Economic Development

New 12,000 sq ft Blake Transit Center kicks off opening on March 17

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March 12, 2014

The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority, or TheRide, will open its new, 12,019-square-foot, LEED Gold-certified Blake Transit Center to the public on Monday. After breaking ground in late 2012, TheRide says the completed building will offer a larger customer service lobby, improved restrooms and digital signage featuring real-time route information. "Staff, including myself, who have toured the new building are impressed with the new space, and believe it will be a welcoming, comfortable, convenient, and safe place for riders," says Don Kline, integrated marketing coordinator for TheRide. "Early reactions from the public we’ve spoken to have been very positive." Monday will be a soft launch for the Blake Transit Center, as the lane buses will eventually use adjacent to the center won't be finished until the ground completely thaws. A grand opening event will be scheduled at that time. Next week, light refreshments and customer service staff will be available to the public to kick off the opening. Kline says the long term goal of the new Blake Transit Center will be to accommodate TheRide's growing ridership, which has increased by more than 80 percent since the former transit center was built in the 1980s. "We are continuing to focus on improving connectivity in our urban core communities that in turn improves our economy, environment, and quality of life," he says. Next up for the ever-evolving organization will be a May 6 vote on TheRide's Five-Year Transit Improvement Plan, "TheRide Your Way." In 2013, the city of Ypsilanti and Ypsilanti Township were officially added to the TheRide organization. Source: Don Kline, TheRide Writer: Natalie Burg

Latest in Economic Development

Little Conductors brings train retail, rental and fun to Chelsea

By Natalie Burg

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Development News

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March 12, 2014

For the last year Heidi Langenferser and her husband have been renting out their own, homemade trackless train for parties and festivals. As they grew their offerings to include pedal train cars, the pair decided it was time to open a storefront and continue to grow their business. Little Conductors, which opened last week in Chelsea's Oak Tree Plaza, now offers both train rentals and retail. "We sort of started going in this direction with the train rentals and though it was a cool idea," says Langenferser. "We live in Chelsea and thought this was would be a nice place, right next to the freeway." The 800-square-foot store opened on March 1 after four to five months of locating the right real estate and renovating the space. In addition to the pedal trains and the trackless train built by Lagenferser's husband, Little Conductors offers rentals on train tables for toddlers, Thomas the Train play equipment, as well as train toys and accessories for sale. "We're getting positive feedback," Langenferser says. "People are liking the place." Little Conductors is currently staffed by Langenferser and her husband. Eventually, they plan to grow into a larger space to include a play area. Source: Heidi Langenferser, Little Conductors Writer: Natalie Burg

Carrabba’s, Five Guys and more coming to Ann Arbor-Saline Rd.

By Natalie Burg

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Community Development

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March 12, 2014

A slew of national chains including Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Subway, Sport Clips and others will soon be part of Pittsfield Place, a 12-business restaurant and retail development that is scheduled to break ground later this month. According to Landmark Commercial Real Estate's Michael Lippitt, who is marketing the spaces, the Ann Arbor-Saline Rd. location is ideal for the project. "Pittsfield Place is strategically located in front of a very long-established and high-volume Meijer," says Lippett. "The surrounding retailers are some of the highest-volume stores in all of Southeast Michigan. And the market, if you compare it to the rest of Southeast Michigan, is underserved." The project, which is being developed by Versa in Southfield, is divided into two phases. The first, which will include eight restaurant and retail spaces, is set to break ground this month with businesses, including Carrabba's, opening by the end of the year. About 6,500 square feet of commercial space is still available in Phase I. All properties in Phase II have been spoken for, and construction is scheduled for completion in 2015. "The economy is very good and leasing is very strong," Lippitt says. "Support from the township was very strong, and Meijer was very interested. All of the moon and stars aligned at the right time." The 6.4 acres of land on which Pittsfield Place will be developed was purchased from Meijer. The development will sit between Lohr Rd. and Oak Valley Drive on Ann Arbor-Saline Rd. with parking in the rear. Source: Michael Lippitt, Landmark Commercial Real Estate Services Writer: Natalie Burg

