Detroit
November 21, 2009
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Detroit - Development News
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Detroit Edison upgrades pollution controls at Monroe plant
Source: metromode, 11/19/2009
The Monroe Power Plant is becoming a bit cleaner these days now that Detroit Edison has installed a new pollution scrubber in the coal-fired power plant.

This is the second flue gas desulfurization system installed this year. It reduces sulfur dioxide emissions by about 97 percent and mercury emissions by 80-90 percent on the plant's No. 3 generating unit. The No 4. unit has a similar system that went into operation in June. The plant has four generating units.

Detroit Edison, a subsidiary of Detroit-based DTE Energy, has also installed other pollution control devices in recent years, including selective catalytic reduction systems on three of the plant's generating units to reduce nitrogen oxide output by 90 percent.

The Monroe facility is the first power plant in Michigan to install both of these systems. Installation on the remaining generating units is expected to begin next year. The scrubbers and catalytic reduction devices are expected to help the plant meet federal and state emission limits.

Source: DTE Energy
Writer: Jon Zemke
Detroit  
Grand Trunk Pub expanding to neighboring space with Foran's Deluxe Diner
Source: Model D, 11/19/2009
What was once Eph's in downtown Detroit is about to become Foran's Deluxe Diner.

Excerpt:

Fans of Eph's sandwiches, have no fear: although its current Downtown location will be transformed into Foran's Deluxe Diner, the deli will eventually reopen at the Bohemian National House and, in the meantime, favorites will continue to be available on the new menu. Owner Tim Tharp, who also is the proprietor of the next-door Grand Trunk Pub, (formerly called Foran's Irish Pub) says his new spot will focus on "gourmet comfort food" that is locally sourced. "If it's not from Michigan, we'd really rather find something else," he says.

To complement the railroad history exemplified at Grand Trunk Pub, a former GT ticket office, the diner's decor will be Art Deco. Its metal facade will remain, with new signage designed and fabricated by Tharp and local artist Amanda Box. The giant Eph's pickle will not stay, nor will many of the historic artifacts currently displayed on the walls.

Read the rest of the story here.
Detroit  
Retail wine shop and tasting bar headed to Woodward
Source: Model D, 11/12/2009
The Woodward corridor in Detroit is about to become tastier with its latest wine business.

Excerpt:

David Armin-Parcells, armed with 18 years of experience in the wine business, had a hunch that Greater Downtown residents were hungry for some good grape. His stint managing Zaccaro's, where he handled beer and wine orders, proved the hypothesis. "It was the most successful department there," he says. "This gave me some hard numbers."

Bolstered by the facts, Armin-Parcells will open Motor City Wine at 608 Woodward's second floor suite. His wine shop and tasting bar will be located above what is currently Eph's (but will soon be Foran's Deluxe Diner -- more on that in a future issue) with a separate front entrance. The space will seat approximately 45, with some two-tops as well as a large community table. The north wall will be lined with product shelved in hanging wooden wine crates -- approximately 120 different varieties of wine will be stocked -- as well as rotating works of art.

Read the rest of the story here.
Detroit  
Woodbridge container housing project gets big green lights: City Council OK and predevelopment funds
Source: Model D, 10/29/2009
An innovative container/housing development is making headway in Detroit.

Excerpt:

A visionary project that will turn 93 reused shipping containers into housing units has achieved some important milestones.

The project, called Exceptional Green Living, will be located at the southeast corner of Rosa Parks and Warren in Woodbridge. The much buzzed about development is moving ahead, having just received unanimous approval to proceed from Detroit City Council and secured initial predevelopment funding.

Read the rest of the story here.
Detroit  
U.S. DOT names Woodward an All-American Road
Source: metromode, 10/22/2009
Woodward Avenue has always been known as Michigan's Main Street, so it should be a no-brainer that it's now an All-American Road. That's the conclusion the U.S. Dept. of Transportation came to this week.

Woodward is now one of 37 byways in the U.S. that is designated as an All-American Road, part of the U.S. Dept of Transportation's National Scenic Byways Program. Staff at the Woodward Avenue Action Association expect the new designation to bump up tourism and investment dollars along the corridor.

"It raises the profile of Woodward Avenue not only in America but around the world," says Nicole Brown, outreach and promotions coordinator with the Woodward Avenue Action Association.

What sets Woodward apart is its heritage as the home to the U.S. automotive industry. Historic places like the Ford Piquette Plant (where the first Model Ts were made) in Highland Park show the area's importance in the story of the United States. New signage describing this history and the new designation are expected to be erected along Woodward next summer.

"It's always the story the road tells that can't be duplicated anywhere else that sets it apart," Brown says.

Source: Nicole Brown, outreach and promotions coordinator with the Woodward Avenue Action Association
Writer: Jon Zemke
More Slows Bar BQ is cooking with new Midtown carry-out location
Source: Model D, 10/22/2009
It's been a minute, but Slows is making some headway at creating its Midtown Detroit location a reality.

Excerpt:

Slows Bar BQ has received the financing necessary to complete the build-out at its second location, at the northwest corner of Alexandrine and Cass Ave. in Midtown.The 6,000-square-foot building will be used for carry-out, catering, and as the primary smoking facility for the Midtown location and its Corktown brother.

After permits and approvals are in hand, construction will begin, hopefully in December; the spot should be open in summer 2010.

Read the rest of the story here.
Detroit  
Alvin's, an old campus hangout, becomes new again
Source: Model D, 10/15/2009
An old name in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood is reborn again in its old/rehabbed home.

Excerpt:

Every Detroiter of a certain age has a memory of Alvin's, and owner Stacey Jazz hopes now that it is reopen, the restaurant, bar and music venue will again become a vibrant part of Wayne State's campus life.

To that end, Alvin's is hosting happy hours weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m. and for two hours following every WSU home football game. Lots of seating, free wi-fi, and an affordable, fresh food menu give the space a friendly, hang-out vibe.

Read the rest of the story here.
Detroit  
DTE launches free energy conservation programs
Source: metromode, 10/8/2009
Commercial energy efficiency is becoming a bigger and bigger cause these days in Metro Detroit.

DTE Energy is launching two programs to help local businesses curtail their energy usage. The first is through its subsidiary MichCon, which is offering 1,500 free programmable thermostats for
local businesses, churches, and non-profits on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Such thermostats, already
widely used in homes, allow for more efficient regulation of temperatures and thus energy consumption.

"Businesses are just like homes in a sense," says Scott Simons, a spokesman for DTE Energy. "Different measures can produce energy efficiencies."

For information, call (866) 796-0512 (Option 3) or send an e-mail to YourEnergySavings@kema.com or click here.

DTE Energy will also hold a series of free energy efficiency seminars in Metro Detroit for small- and medium-size companies. The idea is to increase energy conservation by teaching some simple solutions, like maintaining the building envelope or heating control systems.

Each seminar will run from 8-11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8 at the Engineering Society of Detroit's office in Southfield, 20700 Civic Center Drive, and Wednesday, October 14 at Macomb Community College's University Center Assembly Hall, 44575 Garfield in Clinton Township.

For information on the seminars, call (313) 235-1171 or click here.

Source: Scott Simons, a spokesman for DTE Energy
Writer: Jon Zemke