February 3, 2014
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Health officials gear up for new threats from climate change
LANSING — State health officials are struggling to anticipate new health threats posed by a changing climate. The Michigan Department of Community Health has put together the Michigan Climate and Health Adaptation program to prepare for any health risks the climate change may bring. The program was recently renewed with a grant from the Centers […]
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Michigan’s first Winter Games on tap next week
A week after the Winter Olympics begin in Sochi, Russia, more than 2,000 athletes will come to Grand Rapids from across Michigan for the Meijer State Games of Michigan Winter Games. When the West Michigan Sports Commission began thinking about a winter edition to the State Games in 2010, the chance of coinciding with the […]
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GR votes May 6 on income tax for street repair
When this brutal winter ends, Grand Rapids city streets may be in a classic state of disrepair, and if the city voters still see reminders of that May 6, it may encourage “yes” votes at the special election that day. The special election approved by the City Council would extend the city income tax increase […]
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Inforum West Michigan plots next three years
This past fall Inforum Center for Leadership published a discouraging report regarding the progress of women at the executive level of Michigan’s public companies. “A Decade of Women’s Leadership in Michigan Public Companies” revealed that during the past decade, women have made no significant progress in the executive suites and boardrooms. Given that disappointing news, […]
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Airport says ‘thanks again’ with rewards program
Travelers at Gerald R. Ford International Airport can now receive frequent flyer miles or hotel points for nearly all of their airport transactions. The airport has partnered with loyalty coalition brand “Thanks Again” to provide customer rewards to travelers when they park, shop and dine at the airport. GFIA is the first airport in Michigan […]
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Computer, phone scams plague West Michigan
Several large-scale scams have recently hit the West Michigan area. Both the “473/767 One-Ring” and “Fix Your Computer” scams have hit homes in the area, according to the Western Michigan Better Business Bureau. “We haven’t had any real victims yet,” BBB President and CEO Phil Catlett said. “But we have had tons of calls and […]
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Father and son take plunge to form new architectural firm
When Thomas Mathison was raising his son, Evan, it never occurred to him he might be raising the man that would someday be his business partner. But to his surprise and delight, that’s exactly who Evan has grown up to be. “I never really thought that we would end up working together,” Thomas Mathison said. […]
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Bill would allow state to purchase more land
LANSING — A bill that would uncap the amount of land the state owns and manages is being met with some opposition. Sponsored by Rep. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, the bill would raise the 4.626 million-acre cap on land and allow the Department of Natural Resources to acquire more. The change would be allowed because […]
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Change Ups: Kendall appoints community engagement director
Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University has named Katie M. Moore its director of community engagement, a newly created position. Moore will work to identify, facilitate and nurture collaborative community partnerships that create shared value and increase the impact of KCAD in West Michigan and beyond. She’ll also develop a proposal […]
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Storms, competition wreak havoc on retail sales in Michigan
Hurt by damaging winter storms and outdated government policies that favor out-of-state, online companies, Michigan’s retail industry suffered a poor holiday shopping season, according to the Michigan Retailers Association. Retailers posted only a 0.1 percent average increase over last holiday season, according to the Michigan Retail Index, a joint project of MRA and the Federal […]
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Public Record
VANDAM, Raymond H. et al, Mercantile Bank Of Michigan, Maplevalley Gardens, Lot 5, $233,000 FRY, Elizabeth et al, Evolve Bank & Trust, Condo-Flowers Crossing, $357,950 LAW BUILDING LLC, First Community Bank, Kent Plat, Village Lot 140, $200,000 DUTTON MILL VILLAGE LLC, Bank Of America, Gaines Twp., 2-5-11, $724,383 CLARK, Dennis A. et al, Diamond Residential […]
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Mirror, mirror, on the wall, are you the best salesperson of all?