The customer is king at new Syrian restaurant, Damas

By Natalie Burg

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Arts and Culture

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March 12, 2014

Syria native Jawad Seif may be the owner of the new Damas Restaurant in Woodland Plaza on S. Main St., but he leaves no room for doubt who his boss is. "The customer is the king," says Seif. "Any customer only has to pay if he likes the food. I'm looking to have a customer that trusts me, and I trust them every time." After moving to Ann Arbor from Syria just a year and a half ago, Seif opened Damas Restaurant on Feb. 17. His Mediterranean style includes the hummus, chicken shawarma and falafel diners expect, as well as specialty items, such as stuffed zucchini and okra with rice. All of his foods, Sief says, will have freshness in common. "The rule here is that everything must be fresh. Every morning we have new ingredients," Seif says. "I'm happy because most of the customers say it's the best Mediterranean food in Ann Arbor." For Seif, Ann Arbor was the perfect place to open his restaurant, as he says the community loves Mediterranean food and has made his family feel welcome from the first day they arrived. The 1,800-square-foot restaurant seats 40 and employs a staff of six. Seif decorated Damas himself with decor reminiscent of Syria. Source: Jawad Seif, Damas Restaurant Writer: Natalie Burg

U-M Credit Union merges with EMU Credit Union

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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March 12, 2014

The credit unions at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University are now one institution after consummating a merger earlier this year. Eastern Michigan University Credit Union officially became a part of University of Michigan Credit Union in January. EMU’s Credit Union will now be known as Eastern Michigan University Financial. U-M Credit Union will keep its branding. Members of both will now have full access to all of the newly combined credit union's branches in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and Dearborn. "It's not a growth strategy," says Jeff Schillag, vice president of marketing at University of Michigan Credit Union. "It's truly a collaboration." The newly merged credit union will have $545 million in assets and 59,342 members. All of those members will have equal access to affordable financial services, mobile banking, and instant issue debit and credit cards. Eastern Michigan University Financial will maintain its branch at 761 Jenness St. in Ypsilanti with its current staff. It will continue to employ its namesake university's brand in its name as a point of pride for the EMU community. "We intend to keep the branding there to better serve that community," Schillag says. Source: Jeff Schillag, vice president of marketing at University of Michigan Credit Union Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Sakti3 expands staff in Ann Arbor with new hires

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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March 5, 2014

Clean-tech startup Sakti3 is starting to see some promising results for its solid-state battery technology. The Ann Arbor-based startup Sakti3 spun out of the University of Michigan six years ago. It is developing new lithium ion battery technology that it claims offers double the energy density of today’s commercial cells at half the price "We have demonstrated some impressive numbers when it comes to energy density in battery cells," says Ann Marie Sastry, president & CEO of Sakti3. She adds, "our results so far are very promising." Sakti3's technology is manufactured using existing, scaled platforms that offer an easy path to large-scale production, in a single, integrated, manufacturing line. "We use only scalable processes on cheap equipment," Sastry says. "It won't break the bank." Sastry says her firm has "hired a few people" for “high-end tech positions” in the last year. Sakti3 now employs "less than 24 people," Sastry says. She declined to provide specifics. Sakti3 has raked in millions of venture capital, including a $4.2 million investment from GM Ventures, the VC arm of General Motors, and Japan-based Itochu Technology Ventures in 2010. Sakti3 has raised $30 million in venture capital in total. Source: Ann Marie Sastry, president & CEO of Sakti3 Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Seed round enables Protean Payment to hire more staff

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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March 5, 2014

