Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor part of the urban poultry farming craze

Tree Town becomes Chicken City as it joins Missoula, Montana; South Portland, Maine; and Ft. Collins, Colorado on the list of grass roots urban poultry organizing.Excerpt:"As it turns out, Mackin is hardly an anomaly, in New York or any other urban center. Over the past few years, urban dwellers driven by the local-food movement, in cities from Seattle to Albuquerque, have flocked to the idea of small-scale backyard chicken farming—mostly for eggs, not meat—as a way of taking part in home-grown agriculture. This past year alone, grass-roots organizations in Missoula, Mont.; South Portland, Maine; Ann Arbor, Mich.; and Ft. Collins, Colo., have successfully lobbied to overturn city ordinances outlawing backyard poultry farming, defined in these cities as egg farming, not slaughter. Ann Arbor now allows residents to own up to four chickens (with neighbors' consent), while the other three cities have six-chicken limits, subject to various spacing and nuisance regulations."Read the rest of the article here.

Green building gains momentum in Ann Arbor

The Ann Arbor building landscape is becoming more and more eco-savvy as green building takes root in Tree Town.Excerpt:Green building continues to gain momentum locally, as area professionals organize new initiatives to bring attention to the field and an established construction firm opens an Ann Arbor office focused on environmentally conscious project development and execution.Ryan Stoianowski of Willis Building Co. in Saline is co-chair of the Emerging Green Builders Committee of the Detroit regional chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. In May, Stoianowski was the only active member, but it has since grown to include chapters at the University of Michigan and the University of Detroit Mercy.He said the goal is networking and education."We want to reach out to teach sustainability to young professionals and college students," Stoianowski said. "We're trying to get mentorship opportunities off the ground."A local network of people interested in green building and development could help stop the "brain drain" of younger people to places like Chicago and San Francisco, Stoianowski said.Read the rest of the story here.

BTB Party Bus runs on churro power… or what they were fried in

Party buses in Ann Arbor are are turning to clean fuels --like used vegetable oils-- to transport revellers.Excerpt:BTB Burrito is already Ann Arbor's go-to spot for bar-goers who crave a late-night snack after last call. Now, BTB wants to give them a ride home, too - on a shuttle bus fueled by the waste oil that their churros were fried in.The BTB Party Bus - a bright-red, 14-seat, former airport shuttle - is powered by a diesel engine modified to run on used vegetable oil. It's indistinguishable from a normal diesel shuttle, except for the 20-gallon tank of grease that sits behind the driver and the tortilla-like aroma that lingers near the tank and emanates from the exhaust pipes. The homegrown mini-chain has been known best for fast, inexpensive Mexican food and a decidedly Ann Arbor attitude, from its funky interior design to its line of Hash Bash-themed merchandise. The turn toward eco-friendly transportation stems from the owners' interest in green innovation.Read the rest of the story here and a story on Ann Arbor's two electric cars here.

Ann Arbor in Top Five Surprisingly Gay Small Towns

Ann Arbor is gay (the traditional definition) about being recognized as a haven for gays raising families.Excerpt:There's one kind of scaling back that won't have you cursing the current economic climate. Opt for something a little smaller next time you pack up the Samsonite, and consider these delightfully diminutive gems, our top five surprisingly gay small towns.Read the rest of the story here and how Ann Arbor was rated one of the best places to raise kids in BusinessWeek here.

TherOx shows how local companies can be forced to move

A cautionary tale about how Ann Arbor is rich in new economy talent, but in need of more resources to develop it here. Excerpt: It's got the backing of Silicon Valley's most prominent venture capital firm, has proven that it can reduce heart muscle death in heart attack patients and has filed to go public. So what does California-based TherOx Inc. have to do with Michigan? The medical device company traces its origins to the state, licenses its key technology from Wayne State University and counts EDF Ventures of Ann Arbor as its first investor. TherOx's 14-year journey from start-up to a company on the verge of obtaining FDA approval for its cardiac system shows promising technology does exist in Michigan. However, the state often has a hard time capitalizing on it because of a lack of significant venture capital. Stories of promising start-up companies that stay in Michigan and eventually hit it big -- like HealthMedia Inc. in Ann Arbor, just acquired by Johnson & Johnson just acquired -- are still too rare. "In some sense, we start the deal here and eventually it gravitates to other places," said David Brophy, director of the University of Michigan's Center for Venture Capital & Private Equity Finance. "We're not exactly flooded with money in this state." TherOx got its start in Michigan in the early 1990s, using technology invented by Dr. James Richard Spears, a cardiologist and until recently a professor of internal medicine at Wayne State's School of Medicine. Read the rest of the story here and a story about how some Ann Arbor firm's believe local venture capital is on the rise here.

