Our roundup of the latest news from metro Detroit and Michigan businesses as well as announcements from government agencies, including updates about the COVID-19 pandemic. To share a business or nonprofit story, please send us a message.
Bank of Ann Arbor Completes Purchase of Birmingham Branch Office
Bank of Ann Arbor today announced Monday that it has completed its acquisition of Nicolet National Bank’s branch office at 260 East Brown St. in Birmingham, purchasing approximately $186 million in loans and assuming approximately $55 million in deposits pursuant to a purchase and assumption agreement previously made with Nicolet.
The branch was previously acquired by Nicolet as part of its merger with mBank.
All branch loan officers and employees have joined the Bank of Ann Arbor team. Based on its modeling assumptions, Bank of Ann Arbor anticipates the transaction to be accretive to earnings per share in excess of 14 percent.
“We are excited to welcome the Nicolet branch clients and team members to Bank of Ann Arbor,” says Tim Marshall, president and CEO of Bank of Ann Arbor. “Completing the purchase of the branch from Nicolet expands Bank of Ann Arbor’s presence and commitment to the Birmingham community; when combined with our existing branch on Woodward Avenue, we will have loans exceeding $462 million and deposits exceeding $321 million in the community.”
Former Detroit Catholic School ‘Transfigures’ into Affordable Housing
Transfiguration Place Apartments, set in a former Catholic School building in Detroit’s Campau/Banglatown neighborhood, has opened. Mayor Mike Duggan and other dignitaries were on hand for the opening.
Ethos Development Partners and Cinnaire Solutions executed a $7.2 million renovation of the former Catholic school building, which was born out of a partnership between the city of Detroit and the Archdiocese of Detroit to put historic but underutilized and vacant Detroit buildings back into use.
Area residents were part of the RFP selection committee, and the developer conducted multiple community meetings during the predevelopment process to ensure their feedback would be incorporated into the building.
“I am proud of this project, as it is an example of how the city, the community and other partners can come together to find solutions for the benefit of our neighborhoods,” Duggan says. “This administration will continue to find new ways to bring new investment into our neighborhoods, and I hope that it shows the potential for what can be done for the many other historic but unused schools and other buildings across Detroit, especially in terms of creating more quality affordable housing.”
The opening of the building at 13300 Syracuse comes almost exactly one year after work on the conversion of the 21,500-square-foot former school was announced. There are 17 one-bedroom apartments and two two-bedrooms. Thanks to project-based vouchers (PBVs) through the Detroit Housing Commission, residents with extremely low incomes of 0 percent to 50 percent AMI will be able to call Transfiguration Place home, and no resident will pay more than 30 percent of their income in rent, plus utilities. The affordability is guaranteed for 45 years.
The development was made possible through Michigan State Housing Development Authority Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) and HOME Investment Partnership and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding administered by the City of Detroit’s Housing and Revitalization Department.
The two-story school building was built in 1926 and also served as the congregation’s church until 1950, when the adjacent church opened next door. The parish school closed in 2005, but was leased to a charter school until about 2014. The school is the oldest surviving piece of a six-building complex that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.
Henry Ford Health System to Open New Location in Chelsea
Henry Ford Health System today announced plans to open a new medical center in Chelsea to improve access for select outpatient services.
Coming in April, Henry Ford Medical Center – Chelsea, at 1145 S. Main St., will provide a primary care walk-in clinic for non-emergency needs, along with a bariatric surgery clinic and a variety of orthopedic services with a focus on hand and wrist subspecialties.
“Our health care providers have served the residents of Chelsea and surrounding communities for a long time and are excited to make these services available closer-to-home,” says Paula Autry, senior vice president and CEO of Central Market for Henry Ford Health System. “The new medical center will offer convenient, specialized care from outstanding physicians trained in the latest techniques.”
Dr. Ryan Beekman, medical director for orthopedics of Central Market for Henry Ford Health System, says, “As a resident of Chelsea, it brings me great satisfaction to know we will be providing access to these much-needed services right here in my community I anticipate Chelsea residents will be as welcoming and excited as we are about the advantages of our new medical center.”
Suburban Collection Crowns Winners of Student Video Contest
The Suburban Collection, the Troy-based dealership group representing 32 brands at more than 50 locations throughout Michigan, has announced the winners of its fifth annual Focus on the Road initiative student video competition.
The goal for students is to conceptualize and produce a video that embodies how dangerous it can be to drive distracted. The Suburban Collection reviewed 100 entered videos against pre-determined judging criteria focused on concept, creativity/originality, message, content, impact, and production quality to select three winners.
The first-place winner was “Anything Can Happen if you Don’t Look,” created by Lillian Termini of Romeo Public Schools. She won a $2,500 cash prize. Claire Stelmaszek of Plymouth-Canton Public Schools earned second and $1,500 place for “That Driver.” Third-place honors and $1,000 went to Jonathan McKaye, also of Plymouth-Canton Schools for “Focusing on the Road — Medical.”
Additionally, the school district with the most student participation, based on the number of student videos submitted, was awarded a $1,000 charitable donation. For the third year in a row, that prize went to Plymouth-Canton Schools.
