Ann Arbor

Publisher Edwards Brothers small but steady

By Newsroom

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November 12, 2008

A business doesn’t have to be part of the University of Michigan or the auto industry to be considered a legacy industry in Ann Arbor.Excerpt:Ann Arbor-based Edwards Brothers Inc. isn't part of the automotive industry, connected to the University of Michigan, or involved in the high-tech industry.So even though the company has a big sign outside its headquarters on State Street in Ann Arbor, company President and CEO John Edwards said many people are barely aware of the company's existence."We're not auto, we're not part of the 'U,' so we are sort of this invisible thing," Edwards said. "That's OK. I'm not complaining -- it's just kind of the nature of the business."For Edwards, "the business" is a fourth-generation publishing company founded in 1893. Edwards Brothers has survived the Great Depression and many technological advances that have changed the way books are made.Read the rest of the story here.

NeuroNexus Technologies lands VC money, looking to hire 7

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 12, 2008

NeuroNexus Technologies' products may look to get into people's brains but the Ann Arbor-based start-up is definitely in its investors' heads. The firm has just lined up $2 million in venture capital, including $1 million from Michigan's 21st Century Jobs Fund. The investment is expected to expand the company's employee base from 16 to 23 within the next few years. NeuroNexus designs state-of-the-art microscale neural interface products for research and clinical treatment of chronic neurological disorders. That's fancy prospectus talk for a company that creates technology that can monitor brain function and stimulate neurological functions. It can also be used to deliver treatments.The 4-year-old company is now self-sustaining and experiencing high growth. Well, growth fast enough to go from three unpaid personnel to a staff of 17 today. The company's revenues doubled between 2005 and 2007, and it is expected to double again this year.NeuroNexus is focusing its growth on four areas – research products, clinical products, engineering and manufacturing and innovation and IP development. Source: Michigan Economic Development CorporationWriter: Jon Zemke

Phase 1 of The Courtyards complete at U-M’s North Campus

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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November 12, 2008

Education Realty Trust is moving along with its dorm project on the University of Michigan's North Campus – The Courtyards. The firm just finished building the first phase of the 319-unit development this fall and expects to complete the entire project next summer.Students have moved into the first 103 apartments in the first phase. Another 216 apartments will come on line when the rest of the project is done. The development is located on Plymouth Road near Broadway Street immediately adjacent to North Campus. It's only a few blocks away from U-M's colleges of Engineering and Architecture and the schools of Art and Music.The dorm will feature apartments that have as few as one bedroom and one bathroom and as many as four bedrooms and four bathrooms. They will be in a series of three- and five-story buildings. The apartments are fully-furnished and are equipped with full-sized kitchens, granite countertops, in-unit washers and dryers, over-sized windows, high-speed Internet access and 90 channels of satellite television, among other amenities. There will also be recreational facilities, study and meeting rooms, a music practice room with a piano, an outdoor badminton court and a mini movie theater.Source: Bob Hetherington, spokesman for Education Realty TrustWriter: Jon Zemke

Photo Essay: Nickels Arcade

By David Lewinski

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Community Development

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November 12, 2008

It's a small slice of European urbanity in downtown Ann Arbor. Historic Nickels Arcade is the one-of-a-kind home to more than a dozen local businesses, some of which have been around for nearly a century. Concentrate introduces you to the people who work beneath its glass-top ceiling every day.

J.S. Vig Construction opens sustainability think tank in Ann Arbor

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 12, 2008

People don't usually associate phrases like "construction company" and "think tank," but they might start now that J.S. Vig Construction Company is opening a green building think tank in Ann Arbor later this month.The Taylor-based firm is dubbing it Project Green and will use the think tank to expand its sustainable construction practice. For now that will mean five new jobs in Ann Arbor and some more occupied office space at 157 E. Hoover.The office will build a resource library devoted to sustainable construction and provide a meeting place for company officials to expand their ideas on green building. It will also serve as a launching pad for them to take on more business farther from their Taylor home."We do a lot of work in the Ann Arbor area and out-of-state," says Valerie Vig, chief operating officer with J.S. Vig Construction Company.The site will also advocate for more LEED certified buildings and showcase sustainable construction techniques and products to local customers and architects. The company plans to have all of its project managers LEED accredited by the spring.J.S. Vig has more than a couple green stripes on its resume, including the new National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s state-of-the-art Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and the new Foley Mansfield building in Ferndale. Source: Valerie Vig, chief operating officer with J.S. Vig Construction CompanyWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor wins award for enabling active transportation