Protean Payment is starting to make a little noise in Ann Arbor's entrepreneurial ecosystem, attracting some venture capital investment and hiring several people. The tech-payment startup has grown its staff to 10 employees. It has hired seven of those people over the last year. It is also looking to hire another five people and bring on some summer interns. "We have been ramping up our engineering team," says Nick Bognar, communications manager for Protean Payment. "We have also brought on some operations personnel and a human resources person." Protean Payment is developing a skeleton key for the wallet. The technology, which it has named "Echo," combines all of the user's credit, debit, loyalty and ID cards into the Echo card. Echo comes equipped with a tiny computer that syncs with the user's mobile phone. The accompanying mobile app allows the user to convert Echo into the card of his or her choice, allowing them to swipe it as they would their normal credit card. The 2-year-old startup, which calls Kerrytown home, hopes to launch the technology in 2014. "They will see some stuff come out later this year," Bognar says. "I can't say exactly when that will be." Bognar also confirms that Protean Payment has landed some seed capital that is paying for the build out of the startup. He declines to say how much has been raised. Ann Arbor-based Resonant Venture Partners and Chicago-based Hyde Park Venture Partners both claim Protean Payment as a portfolio company. Source: Nick Bognar, communications manager for Protean Payment Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

SportsFactory centralizes athletic tweets for non-Twitter users

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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March 5, 2014

Nic Stelter loves keeping with his favorite athletes and sports teams through Twitter, but he is not the biggest fan of the social media site. That prompted him to launch SportsFactory in Ann Arbor. The startup creates a web app that aggregates tweets from the users favorites athletes and teams. So if you are a diehard University of Michigan fan, you can use SportsFactory to collect the tweets about the university’s athletic department, athletes and recruiting efforts instead of sorting it all out on your own Twitter handle. The web app makes the tweets look like they do on Twitter so the user gets an authentic experience. (Check out a video, created by Ann Arbor-based Media Academica, describing the service here.) "I wanted to make something non-Twitter users can use to read tweets," Stelter says. He adds, "we have tried to make the experience as much like Twitter as possible." Stelter leveraged the services of Tech Brewery-based Alpha Jango to build the web app. He plans to release a mobile app for Apple and Android products later this year. "It's going to be a slow climb but people really like it so far," Stetler says. Source: Nic Stelter, founder of SportsFactory Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Proponents of AATA transit expansion dissect opposition

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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March 5, 2014

On May 6 voters in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and Ypsilanti Township will decide whether to fund the AATA's plan to expand services. An opposition group has formed, making various claims about the millages failures and shortcomings. Blogger Mark Maynard brought together a trio of proponents to discuss their campaign. Excerpt: "The small but loud opposition relies on this argument to fire people up. “We don’t benefit, so we’ll vote no.” They present it as black and white, and ignore the general benefits, which are numerous. They don’t acknowledge the fact that mass transit alleviates road congestion, improves safety, makes parking spaces easier to come by, etc. If they don’t have a bus stop right outside their house, and routes that take them directly from their first appointment of the day to their last, and back home again, they’re completely against it. They’re demanding something of a bus service that’s just not realistic. The truth is, our local transit service has been continually improving (AirRide service to Detroit Metro Airport, expanded NightRide service, increased frequency of service on routes 4 and 5, etc.), and there will be even more options for people if this millage is passed" Read the rest here.

MyFab5 pivots to combine online rankings with Instagram

By Newsroom

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Arts and Culture

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March 5, 2014

MyFab5 got its start as a new way for people to review eateries and stores online. Now it’s pivoting to become an additional feature on Instagram. "We're not trying to be Instagram," says Omeid Seirafi-Pour, co-founder & CEO of MyFab5. "We’re trying to be an added layer on Instagram." MyFab5 allows its users to take pictures of their meals at restaurants and then rank their experience. The Ann Arbor-based startup has developed technology that allows users to rank their top five businesses in certain genres in local areas, their top five picks for Chinese restaurants in Ann Arbor, or five favorite places to grab a burrito. "We have found that foodies love the pictures on Instagram and love our ranking system," Seirafi-Pour says. The startup launched its ranking system last August and is currently being employed in major cities across the U.S. The startup has facilitated 18,000 rankings across the country so far. "We're seeing the most activity in Detroit, Ann Arbor, Chicago, Portland, New York and Austin," Seirafi-Pour says. MyFab5 is currently made up of a team of four full-time employees and two part-timers. It also has a small group of marketing interns helping grow its Instagram following to 30,000 members. Source: Omeid Seirafi-Pour, co-founder & CEO of MyFab5 Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.