The U.S. Forest Service awarded grants this summer that could help revitalize the logging industry in the Tongass National Forest. Two businesses in Southeast have received hundreds of thousands of dollars to re-tool their mills. Those grants could help tackle housing shortages in local communities. In Petersburg, Brett Martin and his partner Mike Duman run Alaska Timber & Truss. This mill is about to get a refurb. It’s one of just two in Alaska awarded Forest Service grants to upgrade its saw. JK Forest Products in Thorne Bay got one grant. Over in Petersburg, Martin and Duman were given $300,000 for a small log sawmill upgrade. But this money isn’t just for splashing out on fancy new machinery. The plan is pretty ambitious — to breathe new life into a lagging industry and slash the cost of timber for local communities.