Economic Development

Coverage of projects, big and small, and the people who create them, which promote the economic health of a community, including manufacturing, retail, office, and hospitality developments.

InvestMichigan! VC fund pumps $96 million into Michigan companies

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2010

The InvestMichigan! Growth Capital Fund is putting up some impressive numbers these days. It has invested $95.78 million in 20 Michigan-based companies which employ 2,800 people.That list of companies reads like a who's who of promising start-ups, including Ann Arbor-based Accuri Cytometers, Salon Grafix of Auburn Hills, and InTouch Health. That last company is moving from California to Michigan, thanks in part to that investment."It's evidence that there is a vibrant, emerging economy taking shape," says Charlie Rothstein, founder and senior managing director of Beringea. The Farmington Hills-based venture capital firm, the largest in Michigan, is co-managing the InvestMichigan! Growth Capital Fund with Credit Suisse's Customized Fund Investment Group.The fund is made up of institutional investors such as the State of Michigan Retirement Systems and Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan. The fund invests in early stage and mature companies that are either headquartered in or moving to Michigan, or have a significant workforce in the state.So far about 46 million, or 40 percent, of the total program capital has been allocated or reserved. The fund has proven to be quite popular with local start-ups, having received applications for 846 potential investments in August alone.Source: Charlie Rothstein, founder and senior managing director of BeringeaWriter: Jon Zemke

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Urbanophile Blog on the power of the Detroit brand

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Community Development

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September 16, 2010

Locally, we call our region a lot of things, ranging from Metro Detroit to Motown to southeast Michigan. One of the leading voices nationally on urban areas, the Urbanophile Blog, argues that we shouldn't dance around our name and should embrace Detroit, an under-rated brand that could serve as the linchpin for renewal.Excerpt:Detroit is one of America's most powerful brands. I realize this is not what most people think. Many would say it is one of America's most tarnished brands. That might be true, but that doesn't diminish its power. There are lots of cities that are struggling right now, but how many of them have a stream of international reporters, film makers, artists, etc. coming to see it in person for themselves? How many of them have attracted random bloggers from all over the country to analyze the place and propose remedies? Why is this place thought to hold lessons for America while so many others do not?Yes, Detroit is a brand with power. Yet too often its own residents feel the need to downplay it, euphemistically referring to the region as "Southeast Michigan" or to the city as "the D", as if the brand has to be changed in order to attract people or investment. That might be true to some extent, but this is not what is going to attract the pioneers and early stage investors who are going to reverse the cycle of decline. Changing the brand will be the consequence, not the creator, of civic renewal. To attract those first people and businesses, you need to lure them in a different way – you need to inspire. So I say embrace Detroit, stand up and be proud of the city and what it is and what it could be. It is the only way to generate the inspirational motivation that can bring renewal.Read the rest of the story here.

Issue Media Group named to Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing companies in the nation

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Community Development

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September 16, 2010

Did you know that one of the nation's most thriving media companies, Issue Media Group, is based right here in Metro Detroit? The start-up parent of this publication is on the higher end (think 1,000s) of Inc. magazine's latest list of the 5000 fastest growing companies. Excerpt:Issue Media Group, number 1,672 on Inc.'s list, has developed many community websites, for places like Detroit and Cincinnati. The sites have original features and contributors' blogs, as well as the neighborhood profiles and event listings you would expect from a community website. The sites' strength is a strong emphasis on photography, as in this profile of Cincinnati musician Baoku Moses.Read the rest of the story here.

The Young & Entrepreneurial: A Q&A with Jon Citrin

By Jon Zemke

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2010

Jon Citrin is not your everyday ordinary financial services guy. The 33-year-old entrepreneur has a distinctly next generation view of business that has grown his Birmingham-based office into a firm to watch. Metromode's Jon Zemke gets Citrin's opinions on building a business, creating successful internships, locating downtown, and evaluating Mick Jagger's economic acumen.

The Entrepreneurial Life (So Far) of Paul Chambers

By Michelle Martinez

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2010

From IT to popcorn, 29-year-old Paul Chambers has had more than just a kernel of success. This co-founder and CEO of Core3 Solutions and owner of two Dale & Thomas Popcorn franchises has had entrepreneurship running through his veins since age five.

DTE donates solar panels to Metro Detroit colleges, church

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September 16, 2010

Advances in solar technology have DTE Energy installing new equipment at a solar facility, but the older solar panels and power inverters are being put to good use.Solar equipment from the utility's first solar facility, in Scio Township, near Ann Arbor, is being replaced with newer technology. The facility started producing solar power in 1997 and was decommissioned this summer for the updates."It reached the end of its usefulness for us, but it certainly has applications for the groups that we're donating the solar panels to," says Scott Simons, spokesman for DTE Energy. "It was among the first for commercial applications, and the materials and the tech has changed in that time."In the metro Detroit area, receiving solar panels will be Oakland Community College's Auburn Hills campus, which will install 30 panels on the roof of the Advanced Technology Center and use them for the Electrical and Alternative Energy curriculum; Monroe County Community College, which will install 26 panels to be used in the alternative energy curriculum; E-Three Labs, Detroit, which will install 20 panels for technical training in Detroit and River Rouge; and St. Elizabeth Church in Wyandotte, which will incorporate two panels into other renewable energy systems at the parish.Elsewhere in Michigan, panels were given to the Huron Area Technical Center in Bad Axe and the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association in Dimondale, as well as to an orphanage in Haiti.Simons says the company is also excited about installing the new technology at the Scio Township site, which should start producing electricity in the next month. Technology has come a ways in the past 13 years, and some of the new panels will be able to track the sun as it passes through the sky.The utility's first-ever donation of panels came about because organizations were contacting them to see if anything was available, he explains."It's a good way to recycle and repurpose solar panels," he says. "We want more people to get involved in solar energy."Source: Scott Simons, DTE Energy spokespersonWriter: Kristin Lukowski

