Our roundup of the latest news from metro Detroit and Michigan businesses as well as announcements from government agencies. To share a business or nonprofit story, please send us a message.
Detroit Pistons, City of Detroit Complete Six-year Court Refurbishment Project
Team Owner Tom Gores and the Detroit Pistons, in partnership with the City of Detroit Parks and Recreation Department, have announced the completion of the final phase of a six-year, $2.5 million basketball court renovation and refurbishment project in parks throughout the city.
The 60-court program was one of several commitments the Pistons made in connection with the club’s return downtown in 2017. The final court was unveiled at Howarth Park, located northwest of Detroit City Airport. In addition to fulfilling the original commitment to resurface 60 basketball courts, the Pistons created an annual program to promote utilization of the renovated courts.
“This program is an example of how you can exceed expectations by inspiring people to work together,” says Gores, CEO and chairman of Platinum Equity. “Moving the Pistons downtown has been great for our franchise and for the city. We’ve created jobs, invested in the community, and have helped serve as a catalyst for the redevelopment of New Center. The courts program is one of several ways we’re making sure the impact is felt beyond downtown in neighborhoods all around Detroit.”
Consumers Energy Proposes Affordable Renewable Energy Offerings
Consumers Energy in Jackson has announced a new proposal to expand access and improve affordability to its renewable energy offerings, building on its Clean Energy Plan to eliminate coal and be carbon neutral.
The utility says it plans to update its renewable offerings by cutting costs for community solar by more than 50 percent and enabling every customer to match 100 percent of their energy use with wind and solar. Landlords, businesses, and other individuals also would be able to purchase renewable energy on someone else’s behalf. The company will file its plans today with the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC).
“Consumers Energy is committed to a clean energy future for Michigan, and our renewable offerings will allow our neighbors who also want to protect the planet to join us in that mission,” says Lauren Snyder, vice president of customer experience at Consumers Energy. “We’re excited to break down barriers, expand accessibility, drastically lower costs and provide more options that accelerate new clean energy projects in our state.”
Highlights of Consumers Energy’s customer-powered proposal:
Affordable community solar for all – Consumers Energy wants to help any customer use solar energy, even if they may not be able to install rooftop solar. Our plan will allow us to cut in half the cost of our monthly Solar Gardens subscription and build more 100 percent Michigan-made community solar fields around the state, increasing accessibility, affordability, and community engagement.
More options for large-scale solar and wind – Consumers Energy is seeking to remove the cap on its renewable energy programs to move forward with wind and solar projects as quickly as customers desire. Existing business and residential programs would be combined, giving residential customers a second option to sign up for renewable energy.
Green Giving – This new initiative will allow program subscribers to pass along clean energy benefits to others. This would be a path for businesses, nonprofits, charitable foundations, or individuals to share program benefits with friends, family, tenants, staff or to help low-income neighbors in need. This offering has a dedicated focus to support those who receive this gift to enjoy the financial and environmental benefits from wind and solar projects that Consumers Energy develops.
Atlanta’s Peachtree Group Deploys $8.4M Loan for New Detroit Hotel
Peachtree Group, an Atlanta-based commercial real estate investment company, announced its credit division has provided an $8.4 million loan in CPACE financing to fund various energy-efficient and sustainability elements of an unnamed hotel under construction in Detroit.
FANUC in Rochester Hills Produces One Millionth Robot
FANUC Corp. in Rochester Hills has produced of its 1 millionth industrial robot.
An automation provider for more than a century, FANUC’s robots are used in production facilities all over the world to assemble, handle, package, paint, and weld products of every shape and size.
FANUC developed its first robot in 1974 and entered the North American market in 1982 primarily as a supplier to the automotive industry. Today, FANUC’s more than 200 robot and cobot model variants are used in every industry including aerospace, agriculture, EV, food and beverage, consumer goods, medical, pharmaceutical, warehousing, and more.
“Companies are striving to achieve their goals as they face an increasing labor shortage,” says Mike Cicco, president and CEO of FANUC America. “Whether it’s a small shop or large assembly operation, we’re seeing more requests for easy-to-use automated solutions that will provide a quick ROI – FANUC is well-positioned to meet those needs.”
Better Cities Film Festival, PlacemakingX Planning Downtown Detroit Movie Event
Better Cities Film Festival and PlacemakingX are planning a screening of the feature documentary “The Place Man” as part of a joint 10th anniversary celebration to take place at Campus Martius Park in downtown Detroit on Oct. 5. The event is free and co-hosted by the Downtown Detroit Partnership.
