It's restaurant week in Detroit, but that's no reason to ignore cuisine in The Deuce. Instead of putting the spotlight on the usual fine dining subjects, Concentrate has decided to visit Ann Arbor's strangely popular bi bim bop scene; sampling, snarfing, and scoring the very best.
Lou Glazer's think tank, Michigan Future Inc., has been sounding the bell for Michigan's economic transformation for more than a decade and a half. And a vital component of that transformation means keeping and attracting young professionals. Glazer sees some promising trends but has a candid view of what the Ann Arbor region needs to do to help the state's recovery.
Grrrrr, it's a bear market for entertainment at the Michigan Theater this week. The jewel in Ann Arbor's downtown crown hosts a bevy of bitchin' shows, including psychedelic neo-pop folksters Grizzly Bear. Heck, even Jay-Z likes 'em. Editor Jeff Meyers ponders the growing hipness of UMS, points you toward the YP Underground and gives you the good word on what's worth checking out.
One of Silicon Valley's fast growing start-ups has chosen Ann Arbor as the place to make its first investment.Systems in Motion plans to invest $15 million and create 1,084 jobs at a new IT support center in Ann Arbor over the next five years. The IT firm also looked at making its first investment in other marquee college towns, like Austin, Texas and Durham, North Carolina before deciding on Ann Arbor."I think Ann Arbor is a marquee name in college towns as well," says Debashish Sinha, chief marketing officer for Systems in Motion.The California-based firm is only 3 months old but has already been able to lock down some venture capital funding and hire 20 people. Systems in Motion plans to create the next generation of IT infrastructure and workers by setting up IT support center at college towns across North America. The combination of the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University and Washtenaw Community College made the Ann Arbor area a prime target for Systems in Motion. To help make this happen was a tax-incentive package the state put together. Systems in Motion will receive up to $1.5 million in workforce development funding and a 100 percent employment tax credit over seven years.Source: Debashish Sinha, chief marketing officer for Systems in MotionWriter: Jon Zemke
Ann Arbor's EDF Ventures is scoring some investment hits on the road these days.The downtown-based venture capital firm recently announced that it helped line up millions of dollars in VC cash for two of the firms it has under its wings. That includes $22 million in Series B stock financing for California-based ValenTx and the third tranche of funding for Byron Center-based TransCorp. Nearly 1-year-old TransCorp develops surgical instruments for neurosurgical and orthopedic applications. ValenTx develops a less-invasive, implantable medical device to address morbid obesity. EDF Ventures has about $170 million worth of assets under management and has organized four investment funds since 1987. About a third of those are based in Michigan. Today the company employs five members and one intern and is looking at possible making more investments before the year is out. "We always hope there is more," says Linda Fingerle, chief financial officer and principal of EDF Ventures. "Nothing is definitive but we're hopeful."Source: Linda Fingerle, chief financial officer and principal of EDF VenturesWriter: Jon Zemke
A lot of federal stimulus money is starting to roll into the University of Michigan, and more is on the horizon.The university just passed the $100 million mark last week for federal stimulus money, which is up nearly $40 million in a little over a month. And a lot more federal stimulus research grants are expected to migrate into university coffers."They just keep rolling in," says Jim Erickson, senior public relations officer for the University of Michigan. "Every couple days they come in.Most of this money is coming from the stimulus money cache of the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation. One of the bigger grants is $19.5 million for a new U-M research center to explore new materials for solar cells. More money is expected to come in throughout the rest of the year. Just how much is possible is unknown at the time, but Erickson guesses it will be a lot. "We had a lot of faculty aggressively pursuing these [funds] Erickson says.Source: Jim Erickson, senior public relations officer for the University of MichiganWriter: Jon Zemke
Does Michigan's recovery hinge on Ann Arbor's emerging entrepreneurial culture? One local writer thinks so.Excerpt:Manufacturing an entrepreneurial economy is about more than just creating a healthy venture capital community and establishing various startup resources.Attitude and culture are just as critical.Entrepreneurial executives and economic development officials said Friday in Ann Arbor that Michigan’s economic revitalization hinges partly on its ability to cultivate a new entrepreneurial workforce."It's probably happening a little bit slower than we would like to see, but I think we’re seeing a tipping point here," said Kapila Viges, director of entrepreneurship activities for the Michigan Economic Development Corp. "We aren’t going to stay in this entitlement mode. We’re shifting from entitlement to empowerment."Read the rest of the story here.
Does one of the A's in A2 stand for adorable? Only if you're gay.Excerpt:Thirty-five years ago, Kathy Kozachenko was elected to the Ann Arbor City Council, becoming the first openly gay elected official in the US. It was a historic moment for the nation but for the residents of Ann Arbor - it was just business as usual.Today, Matt and Rene Greff are a perfect example of Ann Arbor's progressive nature. Owners of Arbor Brewing Co., a brewpub in downtown Ann Arbor, and Corner Brewery, a microbrewery in neighboring Ypsilanti, the straight couple has never thought twice about being advocates for gay rights. Visitors to their establishments are greeted by rainbow flag stickers prominently displayed to let all patrons know that their businesses are welcoming.Read the rest of the story here.
Eden Foods is popular these days, and not just with its Ann Arbor customer base.Excerpt:Chicago — For years, Michael Potter has gotten regular offers to buy his organic foods company near Ann Arbor, Mich., although now, he said, he gets three or four every week."Every food company you have ever heard of has tried to buy this company," said the founder, chairman and president of Eden Foods, Inc. "Not most of them. Every one of them."Read the rest of the story here.
Even Detroit is starting to discover the magical community car called Zipcar in Ann Arbor.Excerpt:Drivers like Al McWilliams increasingly concern the auto industry.McWilliams is part of a growing community of people who don't own a car and don't want to. He has no monthly car payment. He doesn't pay for insurance or gas or parking fees.But for $125 a year and less than $10 an hour, McWilliams still has all the wheels he needs and the gas to fuel them. He just whips out his ZipCard and heads for one of two lots in downtown Ann Arbor to use a Toyota Matrix or Scion xD."I'm saving $5,000 a year easy, plus gas," said the single 29-year-old founder of Quack Media, a multimedia marketing service based in the college town.Read the rest of the story here.
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