Put down that cup of industrial grade chocolate pudding and try a homegrown tomato. Or a pepper. With hoop houses and farm plots (aka "the farmacy"), St. Joe's Hospital has joined the locavore movement, making its patients and their food trays a lot healthier.
A gust of fresh air has come, literally, to downtown Ypsilanti. City personnel and a cadre of volunteers, some from the Michigan Works young adult training program, have just finished planting the first installment of a tree nursery on the Water Street parcel. The 2-4 acre nursery, situated on the Huron River in the old Gilbert Park, now contains 350 new young trees. Another planting will be done this fall to bring the total to about 600-800 trees by the end of the year, says Ypsilanti City Planner Teresa Gillotti. The trees are planted in fabric grow bags so they can be moved to other areas of the city as and when development occurs on the site, Gillotti says. About half of the specimens in Ypsilanti's public tree stock are middle-aged and older, according to a recently completed tree inventory. "So the idea is that we're growing new stock sort of cheaply that will eventually get of size and then they'll be transplanted as part of the street tree network or as parks trees," she explains. No new maples are planned as they already comprise over half of the city's canopy. Instead, the new stock is a mix of shagbark hickory, hackberry, red oak, white oak, tulip tree, scarlet oak, white pine, blue spruce, and white spruce varieties. "Lots of folks are interested in volunteering, including a bunch of EMU students, residents, and neighborhood people," Gillotti says of the effort. "So we're really excited that it's kind of a neat combination of folks in the community that are coming out to help us establish the nursery, and ultimately I think we're going to have a group of volunteers that help to maintain and keep an eye on it as well." Source: Teresa Gillotti, Ypsilanti city planner Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
Eastern Michigan University's spate of energy conservation projects over the last four years has resulted in a $5 million reduction in energy expenditures – a 42% cost savings – over that timeframe, according to EMU Energy and Sustainability Manager Steven Moore. Those projects include replacing over 700 new insulated energy-efficient windows in Brown and Munson residence halls, increased usage of a natural gas turbine for the production of hot water in campus buildings, and placing over 260 recycling bins around campus, thereby increasing recycling rates by 80% since 2009. The university has also introduced sustainability-themed classes into its curriculum. "It's just a number of smaller changes that add up over time and have this good effect on the university," Moore says. The university is expecting to receive a LEED certification designation for its newly redone Pray Harrold building. Moore also points to the Mark Jefferson Science Complex's 85,000-square-foot expansion and renovation, due for completion this September, after which EMU will apply for LEED certification for the project. "If we would have built it at the same standards that the existing building had, we would have expected to have spent another $400,000 a year on energy for that building alone. By putting in more energy efficient systems for the addition and the existing building, we expect to have no additional energy costs in the building. That is a $400,000 energy cost avoidance, ongoing, for us." Another $120,000 savings resulted from the implementation of night setback schedules to turn buildings such as the Halle Library off at night. These efforts haven't gone unnoticed; EMU was just included in the Princeton Review's Guide to Green Colleges. Source: Steven Moore, EMU's energy and sustainability manager Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
Much like a Wayne State program that's found success in Detroit, EMU is trying to persuade some of its full time employees to buy a home in Ypsilanti by offer sweet loan deals. Excerpt: "The Live Ypsi program, which is currently being finalized and will likely be announced later this month, will use EMU, Washtenaw County government and DTE Foundation resources to offer forgivable loans to full-time faculty and staff who purchase a home in the Ypsilanti area. Officials say loans will likely range from $5,000 to $10,000 per individual. For each year that the homeowner lives in the Ypsilanti area and maintains employment at EMU, 20 percent of the loan will be forgiven. After five years, the loan will be completely forgiven." Read the rest of the story here.
In the conversation about mass transit and whether or not we develop a county-wide service one type of rider often gets overlooked - kids. What do limited transportation options mean for students without easy access to after-school activities and programs? What about the car-less volunteers who can't reach those who need help the most?
