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.

Pulling out all the stops to woo Google

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March 25, 2010

The full press is on to convince Google to make Kalamazoo one of its test sites for its ultra high-speed broadband network. As the Friday March 26 deadline approaches to apply to be one of several trial locations around the country, city officials, local boosters and residents are holding meetings, recording video pitches to Google and spreading the word in a number of ways to anyone who will listen, asking them to join in in nominating Kalamazoo. Support has been building in the Kalamazoo area ever since the project was announced.In Kalamazoo Wednesday, March 24, there was a town hall meeting to talk about why Google Fiber is important. Residents were asked to share their thoughts on video in hopes to convince Google decision-makers that Kalamazoo is the right place for the pilot project, which would provide a fiber-optic network to at least 50,000 homes and businesses at 200 times the current speed, at a price Google says is comparable to existing services. The local grassroots effort, Kalamazoo Google Collaborative, is bragging about Kalamazoo's past and present innovations, its prime location between Detroit and Chicago and its dedication to education as witnessed by the Kalamazoo Promise, a college scholarship program for all grads of Kalamazoo Public Schools, and four institutions of higher learning — Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, Davenport University and Kalamazoo Valley Community College."Many people may not know that Kalamazoo has quietly taken risks and leads the nation in many ways throughout its history," says Kalamazoogle.com backer and Newmind Group Owner Daniel Jefferies. "From the science and innovations of Upjohn and Stryker, to its downtown walking mall, to the role in creating one of the first public high schools, and most recently the creation of the Kalamazoo Promise."Over the weekend, supporters passed out 30,000 fliers about the project in hopes of encouraging nominations for Kalamazoo. Official support for the effort has come from the cities of Kalamazoo, Portage and at least 13 of the county's 15 townships.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Daniel Jefferies, Newmind Group

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WMU takes first step toward medical school

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Western Michigan University has taken the first of five steps that could lead to national accreditation for establishing a medical school with its partners Borgess Health and Bronson Health Care.The process is moving forward thanks to a $1.8 million anonymous gift made to provide seed money for the next steps in the process, including the accreditation application and the search for a founding dean for the school. The dean search was launched in February.A school of medicine in Kalamazoo has been under discussion and in the planning stage since late 2007. Representatives of Borgess, Bronson and WMU traveled to Chicago for the initial meeting with the Liaison Committee on Medical Education in January to begin the accreditation process.To get the process under way, WMU filed a formal letter of intent with the accrediting body for medical schools in the United States, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME).Western is one of seven schools now seeking accreditation that have "applicant school status." To achieve that status the LCME must determine the university meets basic eligibility requirements to proceed with accreditation. The school also must pay $25,000.In the next step, the university earns "candidate status." In that step the school submits the required medical education database and planning self-study documents. They must be get a favorable review from LCME. At that point the accrediting body schedules a visit to the school.In the subsequent "preliminary accreditation" step, the LCME reviews a report from the team that visited the school and determines whether the program leading to the M.D. degree meets LCME standards.Once preliminary accreditation is granted, the program may begin to recruit applicants and accept applications for enrollment.In the fourth step in the process, "Provisional Accreditation," the LCME reviews the school's progress toward implementation of its medical degree program and evaluates the status of the school's plans for later stages of the program. If LCME determines that its standards are met, it can vote to grant "provisional accreditation." Once provisional accreditation is granted, enrolled students can continue their third- and fourth-year medical studies. Enrollment of new students can continue.A "full accreditation" survey visit takes place late in the third year or early in the fourth year of the curriculum. The survey team then prepares a report of its findings for consideration by the LCME. If the survey team determines the M.D. program fully complies with all standards, a vote to grant "full accreditation" for eight years is taken. The clock on the eight-year full accreditation status starts when the program was first granted preliminary accreditation.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Cheryl Roland, WMU, and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education

Portage man expands business from garage to commercial space

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Two years ago, Steve Scott started a small-engine repair shop in the garage of his Portage home. Business has been so successful, he's ready to move out into the world, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette. His Something for all Seasons has moved into commercial space at 8139 Portage Road, just south of Centre Avenue, in Portage. Scott, who the story says repairs snowmobiles, lawnmowers, automobiles, tractors, combines, tillers, cultivators, boats, all-terrain vehicles and virtually anything else with a motor, said he is excited to be getting into his new, much larger work space. Excerpt: "This is heaven," he said of the 2,800-square-foot shop. He now has room to display the equipment he sells. The story goes on to say Scott was born with congenital glaucoma, and underwent 23 surgical procedures before his eyes were replaced with prosthetics when he was 17. Read the rest of the story to find out how his wife helps with the business.