“The Place Man” (2023), directed by Guillermo Bernal, explores the roots of the placemaking movement through the life of Fred Kent, one of the co-founders of PlacemakingX, who has devoted his life to creating public spaces for people. Originally launched in Detroit in 2013, the placemaking movement, now led by PlacemakingX, has expanded globally, with 33 regional and national placemaking networks.
“Given Detroit is the city where we first gathered placemaking leaders to launch a movement, we’re thrilled to mark our 10th anniversary by collaborating with the Downtown Detroit Partnership and Better Cities Film Festival to present the film “The Place Man,” which is really the origin story of the global placemaking movement,” said Ethan Kent, executive director of PlacemakingX and son of Fred Kent. Fred Kent, Steve Davies, Kathy Madden, Ethan Kent and other founders and leaders of the global placemaking movement are attending the anniversary celebration.
Tickets for Better Cities Film Festival screenings are available here.
Motown Museum’s Spoken Word 2023 Grand Finale Tonight
Motown Museum is hosting the grand finale of its 9th annual Motown MIC: The Spoken Word competition this evening at 7 p.m. at The Cube (3711 Woodward Ave.) in Detroit.
Ten talented poets will perform original Motown-inspired poems during the event and are competing to be named the Motown MIC 2023 Artist of the Year and a host of prizes.
This year’s competition is honoring Stevie Wonder’s album, “Innervisions.” In celebration of the record’s 50th anniversary, Motown MIC finalists have been prompted to incorporate at least two lines of lyrics from any song on “Innervisions” into their spoken word performance.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at Eventbrite.
The Henry Ford Announces Farm to School Lunch Initiatives
The Henry Ford in Dearborn is expanding its education initiatives that focus on the importance of food, agriculture, and the environment with the announcement of a Farm to School Lunch Across America program and an endowment for Henry Ford Academy’s locally sourced farm to school lunches.
The announcement was made by The Henry Ford President and CEO Patricia Mooradian.
“The Henry Ford is activating its mission and collaborating with a wide variety of thought leaders and influencers to address the issues of climate change, nutrition and accessibility,” says Mooradian. “We are using our collections and historic expertise to help advocate for free, accessible, locally sourced and cooked-from-scratch school lunches for every student in America, starting with our own students at Henry Ford Academy. Our farm to school lunch program will now be endowed in perpetuity and perhaps be a model for institutions across the country.”
The institution announced a fundraising goal of $7 million to endow the school lunch program for its Henry Ford Academy, the public charter high school that educates 500 9-12th grade students on its campus.
The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is committing a gift of $1 million to this endeavor while Ford Motor Co. Fund is donating $500,000 to help launch the Farm to School Lunch Across America initiative, a national program during October Farm to School Month in 2024, serving schoolchildren, teachers, and families a nutritious and delicious meal sourced locally and regeneratively. Conceptually, this advocacy effort will focus on the importance of healthy and in-season lunch programs for K-12 students and involve schools across the nation through programming and assemblies.
Opus IVS in Detroit Wins Two Distinguished Motor Top 20 Awards for 2023
Detroit-based Opus IVS, which offers intelligent support for vehicle diagnostics, has won two 2023 Motor Top 20 Awards this year.
The first award was for SuperGoose, which empowers automotive professionals and technicians with a versatile tool that enhances vehicle diagnostics, programming, and reprogramming across diverse makes and models.
The second award went to ADAS Map, a solution that streamlines Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) information availability for automotive repair shops. ADAS MAP software integrates with CCC, DriveSafe, and CoPilot, to provide VIN-specific ADAS calibration identification and OE service information, optimizing estimate accuracy, streamlining repair planning, and justifying reimbursements.
Eastern Michigan University Adopts ZeroEyes’ AI Gun Detection Solution
Eastern Michigan University (EMU) in Ypsilanti will deploy the ZeroEyes’ solution across its campus to protect students, staff, and visitors from gun-related violence. It is the first Michigan campus to deploy gun-detection technology.
ZeroEyes’ AI gun detection and intelligent situational awareness software will be layered on EMU’s existing digital security cameras. If a gun is identified, images will instantly be shared with the ZeroEyes Operations Center (ZOC), staffed 24/7/365 by specially trained U.S. military and law enforcement veterans. If these experts determine that the threat is valid, they will dispatch alerts and actionable intelligence, including visual description, gun type, and last known location, to local staff and the campus police force in as fast as 3 to 5 seconds from detection.
Throughout this process, ZeroEyes does not conduct any kind of facial recognition, eliminating the risk of bias based on skin color or other personal characteristics.
“The integration of ZeroEyes will continue Eastern’s commitment to providing a safe campus experience for all who study and work here,” says James Smith, president of EMU. “Ensuring a secure, inclusive, and open campus environment is an ongoing commitment by our Department of Public Safety (DPS) leadership and campus staff.”
