On November 3, we will have the opportunity to elect a new Governor to lead Michigan forward. To help you learn more about the candidates, we have invited Rick Snyder and Virg Bernero to Detroit to discuss their urban agendas and plans to further the principles of the Detroit Declaration. Join Model D and Declare Detroit on Thursday, October 21 at the Max M. for a conversation with gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder.
Issue Media Group announces Research Corridor - a monthly roundup of stories about the latest R&D, entrepreneurship, and collaboration from Michigan's research leaders: Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and Wayne State University.
Man does not live by bread alone. Frequently there must be beverage. Preferably fermented. And should bread fail to soak up said beverage, well, bar food must fill the void. Concentrate hails Ann Arbor's best pubs, cafes, and joints for libations and grub.
Prepare yourself for this: A national media outlet made a list about Detroit/Ann Arbor, and it wasn't to tout its shortcomings or strengths. Inc. magazine told the world five reasons why southeast Michigan is worth the investment and Ann Arbor figured prominently into that equation.Excerpt:To see the change, you needn’t look further than the SPARK Business Accelerator in Ann Arbor. Located 45 miles outside the city center, SPARK has helped more than 200 innovation-related start-ups in the region. Its convenient location next to one of the world's leading research institutions – the University of Michigan – doesn't hurt either. "We think Ann Arbor represents a wonderful hub of activity that can serve as a catalyst for the rest of the state of Michigan," says Michael Finney, president and CEO of SPARK.Entrepreneurs also look to the region's automotive pedigree to tackle new industries. They can parlay the region's swath of talented engineers to make innovations in areas like battery technology, which Rizik says fits "hand-in-glove" with the auto industry. SPARK has, in fact, sought funding for a few battery makers in Ann Arbor, aiming to establish Michigan as a leader in the technology for the rest of the country.Read the rest of the story here.
Members of the University of Michigan are known as the leaders and the best, and now also as the hacker kings of the free world after taking down Washington, D.C.'s new online voting system. Everyone who voted with that system knew who did it.Excerpt:Last week, the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics opened a new Internet-based voting system for a weeklong test period, inviting computer experts from all corners to prod its vulnerabilities in the spirit of "give it your best shot." Well, the hackers gave it their best shot -- and midday Friday, the trial period was suspended, with the board citing "usability issues brought to our attention." Here's one of those issues: After casting a vote, according to test observers, the Web site played "Hail to The Victors" -- the University of Michigan fight song.Read the rest of the story here.
The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is getting a $1 million windfall in federal grant money to rebuild the Blake Transit Center downtown.AATA and the city announced Monday that the funds will be used to build a new transit center on the same parcel of land, 331 S. Fourth Ave., replacing the current building with a new, two-story, 6,000-square-foot building. The current one story, 2,000-square-foot structure opened in 1987 and has had difficulties accommodating the increasing number of transit customers; ridership has grown by 60 percent in the last 23 years. About 5,000 bus riders pass through the station each day.The new transit center will be designed to include an interactive public lobby/waiting room with a capacity of 60-75 people, information kiosks, a concession space, expanded public restrooms, a public board room accommodating 60-75 guests, a computer room, an improved employee lounge area, and additional facility storage space.The funds come through The State of Good Repair Grant, from the U.S. Department of Transportation, which Congressman John Dingell (D-Dearborn) helped secure. The funds require a state or local match of $253,000.AATA estimates that the project will cost about $4 million. Construction is expected to start in the spring and be completed around summer of 2012. The current building will remain open during construction.Source: Ann Arbor Transportation AuthorityWriter: Kristin Lukowski
A new kind of traffic signal will soon be helping people cross the street in Ann Arbor, allowing traffic to run smoothly when walkers, runners, and bikers aren't out and about.The joint project between the Michigan Department of Transportation and the city will install the HAWK signal, High-intensity Activated crosswaLK, at the corner of Huron Street and where Third turns into Chapin, just west of downtown. Eli Cooper, transportation program manager for the city of Ann Arbor, says the innovative signal was identified in 2007 as something the city could implement successfully as part of its nonmotorized plan.Traffic studies have been done at that intersection to determine if it needs a regular signal, but the traffic flow isn't high enough to justify one. "We've got a tool that we can use, and we've got a location," Cooper says. "We're ready to deploy the technology, and we're pleased (MDOT has) selected us. We believe that it will be a significant improvement to the walking environment in our community."The total estimated cost for the project is $102,000, with the city contributing about $21,000 for a mast arm, which officials prefer for crossing signals, and the necessary reinforced foundations.From the pedestrian's point of view, the signal won't be much different than a regular crossing signal; push the button, wait for the indicator to change from "don't walk" to "walk," and cross the street. From the driver's standpoint, however, the intersection will be dark when there are no pedestrians. When a pedestrian does press the crossing button, a yellow light flashes to warn drivers, and red lights come on to make it safe to cross.There are a few others in the metro area, but not many. "This is relatively new, and completely new for Washtenaw County," Cooper says. "This device will enable traffic to flow freely and smoothly at all times, other than when a pedestrian is present."He hopes a media and informational campaign will help educate drivers about the new intersection. Installation was expected to start this week, with the new signal to be operational by November."This is absolutely exciting," Cooper says. "We do pay a lot of attention and pride ourselves as being a pedestrian-friendly community, a bicycle-friendly community. This a a device that accommodates the interest in a very effective way."Source: Eli Cooper, Transportation Program Manager for the city of Ann ArborWriter: Kristin Lukowski
A new downtown Ann Arbor residential community now has a tentative construction timeline after several years of delays.City documents indicate that Ann Arbor City Apartments, proposed by Village Green Companies, plans for a late June groundbreaking, with the parking structure to be finished by May of 2012 and the residential units to be finished by Dec. 31, 2012. Last week the city approved the selling of $9 million in bonds for the parking facility, as that part of the development will be public.Village Green CEO Jonathan Holtzman declined to comment further on the project.Plans for the Ann Arbor City Apartments, to be built at First and Washington Streets, had originally been approved in early 2008. Intended for non-student rentals on the western edge of downtown, the multi-use building replaces a former parking deck.The eight-story structure will feature about 150 new apartments and nearly 250 parking spaces. The parking spaces will be on four levels, two in the basement and two more on the first two floors. The city will operate the parking structure section of the building as a public parking garage.The one- and two-bedroom apartments will occupy the top six stories and average about 700 square feet. About 10 percent of the units will be dedicated to affordable housing. The units will not have individual balconies or terraces, but there will be a community rooftop deck.The company has buildings in 11 other states and consistently wins awards for its community designs and leadership. A Minneapolis building has been recognized for its adaptive reuse.Source: City of Ann Arbor, Village GreenWriter: Kristin Lukowski
The Bank of Ann Arbor is now in the business of building bridges -- well, at least figuratively. That's thanks to a financing agreement it has recently brokered with Detroit-based TechTown, creating one more connection between Tree Town and the Motor City.The downtown Ann Arbor-based bank closed a 10-year loan for an undisclosed amount that will help TechTown build out its TechTwo small business incubator in Detroit's New Center neighborhood. The agreement also opens up a channel for Bank of Ann Arbor to provide financing for the rapidly growing number of startups in TechTown."How do we raise the level on collaborating more instead of competing for resources," says Michael Cole, president of the Technology Banking Group at Bank of Ann Arbor. "That's already happening with things like the University Research Corridor."Bank of Ann Arbor has a reputation for working with local early stage companies, providing them with seed capital at crucial points, a la Silicon Valley Bank. Cole's group focuses on the technology and life sciences sector, as well as the growing population of nano-tech companies. Bank of Ann Arbor is the only bank in the state that specializes in the tech industry, like Silicon Valley Bank and the Royal Bank of Canada, where Cole paid his dues earlier in his career."We do a lot of work with early stage companies," Cole says. Source: Michael Cole, president of the Technology Banking Group at Bank of Ann ArborWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
A quartet of University of Michigan graduate students are looking to make their fortune by licensing one of their inventions, specifically, a surgical tool called Endocutter. The engineering students (Taarif Jafferi, Rahula Rattan, Zach Weingarden, and Raghunath Katragadda) came up with a device that helps break down and suck up abdominal blood during surgery, allowing doctors to see what's happening."You can see what you're sucking," says Rattan, a PhD candidate at U-M. "Because the things we are sucking are too big, this will cut them up (with a small tool at the tip of suction tube), too."The students created the device during a year-long graduate bio-medical design class and are now trying to patent it. They have received $10,000 in seed funding from the U-M Medical Innovation Center and hope to find a business to partner with and license the technology out by the end of the year.Source: Rahula Rattan, co-inventor of EncocutterWriter: Jon ZemkeRead more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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