Chelsea

Chelsea Art Center’s $60K renovation puts 19 radiators up for adoption

By Newsroom

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November 4, 2009

Old-school radiators hold a special place in the memories of many who once counted on them for warmth and a space to dry wet winter gear. Today the Chelsea Center for the Arts just wants to find a good place for its old radiators now that it has finished a significant renovation project on its home base."I want them to go to a good home," says Aubrey Martinson, executive director of the Chelsea Center for the Arts. "I don't want them to go to scrap yard."The radiators are original to the 1925 building. The center disconnected them last year when it upgraded its heating and cooling system to forced air as part of a $60,000 project. That move left it with 19 radiators looking for a new purpose in life.17 of the radiators are standard size, measuring 42 inches wide. There is also a large and small one. They don't leak and are still functional. All of them are available to anyone who still wants to put them to their original use.Martinson is also considering reusing them for an art project. Anyone who wants to submit a proposal of turning the radiators into a piece of art can do so by calling the arts center at (734) 433-2787 or sending an email to Martinson at aubrey@chelseacenterforthearts.org.Source: Aubrey Martinson, executive director of the Chelsea Center for the ArtsWriter: Jon Zemke

Chelsea offers free CFLs for local residents

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 28, 2009

Chelsea residents, come and get your free CFL light bulb. The city is giving them away. Literally.The city's Energy Optimization Plan is offering two free CFL light bulbs to customers of Chelsea Electric. The idea is to promote energy efficiency and more sustainable practices, such as replacing incandescent light bulbs with much more efficient CFLs. The city is providing incentives for various Chelsea Electric customer, including those in residential, commercial and industrial sectors. The CFL give away is the primary component of the residential program. The CFL plan calls for spending approximately $50,000 this year and bumping up that amount to $200,000 within the next five years.Just remember, CFL's require proper disposal because of their mercury content. Contact you local recycling center for best practices.For information, click here.Source: John Hannifan, city manager for ChelseaWriter: Jon Zemke

Chelsea residents continue rally to Save the Livery

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Community Development

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October 21, 2009

The future of the Longworth building in downtown Chelsea is up in the air these days. The building had been slated for demolition by Chelsea Downtown Development Authority, but was given a temporary reprieve after a group of local residents called "Save the Livery," a nod to the oldest part of the building, organized. That reprieve has expired, leaving local preservationists in the dark about the building's future."We have been trying to be a part of the conversation," says Jan Bernath, one of the organizers behind the Save the Livery coalition.The group presented a petition with 700 signatures to save the livery. Joe Merkel, a local resident and developer, also stepped forward to offer his services to save the building. However, it remains unknown to Bernath and her colleagues about what happens next to the building.The 2-story building sits on Main Street just south of Jackson Street. The now closed Longworth Plating Service occupied the 11,800-square-foot industrial building most recently. The structure is divided into three main sections of varying ages, and oldest is the livery that served as a 10-cent barn in the early 20th Century.City officials hired a structural engineer who painted a grim picture, stating that the building was failing structurally and located on a brownfield space. The report prompted a grassroots group to stand up and set the record straight. Among the members are architects, historic preservation experts, structural engineers and MDEQ employees who disputed the city's findings and advocated for saving this piece of Chelsea's history.Source: Jan Bernath, one of the organizers behind the Save the Livery coalitionWriter: Jon Zemke

AATA pilot project gets real-time bus info to riders

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Development News

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October 14, 2009

Few things are as depressing as waiting and waiting and waiting in inclement weather for a bus named Godot, ...except, of course, watching your bus pull away just as you get to the bus stop.The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is trying to eliminate such things with a new pilot program via Shepherd Intelligent Systems. The University of Michigan spin-off is testing technology that would let users see exactly where buses are located in real time."This iis really focused around the riders," says Adrian Fortino, CEO of Shepherd Intelligent Systems.The mobile technology lets bus riders see the real-time location of the bus they want to catch through active maps on a website or smart phone application. It also supplies accurate predictions (within a minute) of when a bus will arrive at its stop using text messages. The technology comes from the Magic Bus program U-M uses for its buses.The pilot program will focus on Route #6 for the rest of this year. It could be spread throughout the rest of the AATA bus system next year.Source: Adrian Fortino, CEO of Shepherd Intelligent SystemsWriter: Jon Zemke

Local residents rally to “Save the Livery” in Chelsea

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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September 30, 2009

A small but talented group of Chelsea residents are fighting to save a piece of their history from the wrecking ball.The "Save the Livery" group is trying to safeguard the oldest part of the Longworth building, a horse livery that dates back to the turn of the 20th Century. The city wants to tear down the building for redevelopment, however, there isn’t a current plan to build anything on the space right now.The 2-story building sits on Main Street just south of Jackson Street. The now closed Longworth Plating Service occupied the 11,800-square-foot industrial building most recently. The structure is divided into three main sections of varying ages, and oldest is the livery that served as a 10-cent barn.City officials hired a structural engineer who painted a grim picture, stating that the building was failing structurally and located on a brownfield space. The report prompted a grassroots group to stand up and "set the record straight". Among the members are architects, historic preservation experts, structural engineers and MDEQ employees who disputed the city's findings and advocated for saving this piece of Chelsea's history."One of Chelsea's major selling points and reasons why people care to visit is its historic character," says Greg Raye, owner of Chelsea-based Greg Raye Architects. "It's also connects to the Main Street buildings around the corner. If it was gone it would be a missing tooth in the commercial fabric."The group has been able to win a stay of execution for the livery until Oct. 19. They are advocating for turning the structure into a mixed-use building. Although possible, Raye adds it won't be cheap. He foresees it costing a couple hundred thousand dollars to stabilize the building and up to $800,000 to have it completely redone."There is a wide range of things that could be housed there," Raye says.Source: Greg Raye, owner of Chelsea-based Greg Raye ArchitectsWriter: Jon Zemke