Northville streetscape project casts new light on downtown

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2010

Downtown Northville's streetscape project is on track to finish the first portion by this fall, and will pick up again in the spring.As of last week, the sidewalk on the south side of Mary Alexander Court had been replaced, with the sidewalk on the north side of the street underway now. The street is also set to get a coat of asphalt this week.Lori Ward, Northville's Downtown Development Authority Director, says the goal is to be out of Mary Alexander Court by the city's Victorian Festival this Friday. Things seem to be on track. Work is expected to continue for another month before the weather turns.Northville was one of three communities to receive Michigan Department of Transportation grants, which provide for investments in trail and streetscape projects, to help fund the construction. The $1.3 million price tag is split between $685,880 in federal funds and a matching amount from the city.The city has been keeping residents informed of the progress at the DDA's website, where weekly updates are posted.The current work doesn't impact much of the downtown, but people are starting to notice the changes, Ward says. "I think it's nice they're starting to see the changes installed, and know that the rest of it's coming," she says.The area being improved includes Main Street between Wing and Hutton streets, and Center Street between Cady and Dunlap streets. Improvements include sidewalks, street lighting, benches, trash receptacles, and street trees and landscaping, consistent with the work the city has previously done on its Town Square project.The facelift will replace a 32-year-old streetscape, of which many of the amenities are outdated and deteriorating, says the DDA's website.Source: Lori Ward, director, Northville Downtown Development AuthorityWriter: Kristin Lukowski

Watson Engineering expands Taylor facilities

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Community Development

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September 16, 2010

Local companies are among those receiving Michigan Economic Development Corp funding through the Michigan Economic Growth Authority board, allowing them to expand and relocate so they can stay in Michigan.Among the recipients are a brownfield project in Taylor, for which $221,220 will support the demolition of two vacant commercial structures to make way for a 40,000 square-foot industrial facility to expand operations of Watson Engineering. That project will also include environmental remediation, a new parking lot, storm water management, and landscaping.Michigan brownfield programs provide incentives to invest in property that has been used for industrial, commercial, or residential purposes and to keep that property in productive use or return it to productive use. Brownfield incentives can be used for functionally obsolete, blighted, or contaminated property.Source: Michigan Economic Development CorpWriter: Kristin Lukowski

Royal Oak develops non-motorized transit plan

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2010

Royal Oak residents want to hear from you about how you think it could be easier to bike around the city.An open house is planned for 7 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Royal Oak Farmer's Market, 316 E. 11 Mile Road. Bicycle boulevards, road diets, and bike lanes are all up for discussion. Specifically, the planners want to know where people bike and walk, where they wish they could bike and walk, and what can be done to improve the transit experience in the city.Todd Scott, a Royal Oak resident and bike activist who says he's been pushing for a non-motorized plan for some time, says he hopes the end product of the meeting is to have a plan that guides the city on what residents want as far as making roads bike-friendly and walkable."How do we encourage people to bike more?" he says. "We don't want to build bike lanes and not have them filled with cyclists. This will be a plan to get that done."Scott says he often hears from people who know about cycling paths in Metro Parks, for example, but don't want to load up the car just to go for a bike ride. "They want to see more in the urban areas," he says. "It's pretty exciting. There's lot of opportunity and potential in Royal Oak."The Active Transportation Alliance is working with the city of Royal Oak to help develop the non-motorized plan; contact Marissa Dolin at marissa@activetrans.org or (312) 427-3325, ext. 292 for more information.Source: Todd Scott, Royal Oak resident and cyclistWriter: Kristin Lukowski

MEDC deals add nearly 796 new jobs in Metro Detroit

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September 16, 2010

The latest slate of tax incentives from the Michigan Economic Development Corp comes with a healthy portion of jobs and investment for Metro Detroit. The region stands to benefit from 796 new jobs resulting from over $12 million in new investment.This package of tax breaks for corporate expansion promises to create 1,880 new jobs and generate $103.1 million in investment across the state as far west as Holland and as far north as the Upper Peninsula. The five deals in Metro Detroit come from a variety of firms, ranging from automotive companies to software businesses. These deals include:- Oxus America will receive a $359,070 tax break over seven years to set up its engineering and manufacturing facilities in Rochester. The new company is acquiring the assets of Delphi Medical System's oxygen concentrator business. It plans to spend $2.1 million on the new location, which will create 38 jobs. The company was also looking at a site in South Korea. - Silk Route Global is investing $1.9 million to expand its Troy operations, creating 103 jobs over the next five years. The global supply-chain software development company received a $608,037 state tax credit to entice it to expand in Michigan instead of Florida. - Search Optics provides digital marketing services for the automotive industry. It's sinking $4.1 million into its Ferndale facility to better serve its East Coast clients. A $3 million state tax incentive over the next seven years is expected to result in 288 new hires locally. Other potential expansion sites included Toronto and Florida. - Navistar, a commercial truck and diesel engine manufacturer scored a $2.5 million tax credit in exchange for plans to establish an engineering center in Madison Heights, a $4 million investment. That engineering center will focus on product development and engineering for military trucks and create 87 new jobs over the next seven years. Sites in Illinois and Indiana were also considered. - Weber Automotive plans to hire 280 people over the next five years as part of its plan to move to a production facility to southeast Michigan. The automotive supplier will receive a $2.1 million state tax credit. Source: Michigan Economic Development CorpWriter: Jon Zemke