What makes a “top performer” a top performer? If you hold interviews with the most successful salespeople in the world and ask them, “Why are you successful?” they’ll give you their take on it, but it will not be the right answer. They will give you symptomatic responses like, “I get up early in the […]
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Street Talk: Local bankers won’t comment, but the credit union does
Bankers across the nation were mighty peeved Jan. 22 when the National Retail Federation, responding to data breaches involving credit cards used at Target and Neiman Marcus, told Congress “the financial industry also has a critical role to play in making sure their cards are secure.” The Independent Community Bankers of America responded the same […]
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Inside Track: Charting a path for the future of Opera Grand Rapids
Anne Berquist joined Opera Grand Rapids in December as executive director following the nonprofit’s national search to replace outgoing executive director Michael Havlicek, who retired in June. Berquist was not only a good choice based on her professional experience, but also because she already has ties to Grand Rapids: She called the community home beginning […]
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Rockford Brewing embroiled in suit over name
When Seth Rivard and his partners began thinking about opening a brewery in Rockford, they considered calling the company Rogue River Brewing. But the trio — including Rivard, Jeff Sheehan and Brien Dews — knew that name would create legal issues with Rogue Brewing Co. in Oregon. So they did their due diligence and started […]
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Industry assembles Construction Workforce Development Alliance
What do you do when work-force development challenges, a negative image and overall economic peril knock at your industry’s door? You form an alliance. A new major collaborative effort on behalf of West Michigan’s construction industry is dawning. Three industry titans and their partners have joined forces, assembling as a team in an effort to […]
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C.D. Barnes marks 60 years by staying lean and conservative
C.D. Barnes Construction is celebrating its 60th anniversary by honoring its legacy and keeping an eye on the future. Specifically, that means the Grand Rapids-based general contractor plans to do its level best to stay out of debt, keep its overhead low, cherry pick the projects it will handle locally and nationally, and groom the […]
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Wolverine steps up to help young builders
Earlier this winter, Gideon Sanders watched as students loaded into buses wearing sweatshirts, baseball caps and sneakers. The Grand Rapids Public Schools director of innovative strategies didn’t like what he saw. The students were from GRPS Academy of Design & Construction and were heading to a Habitat for Humanity project where they would learn hands-on […]
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Learning how to deal (and coexist) with difficult people
I am admittedly more patient than most in weighing someone’s “positives” against their “negatives.” As long as an individual contributes more good than bad, I will probably appear to be relatively tolerant and encouraging in whatever they try to do, even if I may be frustrated at the pace of their work or the quality […]
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Smith Haughey COO notes law firm’s expansion
Lori Gibson recently celebrated her one-year anniversary with law firm Smith Haughey Rice & Roegge, and she’s already racked up quite a few successes. In the past year Gibson took on the job of developing the firm’s new Muskegon office and streamlining operations between all four Smith Haughey offices, which in addition to the Muskegon […]
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Can I get a drink here? New liquor rules make it easier
Almost every Michigan hotel or restaurant operator has confronted the daunting process of procuring or transferring a Michigan liquor license. Buyers and sellers of these entertainment venues often enter into multimillion-dollar development or sale transactions, only after complex negotiations and the difficult procurement of commercial financing from lending institutions. In today’s economic climate, more than […]
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Coppess cops Newsmaker Award
It’s been said it takes a village to nurture something through to completion, but in the case of Derek Coppess, it’s more like a tribe. The 616 Development founder and managing director on Wednesday was named the Grand Rapids Business Journal’s 2013 Newsmaker of the Year for his work with developing the Lofts residential projects […]
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Grand Rapids firm blazes drone trail for aerial perspective
Imagine pulling on a harness, latching yourself to a wire and zip-lining through the treetops while a flying camera captures your wild ride on video. Fun fact: This actually happens. Expertise in Aerial Imaging uses unmanned aerial vehicles — commonly known as drones — to capture video and photo images. The Grand Rapids business, known […]
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Three industrial roofs collapse in West Michigan
Two industrial facility roofs near the lakeshore and one in Kentwood suffered partial collapse recently as the snow kept piling up, but a structural engineer and an architect, both with many years of experience in large construction projects, say roof collapse is still a fairly rare occurrence. On Jan. 25, a roof at the Haworth […]