National community enrichment program comes to Kalamazoo, Comstock

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Temple University in Philadelphia has picked two Kalamazoo County Foundation projects to be a part of the school's national intitiative to create opportunities for young and old to live and work together. Local residents and the foundation worked for more than a year to figure out how to foster connections across generations and to develop projects based on what they learned. The acceptance from Temple's Intergenerational Center, which administers the Communities for All Ages, CFAA, project, will help those projects go forward. Specific programs to be implemented are in Comstock Township and the Northside neighborhood of Kalamazoo. It also brings dollars to implement the projects.Each will receive a $20,000 grant for each of the next two years for a total of $40,000. Temple is supplying half and the Community Foundation matches it. The two projects came about after a lot of ground work at the neighborhood level. Team members went door-to-door in specific number of blocks on the Northside. They found people worried that some youngsters are not ready to take advantage of the Kalamazoo Promise when they graduate from high school, says Amy Slancik, of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation. A project working with middle school students in an Alternative Middle School connected with New Genesis Learning Center has been proposed.The hope is that the experience gained here will be applied to other communites, says Carrie Pickett-Elway, of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation.In Comstock Township, the teams on the project suggested the development of a Community Service Corp to build connections among residents who did not feel connected to their neighbors and who did not know how to connect to availablw services. One possibility is that the Community Service Corp be located in the Comstock Commuity Learning Center. The center is slated for renovation this summer. Work on the two projects is ongoing. The Kalamazoo Community Foundation is one of six community foundations working on the CFAA initiative. The work was in part made possible by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, based in Battle Creek. In total, CFAA works with 25 urban and rural communities to promote the well-being of all age groups.Writer: Kathy JenningsSources: Amy Slancik, Community Investment Officer, Initiatives, and Carrie Pickett-Erway, Senior Community Investment Officer, Kalamazoo Community Foundation

Bell’s Eccentric Cafe grows in Kalamazoo to fit in more music fans

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

A big fish in the local music scene is about to get bigger, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette.Renovation work has begun at Bell's Eccentric Cafe, 355 E. Kalamazoo Ave. The $2.5 million project is projected to make the cafe, a downtown venue for the live music scene, a more major player by turning a vacant space behind the cafe bar into a performance area with room for more than 300 people, Bell's Brewery Inc. president Larry Bell, says in the story. Bell's is well-known for its widely popular beers. In addition, bathrooms will be upgraded, a new atrium entryway will be added and a new parking lot for about 55 cars will open on Ransom Street.Bell says in the story construction is expected to continue through summer — a popular time for the cafe. He asks patrons to be patient — the wait will be worth it.Excerpt:The back room, which is believed to have been built in the 1880s, is the oldest part of the cafe and requires "tender-loving care." Once it's complete, Bell said it will have a stage, sound equipment, lighting, bathrooms, a bar and a green room for performers. There will also be some reconfiguring of the outdoor beer garden and patio."This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time," Bell said. Bell said he expects to be able to book more big-name bands and, by combining the new music room with the garden, host concerts for "perhaps 1,000 people."Read the rest of the story to find out more of Bell's plans.

National award recognizes generosity of Battle Creek’s Kellogg

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Kellogg Company has the Spirit of America says the United Way.The company's generous giving and innovative leadership in the community inspired the United Way to give its top national award to Kellogg.Kellogg Company is the first Michigan-based company to win the Spirit of America award. United Way has recognized corporate giving with the Spirit of America Award for 23 years. Some past winners include 3M, FedEx and Pfizer. The United Way lauded Kellogg Company for going beyond food and financial donations to spearhead a downtown revitalization effort in Battle Creek, including the expansion of its global nutrition research facility, committing to move more employees downtown, donating a building for potential use as a math and science education center and partnering with various organizations to bring new businesses and jobs to the community.In 2009, Kellogg was the first to produce food solely for donation. The company donated an entire day's worth of cereal production — 3.7 million pounds — to Feeding America, the nation's largest hunger relief organization. United Way was impressed with Kellogg's innovative celebrity partnership with Katalyst, a social media studio co-founded by Ashton Kutcher. Kellogg teamed up with Katalyst to spotlight the plight of the hungry. An online video consisting of user-generated content and directed by Demi Moore illustrated the fact that one out of every eight Americans struggle with hunger."On behalf of our entire organization, I'm humbled and honored to accept the United Way Spirit of America Award," says David Mackay, president and chief executive officer of Kellogg Company.The United Way spelled out the other gifts that led to the award:-- Kellogg Company's $5.9 million campaign pledge in 2009 was 19 percent over goal. -- Kellogg also stepped up with a $600,000 grant to United Way of Greater Battle Creek to address increased basic health and income needs in the hometown of the company's headquarters. This grant provided, among other gifts, 20 pounds of fresh vegetables weekly to nearly 2,000 people.-- Kellogg employees across the United States conducted more than 45 food drives that collected more than 47,000 pounds of food. And Kellogg has donated more than 94 million pounds of food, or 66 million meals, over the past five years.-- Kellogg also worked with Action for Healthy Kids to improve healthy eating and physical activity among children around the country. This includes helping dozens of schools nationwide increase the number of kids eating a healthy breakfast at school.-- Kellogg partnerships around the globe, including working with United Way of Mumbai, India, to provide meals to underprivileged children. The company also is a founding partner of The Global FoodBanking Network.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: David Mackay, Kellogg Company