Ann Arbor digital marketing firm Ingenex builds search-optimized profiles

Ann Arbor's Ingenex is building up its profile by building profiles for others on sites like LinkedIn.Excerpt:In a nod to the increasing importance of leveraging search engine optimization to improve the visibility of professional social networking profiles, an Ann Arbor digital marketing firm is offering to build profiles for a fee. Ingenex Digital Marketing has created a new service, the Web site SocialHarbor.com, where individuals and companies can create profiles. The company then offers to harvest profile information provided by clients on Social Harbor and created a search engine optimized profile on sites like LinkedIn and AboutUs.org.Ingenex CEO Derek Mehraban said the service offers "an incredible instant search engine optimization boost" for professionals in fields such as accounting and law, where improved Web visibility can mean additional clients."So many people, they know they should be on LinkedIn, but they don't know how to do it," he said.Read the rest of the story here.

Braun Farm development rights to be sold to city, township of Ann Arbor

More land comes into the Ann Arbor Greenbelt, this time with a little back story. Excerpt: The city of Ann Arbor and Ann Arbor Township have struck a deal to purchase the development rights to the 285-acre Charles and Catherine Braun farm, north of the city. The farm, located on the west side of Whitmore Lake Road, south of Joy Road, has long been eyed by leaders in both communities who want to preserve the open space along the scenic two-lane road. A federal grant through the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program will be used to pay more than $1.4 million toward the appraised price of about $4 million. The two communities will split the balance, plus closing and related costs. The city's share will come from its greenbelt program; the township's from a land-preservation tax. The property was at the heart of a plan to build 1,300 Ann Arbor homes - a project, dubbed Colt Farms, a number of years ago. Read the rest of the story here.

U-M prof says blogging, social connections around for decades

Blogging isn’t some sort of new fangled trend developed in the last couple of years. University of Michigan Prof. Paul Resnick explains how it has been around for decades.Excerpt:About 185 million blogs are being tracked around the world by one estimate. Blogging - both amateur and professional - has become a cultural phenomenon.Paul Resnick, a professor with the University of Michigan School of Information, has expertise in social computing and social networks.Q: When did blogging first become recognized?A: Before the name "blogs" existed, people were updating their Web page with the latest little item they had. There were a few people who had e-mail newsletters they had with what today we would consider blog entries. That was 1988 or sometime around that.It happened first with e-mail distribution lists. Then people had Web pages. When it really took off and became available to a lot of people is when software tools came out. That was tools like WordPress or services that you can create a blog like blogger.com. Now, creating a new blog entry is filling out a form. You don't have to do anything about Web design. That opened it up to people who had a whole lot to say but aren't computer people.Read the rest of the story here and how Ann Arbor's ProQuest launched a new website here.

UM, Biotech groups hail passage of Proposal 2

Michigan has now joined a large and growing list of states that have liberalized its stem cell research regulations. It's a move many are praising as a job creator for the Great Lakes state. Excerpt: University of Michigan officials Wednesday expressed support for voters' passage of Proposal 2, the amendment to the Michigan Constitution that allows new embryonic stem cell lines to be derived from embryos that have been created for fertility treatment purposes. The embryos affected by the amendment would otherwise be discarded, unless donated with informed consent. Proposal 2, approved by voters in the Nov. 4 general election, overturns a 1978 Michigan law that prohibited creation of new stem cell lines from discarded embryos. The amendment will take effect Dec. 19. Prior to passage of Proposal 2, Michigan has been one of the most restrictive states in the country with respect to embryonic stem cell research. "The passage of Proposal 2 by Michigan voters signals an exciting new era for scientific research and innovation in our state," said UM president Mary Sue Coleman. "By expanding research with the creation of new embryonic stem cells, University of Michigan scientists can broaden their pursuit of therapies and cures for medical disorders that touch the lives of thousands of Michigan families." Read the rest of the story here.

Accuri Cytometers takes in $15 million in VC, expects to hire 88

Venture capital is almost always a good thing. In the case of Ann Arbor's Accuri Cytometers, it's good to the tune of $15 million in cash and 88 new jobs. That $15 million was recently topped with $1.9 million from Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund. All of that money is expected to nearly quadruple the three year-old biotechnology firm's employee base of 32 people. And the company hopes to grow its manufacturing facility in Ann Arbor soon.Accuri Cytometers specializes in making the cytomer systems that measure T-cell counts (among other things), which is an instrumental tool in tracking and treating diseases like AIDS and cancer. It is a research field with lots of room to grow in both the near and long term.The University of Michigan spin-off is shipping instruments to its first customers in the U.S., and anticipates $3.5 million in sales this year. Revenues are expected to grow to $42 million in 2010. Its annual addressable market potential is somewhere between $363 million and $625 million.Source: Michigan Economic Development CorporationWriter: Jon Zemke

Our Partners

30044
30045
30046
30047
30049
Washtenaw ISD logo
Eastern Michigan University
Ann Arbor Art Center
UMS
U of M Arts Initiative
Engage EMU
Ann Arbor Housing Commission

Don't miss out!

Everything Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, in your inbox every week.

Close the CTA

Already a subscriber? Enter your email to hide this popup in the future.