grant programs.

Why it matters

As a smaller Midwestern city, Dowagiac is looking to bolster its economic development efforts and attract new businesses and residents. The creation of this dedicated economic development liaison role signals the city's commitment to proactive engagement with the business community and developers to drive growth.

The details

Money, who has served as the marketing and events lead for the Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce since 2022 and is also an active real estate agent, will be responsible for a range of economic development initiatives. His key duties will include maintaining a real-time inventory of available commercial properties, helping to recruit new businesses to the area, supporting the development of housing projects, and assisting local entrepreneurs with accessing state grant programs.

  • Matt Money was appointed to the new economic development liaison role in March 2026.

The players

Matt Money

The new economic development liaison for the City of Dowagiac, responsible for business recruitment, property inventory, and developer support.

Patrick Bakeman

The Mayor of Dowagiac, who says the new position will help the city build connections and bring new opportunities to the community.

Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce

The local business organization where Money previously served as the marketing and events lead.

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What they’re saying

“With Matt Money in this new role, we'll have someone focused on building connections and working every day to bring new opportunities to Dowagiac.”

— Patrick Bakeman, Mayor of Dowagiac (wsjm.com)

What’s next

Money will begin his new role as Dowagiac's economic development liaison immediately, focusing on developing relationships with local businesses and developers to drive growth in the city.

The takeaway

Dowagiac's creation of a dedicated economic development liaison position demonstrates the city's proactive approach to attracting new businesses and supporting local entrepreneurs and developers. By having a point person focused on these efforts, Dowagiac hopes to foster economic growth and bring new opportunities to the community.