By Newsroom

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Development News

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November 12, 2008

Ann Arbor went for the gold and got it! The city was recently awarded a gold-level Active Communities Award.An Active Communities Award is a fancy, bureaucratic way of saying a community that encourages people to get around by walking, running, bicycling and just about any way other than automobile. Needless to say, having one of those at the "gold level" says that community is really good at it.Michigan's Promoting Active Communities Program pushed communities across the state to create and maintain an infrastructure that encourages physical activity, like walking, running and bicycling. Ann Arbor is one of 95 communities participating in the program and 23 that won an award.Ann Arbor received its kudos because the city coordinates its efforts with a number of local organizations, such as Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority, Ann Arbor Public Schools, Ann Arbor Transportation Authority and the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce. Among the city's attributes that helped it get to the gold level, which is the second highest designation, are bike lanes, promoting Curb-Your-Car Month and developing the Border-to-Border Trail, among others. Other statistics that helped Ann Arbor are: The city has been named the No. 10 Greenest Commuter Community 7.9 percent of city residents bike or walk to work (the U.S. averages 3.21 percent) AARP ranked it the No. 1 Healthiest Hometown in the U.S. Prevention Magazine and the American Podiatric Medical Association designated it No. 3 as the Best Walking City. Source: City of Ann ArborWriter: Jon Zemke

NanoBio adds 12 people in two years, looks to hire more

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 12, 2008

What does $30 million buy a start-up these days? If it's NanoBio it’s a dozen new employees (including seven Pfizer refugees) and a couple of products very close to commercialization.The Ann Arbor-based firm received $30 million in private equity from Perseus in 2006. That allowed the spin-off from the University of Michigan's Center for Biological Nanotechnology to expand its staff to 20 employees and three interns. "We pretty much doubled in size right away," says John Coffey, vice president of business development for NanoBio.It's also playing a major role in financing the second phase of clinical trails for two of its drugs. Those drugs help treat herpes and nail fungus. NanoBio expects to begin licensing them to major pharmaceutical companies in 2009. It's also developing products for vaccines. Those are also going through clinical trails and could be up for licensing as soon as late next year or 2010. "There is some significant interest in the vaccines," Coffey says.That type of success would allow NanoBio to do more hiring, but Coffey was a little coy about how much. He said it would happen, but probably not at the same speed as when the Perseus made it investment two years ago.Source: John Coffey, vice president of business development for NanoBioWriter: Jon Zemke

Cupcake businesses no creampuffs in downtown Ann Arbor

By Newsroom

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Development News

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November 12, 2008

What does it say about a city when it's downtown has not one but two cupcake-based businesses? Quite a lot apparently."I think it's a quality of life indicator if there ever was one," says Susan Pollay, executive director of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. "Not only do we have two cupcake stores, we have two dog biscuits/food stores. It says a lot about downtown Ann Arbor as a place that encourages these types of unique businesses."The Cupcake Station, first opened in Birmingham, just opened on Liberty Street about one block east of Main Street. It joins Cake Nouveau on Fourth Avenue. Cupcake businesses aren't necessarily the stores that leaders of cities usually drool over. They don't have the status of say a Trader Joe's or an Urban Outfitters, but it is exactly the kind of small, quirky business that once filled downtown.Some have said that the exit of stores like Fantasy Attic and Harry's Army Surplus only to be replaced with more and more restaurants and bars has chipped away at the strength of downtown. Perhaps cupcakes will be part of what makes it stronger.Source: Susan Pollay, executive director of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development AuthorityWriter: Jon Zemke

Video Motawi Tileworks

By Keith Jefferies

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Arts & Culture

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November 12, 2008

They made it with their own two hands! Karim and Nawal Motawi turned their handmade tile into a handmade business that employs nearly 30 local artisans. Mixing old world craft skills with modern manufacturing techniques, this Ann Arbor-based company brings in $2.5 million in annual revenues and has developed a devoted client base.

Velesco Pharmaceutical Services plans to double staff in Ann Arbor

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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November 12, 2008

In the bowels of Ann Arbor SPARK's downtown building is a company composed of a happy little band of Pfizer refugees who are not only trying to make it, they're beginning to make it big. Say hello to Velesco Pharmaceutical Services, a firm started by ex-Pfizerites Gerry Cox and David Barnes. The two worked at Pfizer's Ann Arbor campus until the pharma giant decided not to work there anymore. The move prompted Cox and Barnes to round up a few of their co-workers and begin Velesco earlier this year. Today their company stands six people strong. "We saw a real opportunity to provide high-quality pharmaceutical consulting services to companies," says Cox, who is now Velesco's Chief Operating Officer.The firm has taken on a number of clients in Michigan, and is now aiming for out of state contracts. Recognizing that most of the big pharmaceutical companies are located on the coasts, Velesco has aimed its focus east and west but remains committed to the Mid West. If all goes as planned, it expects to double the number of employees by the end of year. Source: Gerry Cox, chief operating officer for Velesco Pharmaceutical ServicesWriter: Jon Zemke