Downtown Chelsea unveils new mural

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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September 16, 2009

Chelsea is celebrating 175 years with one big-arse painting, a mural to be precise.The city just unveiled a 16 feet by 20 foot mural on the back side of Merkel Furniture building, 205 Main Street. The Chelsea Center for the Arts commissioned the piece to celebrate the founding of the city 175 years ago.The mural was painted on several aluminum composite panels by Mary Thiefels. City workers hung the complete piece of art on the side of the building. The Chelsea Community Foundation, state and Chelsea Downtown Development Authority have all pledged or given up to $9,000 for the mural, which is reminiscent of the famous Pied Piper painting in the Palace Hotel in San Francisco."We're still looking for additional contributions to cover the costs," says Aubrey Martinson, executive director of the Chelsea Center for the Arts.Source: Aubrey Martinson, executive director of the Chelsea Center for the ArtsWriter: Jon Zemke

Sleeping Bear Press moves to Ann Arbor

By Newsroom

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Economic Development

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September 2, 2009

Sleeping Bear Press, a downtown Chelsea staple, has made tracks over to Ann Arbor.Excerpt:Sleeping Bear Press will be leaving the Chelsea Clocktower on Friday.Heather Hughes said the move was a result of the changes made when the Press became part of Gale Publishing in 2002."The Chelsea Clocktower became our home 10 years ago as a publisher with three separate divisions," Hughes said in a written statement. "When Gale acquired Sleeping Bear Press in 2002, just the children's division was included and the other two parts of our business were sold separately.""This left us with many open offices and too much space. When our lease came up for renewal we were fortunate to find a wonderfully suited space that fits us perfectly."Sleeping Bear will be moving to 315 E. Eisenhower Parkway in Ann Arbor, across from Briarwood Mall.Read the rest of the story here.

Get the 411 on things to do in Chelsea

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Arts & Culture

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September 2, 2009

When Leslie Surel moved to Chelsea, she started looking for something to do. That basic need turned into a nice little Internet start-up – What To Do In Chelsea.In 2005, Surel started by putting together a simple website featuring the links of places she liked to get information on city events. She told about a dozen friends and now has 17,000-plus visitors a month, turning it into the top hit in Google searches for Chelsea, Michigan. "It's growing every month in regards to visitors and content," Surel says. The downtown Chelsea-based business has relied mostly on viral marketing and word-of-mouth to build its loyal base of followers. What To Do In Chelsea is now utilizing social media outlets, like Facebook and Twitter, to further drive traffic.Surel wants to turn the website into (or maintain its presence, depending on whom you ask) the definitive news source for events and things to do in Chelsea. She could even see expanding it to other nearby cities like Dexter or Saline in the not too distant future."The more I added to it the more I realized there was more to add," Surel says. "It was inspirational to see everything there is to do in this town."Source: Leslie Surel, owner of Things To Do In ChelseaWriter: Jon Zemke

Mass transit round-up in Ann Arbor area

By Newsroom

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Development News

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August 26, 2009

Mass transit advocates won one and lost one in Ann Arbor this month. Welcome the Canton Express commuter bus. Say goodbye to The Link bus loop through downtown.The Canton Express began operation earlier this week, connecting commuters from the Plymouth/Canton area to downtown Ann Arbor. The bus makes two trips from Canton's Independence Park in the morning and returns twice in the afternoon. It makes stops at the University of Michigan, U-M Hospital and downtown.The Canton Express is run on the same concept as an identical line between Chelsea and Ann Arbor. The Chelsea line started last year and has built a steady ridership. The idea is to help downtown and U-M workers make their daily commute more efficiently, allowing more people to use downtown without having to find homes for their cars.Gone is The Link downtown bus. The little purple busses connected downtown and far reaches of U-M's campus with a number of stops in between, similar to how The People Mover works in downtown Detroit. The Link, which has been around for most of this decade, never lived up to ridership expectations and was cut so the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority could maintain other bus services.Source: Ann Arbor Transportation AuthorityWriter: Jon Zemke

Veteran reporter starts Chelsea Update webzine

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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August 26, 2009

It's hard for reporters to stop tapping on that keyboard, which explains why Chelsea is now in the webzine game with Chelsea Update.The news website is the baby of Heather Newman, a veteran reporter with 20 years experience in newspapers including a recent stint at the Detroit Free Press. She is the founder, owner, editor and writer for the website that posts news stories on an almost daily basis."It's kind of a tough itch not to scratch," Newman says.Even when she has a full-time job. The Chelsea resident left the Free Press last winter to take a marketing job with the University of Michigan Press, the university's book publisher. She runs Chelsea Update in her spare time, writing stories on nights and weekends. Newman hopes to make the month-old website break even by this time next year. She plans to eventually get the point where she can even hire a freelancer or two and become known as the definitive news source for Chelsea. But now its just a good reason to ask questions."It gives me a good excuse to be officially nosy in my town," Newman says.Source: Heather Newman, owner of Chelsea UpdateWriter: Jon Zemke