Renovation planned for old Dexter Pharmacy building

Dexter Pharmacy won't be coming back to downtown Dexter, but that doesn't mean something bigger and better won't replace it soon.The Schmid family, owners of a number of local pharmacies in the Dexter-Ann Arbor area, plans to consolidate its Dexter-area pharmacies into one new location on Dexter Road. In the mean time the old Dexter Pharmacy retail space is being cleaned up and prepared for a new tenant."We don't want to leave it as a boarded up building in downtown any longer than we have to," says Marni Schmid, director of operations for Dexter Pharmacy.The building at 8059 is being renovated on the exterior right now and is being prepared for an exterior renovation complete with brick façade and big windows. The 3,500-square-foot building has served as a pharmacy for its entire life. Originally it was McLeod's Pharmacy until the early 1980s when Marni Schmid's father Fred Schmid bought it.The family is now consolidating its Village and Dexter pharmacies to a 2-story building on Baker Road near Bates Elementary School. The stand-alone building comes complete with a drive-thru, the pharmacy on the ground floor and medical office space on the second floor. Work on that project began in December and should be finished by October.Source: Marni Schmid, director of operations for Dexter PharmacyWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor MichCon brownfield becomes home of sustainability

The old MichCon property on Ann Arbor's north side (near the Amtrak station) shouldn't be exhibiting as much life as it is these days. The property is one of the most polluted in the city - usually a development death sentence. Not for this X acres along the Huron River.In a way that could only seem to happen in Ann Arbor, local stakeholders are generating interest and green projects on the site. Such projects include the disassembling and recycling of a building, proposals for redevelopment and even serious conversations about turning it into a cog in the Detroit-Ann Arbor commuter train line.DTE Energy, which owns the property, disassembled an old industrial building there. That resulted in recycling between 95-99 percent of the building, including donating parts of it to Habitat for Humanity and a Michigan school. The now empty space is being seriously considered as overflow parking for the Detroit-Ann Arbor commuter rail line.Such actions allow for use of the site without stirring the environmental demons buried in it. Part of the Huron River was filled in there with a pollutant called coal tars at the end of the 20th Century."The best science I have seen is you don't want to disturb those coal tars," says Peter Allen, a local developer and associate professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. "The best option is to entomb them."Allen had a couple of teams from his development class make detailed proposals for the site. Those called for capping the western half of the property where the pollution is concentrated and developing the eastern half. The proposals, all of them viable business plans, called for dense, urban building there.DTE is currently working with the state to determine what can be done with the site now that it is dormant. Source: Peter Allen, developer and John Austerberry, spokesman for DTE EnergyWriter: Jon Zemke

Ypsilanti plans to invest $100K in Harriet Street corridor

Dexter prepares for 1st phase of Mill Creek Park project

The village of Dexter is making preparations for construction on the first phase of the Mill Creek Park project this summer.The village has roped in a $450,000 grant and is working out the permit process with the state so it can begin construction. Look for shovels to start digging into the ground in July."It's moving forward," says Donna Dettling, village manager for Dexter.The plan calls for a combination of urban park with recreational resources and natural areas filled with trees, shrubs and small woodland creatures. The concept is the work of Ann Arbor-based JJR. The first phase calls for working on the section by downtown between the Dexter-Pinckney Road bridge and the cemetery.The park will run alongside approximately one mile of the east bank of Mill Creek between Warrior Creek Park and Shield Road. It will be integrated into the city's proposed river walk, highlighting the section of Mill Creek that borders downtown.The idea behind the park is to open up the creek to more village residents and downtown patrons. Source: Donna Dettling, village manager for DexterWriter: Jon Zemke

Renovations set for Ann Arbor’s Wheeler Park

What looks like a small change to Wheeler Park could turn into something much more for the green space on the north side of Ann Arbor.The city is planning to replace some of the playground equipment in the park this summer. It's also looking to touch base with local residents Thursday evening to see what they would like to see happen with the park in the short- and long-term. But for now, it's just about playground equipment."This won't be a radical change to the park," says Amy Kuras, park planner with the city of Ann Arbor.Wheeler Park is located on Depot Street just east of Main Street. It features playground equipment, basketball courts and some green space. It's mainly surrounded by single-family homes and some businesses to the north. The city plans to remove a brick dome that dates to at least 1978 because of safety concerns.The city will spend about $20,000-$30,000 to replace it. It also is planning on doing some other similar minor upgrades to local parks this summer. The public meeting will be held at 7 p.m. For information contact Kuras at akuras@a2gov.org.Source: Amy Kuras, park planner with Ann ArborWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor State Bank finishes 1st year with 5 new hires