Tree Fort Bikes isn't just the little dream of a couple of guys who wanted to own a bike shop. The Ypsilanti-based business is growing into a sizable online retailer of bicycles, aggressively adding people and building out the company infrastructure. "Over the past year there have been a lot of changes," says Dante Tucker, HR & logistics manager for Tree Fort Bikes. "Our shipping method has changed. We have developed a new training program." That has allowed Tree Fort Bikes to almost double in size over the last year. And that's after it doubled in size the year before. Over the last 12 months, the company has hired nine people, expanding its staff to 17. Driving all of this growth is the online sales of its bicycles. That has pushed not only its web sales numbers but also traffic through its retail store. The company is now looking at a new home to accommodate its expanding customer base while still maintaining its core mission of being a community bike ship. "We're trying to be the bike shop that people can go to have their needs provided for," Tucker says. Source: Dante Tucker, HR & logistics manager for Tree Fort Bikes Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
When it come right down to it, Jesse Kranyak is an urban pioneer. Opening a restaurant and bar on an underdeveloped Ypsilanti block, he hoped customers would come. And they did. In just five short months the Wurst Bar has become both a neighborhood fixture and a night time destination, known for its beer, bingo, and sausages.
Mark Maynard, local blogger extraordinaire, shares his recent tete-a-tete with Paul Saginaw about the upcoming Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) conference in Grand Rapids, why it's crucial to develop a vibrant local business environment, and the meaning of "real prosperity."
Energy-efficient upgrades, from insulation to solar panels, are now more within reach for Ypsilanti residents taking part in the Better Buildings for Michigan program administered through the Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office. Seven cities in Southeast Michigan were chosen. "We were really looking for cities that had a long-term commitment to sustainability. And also cities that had high rates of home ownership, sort of older but really high-quality housing stock -- places where people were interested in investing in their homes," says Gillian Ream, communications coordinator for the Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office. For a $50 enrollment fee, an energy analyst will do a complete check-up of residents' homes and provide a report with findings and recommendations. By comparison, a comprehensive energy audit generally costs around $300-400, Ream says. BetterBuildings for Michigan will then fund up to $3,000 worth of improvements via either matching $1,500 worth of DTE Energy rebates or with reduced-rate financing for two years at a possible 0% APR. In pilot testing, Ream says, the average homeowner doing basics such as air sealing and insulation saves about $250 a year on utility costs. The Metro Detroit area program is open until November or until the approximately 4,000-home allotment has been reached, whichever comes first. Source: Gillian Ream, communications coordinator, Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
Washtenaw County is continuing with its purchase of properties for its Natural Areas Preservation Program (NAPP). Some of the recent deals have resulted in contiguous tracts of 100 acres or more. Last November, with a 151-acre purchase in Lima Township, the county established Trinkle Marsh at Easton Farm. The cost was $725,000, or $4,800 an acre. "The real key feature is a marsh that has some open water and it's really a very, very popular spot for birds, not only during summer but especially during spring and fall migration," says Tom Freeman, coordinator of Washtenaw County's Natural Areas Preservation Program. The preserve will be opened later this year with trails and birder-style overlooks with blinds. In December, the county bought 19 acres for $123,500, $6,500 an acre, in York Township just outside the city of Milan from the Schrock family. The areas will be called the Shrock Family Sanctuary and will be added to the 80-acre Draper-Houston Meadows Preserve. The parcel fronts along the Saline River, a tributary to the River Raisin, and will have trails. And just last week, the county purchased a conservation easement on a 100-acre plot in Superior Township. This was done in partnership with Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy, which will own the land. The total cost was about $700,000, or $7,000 an acre. The Ann Arbor Greenbelt is contributing towards the conservancy's expense, according to Freeman. "In that case it becomes part of a very, very large collection of property in Superior Township that is part of the Superior Greenway. We're well over 1,000 acres in terms of protected land in that area." And in partnership with Ann Arbor Township and the Ann Arbor Greenbelt, the county is acquiring 23 acres from J.A. Bloch and Company for about $163,000, or $7,100 an acre. The plot is on the northern boundary of Ann Arbor Township, in close proximity to the Northfield Woods Preserve. "We're hoping through this acquisition and another that's also pending, but probably much later this year, that we'll have connected about 100 acres and be able to connect them all with trails," Freeman says. As of the end of 2011, the NAPP program has protected just over 2,200 acres. The county has 19 nature preserves that are open to the public. Source: Tom Freeman, coordinator of Washtenaw County's Natural Areas Preservation Program Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
Our Partners