PepsiCo, Russell Westbrook Unveil Student-designed Lounge at Pensole Lewis College
PepsiCo Design & Innovation and NBA All-Star and entrepreneur Russell Westbrook Thursday unveiled the student-designed Pepsi x Frito-Lay Refresh and Relax Lounge at Pensole Lewis College in Detroit.
Westbrook, who also is founder and creative director of his clothing brand Honor The Gift, partnered with PepsiCo to celebrate and reward students, united in a mission to create education and career opportunities for more youth.
He joined Pensole Lewis Founder D’Wayne Edwards, author Kevin Carroll, and PepsiCo’s Kent Montgomery to inspire and encourage students to continue their creative journey, reinforcing the value of diverse talent in the design field.
Pensole Lewis students Rodney Banks and Angel Buckens, whose winning lounge design was created and selected upon their completion of the inaugural PepsiCo Design & Innovation program with support from MillerKnoll, joined the speakers onstage.
The unveiling of the student lounge kicked off the fourth annual National Black Footwear Forum at Pensole Lewis that brought together footwear executives and professionals, policymakers, and supporters to collaborate, share stories, and explore how to establish industry goals in the development of Black talent at all levels in design. The four-day event included keynotes, panel discussions, breakout sessions, and activations to help bridge the gaps across the industry.
Bar Dog, Friends of Animals of Mero Detroit to Host Adoption Costume Party
Bar Dog wine has teamed up with the PetFinder Foundation including Friends for Animals of Metro Detroit to host the fourth annual HOWL-oween Costume Contest, where animal shelters across the country dress their adoptable pups up in “cause-play.” Their hope is that the charity costume party will help the pets on display find forever homes.
Beginning Oct. 1st, the Bar Dog Instagram page will share pictures and stories of shelter animals in their Halloween best to mark National Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog Month. Every participating shelter will receive cash prizes, with the grand prize winner awarded a $1,500 donation. To date, Bar Dog Wine has donated more than $100,000 to the PetFinder Foundation.
Washtenaw Community College to Host Gala 2023 to Support Student Emergency Fund
Ann Arbor’s Washtenaw Community College Foundation will host Gala 2023 to support the college’s Student Emergency Fund and other programs. This year’s presenting sponsor is Toyota.
The gala will take place from 6-11 p.m. Sept. 29, in the newly redesigned Morris Lawrence Building on campus. Tickets may be purchased through the foundation.
Previously an annual event, the foundation gala is the back for the first time since the pandemic.
Attendees will enjoy a cocktail reception, dinner, and dessert stations. Entertainment will include a live auction of experiences for groups of up to 10, including a birthday party or team-building exercise in the WCC E-Sports Arena; rustic Italian group cooking with wine; yoga and massage at the WCC Fitness Center; a group ballroom dancing night out and more. Participants can also join in a “Fund-the-Mission” activity to support student scholarship and other student programs.
Midwest Dueling Pianos will add to the festivities and take requests for sing-alongs and dancing in the building’s atrium. The Todd Everett DJ Experience will play tunes on the outdoor terrace and dance floor.
The Student Emergency Fund assists WCC students during unexpected financial hardships. Of the students who have received assistance, 84 percent remain enrolled or graduate. Some of the hardships for students include childcare, housing, food insecurity, transportation, and other unexpected costs that arise during enrollment.
Tickets to this year’s gala are available here.
Bowties and Overalls Event to Celebrate Urban Farming, Local Culinary Talent
An event to celebrate urban farming, local culinary talent, and the vibrant food community in Detroit will take place at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 5 at Rescue MI Nature Now (19984 Derby St.) in Detroit.
In partnership with the Crossroads Community Association, the event also is supported by Detroit City Councilmembers Scott Benson and Angela Whitfield-Calloway.
Bowties and Overalls’ will feature a community celebration and communal feast, as well as inclusive activities such as a Best Bowtie and Overalls contest, cooking demonstrations, interactive farming stations, a storytelling corner for local farmers and food activists, honeybee hive tours, and kids’ activities. All are welcome.
The event will start at 5:30 and is free but requires a ticket/reservation through Eventbrite.
Additionally, the event will include a ceremony where three special awards will be given. The Urban Farming Excellence Award will honor an organization or individual who has made a significant contribution to urban farming in Detroit. The Culinary Innovator Award honors a local chef or restaurant using locally sourced, sustainable ingredients; and the Food Activism Award will be presented to an individual or group at the forefront of promoting sustainable food practices and education in the community.
Another feature of the event will be a focus on the new, voluntary GREEN restaurant placard pilot project being launched by the Detroit Health Department. Participating restaurants will have booths so guests may learn about how these restaurants are prioritizing health and sustainability.