Communication technology expands to parts of Van Buren County

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Bloomingdale Communications Inc. will under take an $8.2 million expansion of voice, data and video service to most of Paw Paw Township and parts of Almena, Antwerp and Waverly townships. The service also will extend into Mattawan. The expansion is one of 22 projects nationwide to be awarded grant money from Rural Utilities Services. The services to be made available include telephone, IP video with digital video recording and high-definition video with Internet speeds up to 20MB. Faster speeds will be available in the future. The company provides digital cable, DIRECTV and local and long distance telephone services. Emegency services and hospitals can use added bandwidth that will open up when a second fiber path from Paw Paw to the main office in Bloomingdale is constructed. It provides a second path for service in case the fiber backbone is damaged or destroyed. Construction work is to begin this summer. Laying the backbone of the system is expected to take one year and the entire project, connecting homes and businesses to the backbone, is expected to take two years, BCI's Sales and Marketing Supervisor Shari Wykrent says. Bloomingdale Communications Inc. serves Van Buren County and parts of Allegan County. Writer: Kathy Jennings Source: Shari Wykrent, Bloomindale Communications Inc.

Internships aim to keep young pros in Michigan

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

The availability of internships has been shown to help states keep educated young people from fleeing for other places to live and work.The importance of Internships definitely is on the rise. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the percent of interns converted to full-time employment rose form 35.6 percent in 2001 to 50.5 percent in 2008.Kalamazoo Valley Community College's Lois Brinson-Ropes, the internship coordinator for the Student Employment Services, works with local employers to find the right young people for intern positions, which ideally bring an advantage when seeking full-time work.KVCC's Community Partners Internship Program has recently arranged for five winter semester placements. They are:-- David Curtis, a graphic-design major, Paw Paw Wine Distributors.-- Graphic-design/illustration student, Amy O'Donnell, Wraps & Signs By Trim It.-- Brittany Bauman, another graphic-design enrollee, The Strutt.-- Morgan Wellman as an administrative assistant, Abies Chiropractic Clinic.-- Chelsea Spencer, a business-administration major will do a marketing internship at Global Clinical Connections, which is located at M-TEC of KVCC and sponsored a graphic-design intern during the fall semester.The placements are funded for a three-year period by the KVCC Foundation. With $100,000, at least 55 students can be placed with enterprises interested in a grow-your-own-workforce alliance.The bulk of the grant funds is being used to pay up to 50 percent of the wages for each intern. The companies they work for pay the balance. The program runs through December of 2011.Salary terms are established on a case-by-case basis and agreed upon prior to the start of the internship. The pay can range from the minimum wage of $7.40 to $12 per hour.An internship usually lasts 15 weeks, but students can apply at any time and assignments are made year-round.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Lois E. Brinson-Ropes, KVCC

Baseball great says Stryker’s latest hip replacement technology scores

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Economic Development

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March 25, 2010

Johnny Bench loves his new hip from Stryker. The baseball hall-of-famer is a paid spokesperson for the Kalamazoo company, and who better to talk about the new implant than a guy who suffered hip pain due to the punishment his body took during many years as catcher for the Cincinnati Reds.Bench reports that one month after his replacement he already nearly has full range of motion back, an accomplishment he attributes to the implant and his physical therapists.The implant Bench is promoting is the latest from Stryker Orthopaedics. It's the next-generation technology for hip replacement surgery and is designed to minimize the risks associated with total hip replacement surgery. It's called the ADM X3 Mobile Bearing Acetabular System.Innovative designs in the newly launched hip implant are built in to give it more longevity than other designs. Its unique large polyethylene insert gives it a larger range of motion and also addresses concerns of metal-on-metal inserts that have caused unexpected medical consequences, such as pseudo-tumors. It also is designed to reduce the risk of dislocation.The new design increases range of motion by using two points of movement rather than a single point."We believe that mobile bearing hips will become the new standard of care in total hip replacements and are committed to offering advanced technologies that benefit both surgeons and patients while adding value in ways that have the potential to reduce costs to the healthcare system," says Bill Huffnagle, Vice President and General Manager of Hip Reconstruction at Stryker Orthopaedics.ADM X3 is the third major hip product launch by Stryker in the past year. Stryker Orthopaedics is a division of the Stryker Corporation. Stryker Orthopaedics offers an extensive orthopaedic product portfolio including hip, knee and upper extremity reconstructive devices, bone cement, trauma implants, bone substitutes and spine systems. Writer: Kathy Jennings Source: Bill Huffnagle, Stryker Orthopaedics

Portage residents say keep it up

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Economic Development

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March 18, 2010

Portage residents love their bikeway and trails system.They also think their parks are pretty great and they really dig the city's recycling program.So says 90-plus percent of residents responding to the annual city survey.Results of the the 24th Annual Citizen Survey let the city know what's important to residents each year.In 2010 it's quality of life, economic development, roads and neighborhoods, to name a few.Asked about the city services they receive, 85 percent gave a thumbs up. Economic development got a less enthusiastic 65 percent approval for the city's efforts to promote itself to business.The survey was conducted by mail by the Kercher Center at Western Michigan University.The City Council is listening and has made economic development, quality of life and infrastructure improvements, among other initiatives, priorities for 2010.Writer: Kim North ShineSource: City of Portage