“Solving problems is part of The Suburban Collection’s core DNA,” says David Fischer, Jr., group vice president for The Suburban Collection. “The Focus on the Road video competition asks young drivers to be self-reflective and inspire others to practice safer driving habits. The Suburban Collection congratulates the winners for their creativity and thoughtful entries to encourage us all to place a greater ‘focus on the road.’”
More information about Focus on the Road is available here.
Motown Museum’s Amplify the Sound of Detroit to Stream Jan. 27
The finals of Motown Museum’s fourth annual Amplify the Sound of Detroit singing competition will be live streamed on several platforms at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
The competition seeks to build on the rich legacy of Motown by celebrating the voices of Detroit and the creative synergy of artists past and present to curate authentic experiences for artists to grow and connect. This singing competition is designed for singers who like to challenge themselves in a competitive environment. Finalists are competing for the chance to win the grand prize, which includes $5,000, engagement with music industry executives, and studio time.
The program is part of Motown Museum’s Hitsville Next – the museum’s hub dedicated to educational and community programming focused on finding and nurturing aspiring metro Detroit artists and entrepreneurs.
The finals can be seen at motownmuseum.org, on YouTube, Hitsville Next social media, and Comcast Channel 900
Purolator International Makes Detroit the Midwest’s Gateway to Canada
Purolator International, a leader in cross-border shipping, is helping lessen the supply chain crisis by offering a wide selection of shipping options between the U.S. and Canada for any business.
Despite COVID-19 challenges, Purolator International’s Detroit warehouse has doubled its capacity and is best suited for customers and employees to easily reach Canada. The Detroit facility is around 10,000 square feet with 30 employees.
Purolator in Detroit is recognized by many as the Midwest’s experts for all things Canada. Known for its premium, personalized customer service, express shipping, and community-focused value for Midwesterners working within the facility, this freight-forward company contains in-depth knowledge of industries in automotive, transportation, retail, technology, and others.
The company also offers northbound direct ship vendor programs, a southbound returns center and a northbound returns consolidation center.
Wayne County Medical Society Produces Human Trafficking Documentary
The Wayne County Medical Society Foundation in Detroit has produced a documentary exposing human sex trafficking and pornography and its aftermath in partnership with Digital Media Works.
“Men Who Buy Sex — Everybody Pays” goes inside the ugly world of human sex trafficking with a film that contains what some might consider shocking interviews. The documentary shines a light on the destructive nature of the commercial sex trafficking industry in metro Detroit and throughout the United States.
The physical and emotional toll taken on people trapped in the commercial sex industry impacts those involved and most of society. It is the goal and mission of the Wayne County Medical Society Foundation to drive government policy regarding the commercial sex industry and bring changes to laws creating a safer environment for everyone, particularly children.
This film is geared to high school and college students to educate them on the dangers of human trafficking.
The Wayne County Medical Society Foundation encourages the state Legislature, law enforcement, prosecutors, clergy, community activists, educators, and influencers to advocate for changing Michigan laws to make buyers of sex accountable when soliciting sex and help educate the public to end the demand. The goal is to stop punishing sexually exploited survivors and start prosecuting and rehabilitating the men who buy sex. Recent reports indicate that the most frequent buyers of sex are legislators, law enforcement, and clergypersons.
To view a preview of the film, which is due out late next month, visit here.
StartupNation to Host Live Webinar with Dell Technologies Jan 27
StartupNation in Birmingham is sponsoring a live, free webinar with Dell Technologies at 2 p.m. on Jan 27. The webinar is titled “Modern Day Technology: Using Hardware to Work Smarter, Not Harder.”
It will cover how to utilize servers to centrally manage data, save time and secure a business. It also will focus on correctly sizing a company’s network to support the size and bandwidth of its business, identifying opportunities for storing and backing up important critical company data, and ensuring next steps to securing a firm’s entire technology environment to avoid breaches, hackers, and viruses.
For more information and to participate in the webinar, visit here.
Council Re|Sale in Berkley Unveils The Council Collection
Southfield, Mich. (January 24, 2022) – Council Re|Sale in Berkley will reorganize its store layout to create a new room dedicated to designer wear and upscale brands: The Council Collection for Women and The Council Collection for Men.
This new specialized area, due to be open in the first week of February, will replace the current Designer Room and promises to offer even more top names in fashion at bargain prices, plus a variety of miscellaneous items at great prices.
The store will also be conducting a special Summer in January sale on Jan. 28-29 when shoppers can look ahead to warmer months and stuff a bag full of summer and vacation clothing for just $20. Proceeds from all the sales at Council Re|Sale go to benefit the programs and services of the of National Council of Jewish Women, Michigan.
“We are always astounded at the generosity of our donors and over the years we have been receiving more and more designer and upscale fashion,” says Amy Cutler, president of NCJW|MI. “Our new, specially curated collections will allow shoppers to easily find our finest high-end items and we hope will become a go-to destination for metro Detroit fashionistas who love beautiful clothes at unbeatable prices.”
The Council Re|Sale store is located at 3297 W 12. Mile Road in Berkley.
For more information, visit here.