With a little more than a year into its operations, Ann Arbor State Bank is picking up the slack as other banks remain gun shy about, well, banking.The downtown Ann Arbor-based bank opened in one of the worst financial environments in modern memory, and it has surpassed most of its goals when it comes to deposits, making bank loans and extending lines of credit. Oh, and it hired another five people and plans to do so again this year."We actually exceeded our loan and deposit volume goals," says Peter Schork, president of Ann Arbor State Bank. "That's due to the current environment and that generally banks are not lending. We are."Ann Arbor State Bank closed $58 million in deposits, $48 million in loans, including $18 million in residential loans. It serviced about 1,000 customers. Around 95 percent of the bank's business consisted of commercial loans to small businesses, owner-occupied residences and home-equity lines of credit.The company started with 16 employees and has grown to 21 today. Schork expects the bank's growth to continue this year, allowing it add another 3-5 employees.Source: Peter Schork, president of Ann Arbor State BankWriter: Jon Zemke

Sakti3, A123 Systems receive Centers of Energy Excellence money

Two promising Ann Arbor-based companies got a boost from Michigan's Centers of Energy Excellence program.The two firms represent different sectors in the development of the electricification of the automobile. A123Systems is the established player, employing a few thousand people in its Ann Arbor office. Sakti3 is the start-up, spun off of University of Michigan research and backed by General Motors.Both companies were two of the original six firms designated in the state's Centers of Energy Excellence program in 2008. Then it meant $43 million in funding. The second phase announced last week means another $30 million in funding.The program helps bridge the gap between companies, academic institutions and the state so all three partners can push forward cutting-edge research and development and pioneer new alternative energy technologies. The idea is to help diversify Michigan's brawn-based economy with more white collar jobs doing what Michigan does best - produce world-class automobiles.Source: Michigan Economic Development CorporationWriter: Jon Zemke

U-M researchers develop key protein in cancer fight

Could the cure for cancer be as simple as turning off a switch? Researchers at the University of Michigan are starting to think so.This research team has discovered that a protein called RIP can play a significant role in activating the death process in cancer cells. The team is led by Yvonne Kapila, associate professor, Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine at the School of Dentistry."There might be some central switch that tells a cell when to die," Kapila says.U-M scientists believe this protein could be developed into a treatment that can target and execute cancer cells. This is significant because cancer cells don't follow the normal cell death process, creating things like tumors. An RIP treatment could theoritically stop those cells in their tracks before spreading to the rest of the body.But like many cancer advances, this one is still a ways off from becoming a reality. University researchers still need to show the protein can be safely introduced to humans. To get to this point, Kapila and her fellow researchers examined squamous cell carcinoma cells from head and neck tumors and also fibroblasts from mice. The RIP protein is expected to serve as the communicator to these cells, telling them when to begin dying. The theory is expected to apply to other cancer cells because the death process is the same. Source: Yvonne Kapila, associate professor in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine at the School of Dentistry at the University of MichiganWriter: Jon Zemke

Start-up Saagara plans for growth in Ann Arbor

One of the main ideas behind Ann Arbor-based start-up Saagara is that proper breathing will lead to a healthier life. The year-old firm also believes it will lead to some new jobs, too.Nagabhjenam Peddi started the company shortly after he left his surgical residency. The firm focuses on providing a holistic approach to better health centered around breathing called Pranayama. "Simply by diet, breathing technique and some exercise you can improve people's health significantly," Peddi says.Today that concept employs Peddi and five independent contractors and the occasional intern. The company hopes to have six employees by this summer when it launches its full service. The goal is to start its customer base this year, taking in a few corporations, health-insurance companies and even people who just want to live healthier lives.Saagara, which is sanskrit for an ocean of ideas, hopes to expand into other languages and both Internet and smart phone applications in the near future. It has already taken in some Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Funds to help accomplish this and is working on bringing in some venture capital."We're speaking to some private-equity firms to get some more capital," Peddi says. "We're doing this in stages."Source: Nagabhjenam Peddi, president of SaagaraWriter: Jon Zemke