January 25, 2021
Street Talk: Made in the shade
Grand Rapids’ goal of having a 40% tree canopy citywide by 2025 has some more green behind it.
Public Record
MORTGAGES Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds HARTMAN, Bryce W. et al, Independent Bank, Parcel: 412111324005, $396,000 TOMCZAK, Edward, Heartland Home Mortgage, Parcel: 411411477030, $440,000 SANDER, Todd et al, USAA Federal Savings Bank, Plainfield Twp., $510,400 MOLESTA, Michael J., Benchmark Mortgage, Rockford, $373,996 MOHAMMED, Shahid et al, FirstBank, Parcel: 411411477026, $372,000 RIVERLANDS […]
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Change-Ups: Mendez joins GR Chamber as talent development manager
Monica Mendez is the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce’s new talent development manager. She is responsible for overseeing Leading Edge, Leadership Advantage, and expanding upon ATHENA Grand Rapids programming, as well as providing support to chamber members.
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Residential solar sees exponential growth
Residential solar saw a steep decline in installations early in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the U.S., but POWERHOME SOLAR, a North Carolina residential solar company with strong business ties in Michigan, reported exponential growth last year.
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Inside Track: Nonprofit director draws on development experience
The one-man powerhouse of Housing Next, Ryan Kilpatrick, is working to reduce barriers to the creation of housing at all price points, utilizing his experience in building bridges between nonprofits, developers and state and local authorities.
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Veteran real estate advisers launch brokerage
A group of senior real estate advisers have spun out of Colliers West Michigan to start their own brokerage firm with a hyper-local focus.
Can the Heartland teach us to innovate better together?
The year 2020 brought us a pandemic, deepened political divides and highlighted long-existing inequalities.
Rural broadband improvements welcome in southwest Michigan
Despite the challenges of COVID-19, USDA Rural Development had a phenomenal year in Michigan during 2020.
We all win with enough housing at all price points
At first glance, rising home prices may appear to signal the economy is booming and household incomes are increasing.
Talent equals economic growth
Austin Texas voters just voted to raise property taxes to pay for the operations and maintenance of Project Connect, a high-capacity, $7.1-billion transit system expansion.
Tax planning opportunities for a Biden-Harris presidency
Last year was filled with unprecedented actions and unknowns.
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GR chamber survey reveals top priorities for 2021
(As seen on WZZM TV 13) A Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce survey shows COVID-19 business relief and recovery, a talented workforce and health care affordability are the top three issues concerning West Michigan businesses in 2021.
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Innovation marks real estate response
West Michigan brokers and agents had to adjust to weather the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 across the industrial, office, retail and multifamily markets, according to real estate leaders who spoke at the virtual West Michigan Economic and Commercial Real Estate Forecast.
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Telemedicine continues to grow in popularity
What seemed like the last alternative for individuals, doctors and nurses just two years ago has become a lifeline over the last year.
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Founder grows U-Plant Landscape Designs
Sandy Jonick started U-Plant Landscape Designs after hearing from homeowners who would be happy to dig a hole and plant their own flowers and shrubs if someone could just provide a blueprint.
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H-1B visa changes may miss mark
When employers resume requesting H-1B visas for temporary foreign workers in specialty occupations this spring, they might have to rethink their wages.
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Manufacturing activity continues expansion trend
Manufacturing growth accelerated in December, according to the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), but an economist who monitors West Michigan said the region is not recovering quite as quickly as the rest of the nation.
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Newsmaker of the Year 2020: Whitecaps earn boost in Detroit Tigers’ farm system
In a year that saw live sports become a distant memory, the West Michigan Whitecaps found a way to make headlines without even throwing a pitch.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: City puts feet on the street to improve recycling program
The city of Grand Rapids in 2020 partnered with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and national nonprofit The Recycling Partnership to introduce a communitywide project aimed at improving the quality of materials residents recycle in their curbside carts.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Roby directs learning transition, Promise Zone for GRPS
Before she took over the role of superintendent for Grand Rapids Public Schools, Leadriane Roby hit the ground running as the COVID-19 pandemic began raging across the United States.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Huntington commits to merger, $5B Michigan investment
Huntington Bank announced it is merging with TCF Bank in a $22 billion deal and made a $5 billion commitment to Michigan in 2020, further cementing the bank’s West Michigan influence.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: First cannabis retailer networks with community allies
Fluresh made history in 2020 by becoming Grand Rapids’ first licensed medical cannabis provision center at the beginning of the year, but the Adrian-based company didn’t stop there.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Pro-Vision rolls out tech for schools, law enforcement and logistics
Michael Finn is a newcomer to Pro-Vision Video Systems. The Grand Rapids native was only appointed to serve as the company’s CEO last year, but that year was marked with various innovations in video systems technology at Pro-Vision.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Veteran opens boutique civil litigation firm in Grand Rapids
Despite his disability, Edward Perdue is continuing his path of service to others.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: VanDyke, Latinx leaders establish foundation’s La Lucha Fund
As program officer for the Grand Rapids Community Foundation, one of the things Erika VanDyke is most proud of is working with a network of Latinx leaders to help establish the foundation’s La Lucha Fund in April that had raised $735,000 as of mid-November and helped about 1,200 undocumented and mixed-status families in Kent County receive COVID-19 relief dollars as of Nov. 30.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Community leaders channel pandemic recovery funds
The region’s two foremost economic development agencies, The Right Place and Lakeshore Advantage, leveraged community leaders’ input in 2020 to administer state and federal funding to hundreds of small businesses to help them survive the COVID-19 pandemic and economic fallout.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Wheeler develops successful strategy in townhome market
In spite of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s mid-2020 halt on residential construction to stop the spread of COVID-19, Wheeler Development Group sprinted out of the gate once restrictions were lifted.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Young entrepreneur makes her mark in global world of coffee
At 14 years old, Francesca “Frankie” Volkema launched her own line of coffee, Joven Coffee.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: London leads health department’s community response
Adam London had to steer Kent County through rough waters as COVID-19 became a local crisis, but the director of the Kent County Health Department ensured a quick response to the pandemic.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: GRAM tapped to support development of COVID-19 vaccine
After opening its $60 million fill-and-finish facility in Grand Rapids in June, Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing this summer was tapped by the federal government to help with the process of developing and distributing a COVID-19 vaccine.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: Artist’s messages beautify city amid year of social unrest
At the height of the social unrest over the summer in Grand Rapids, Jasmine Bruce used her artistic talent to raise awareness and bring her community together.
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2020 Newsmaker of the Year: State’s first Black-owned brewery opens in Grand Rapids
Terry Rostic and Jamaal Ewing unveiled their vision to be Michigan’s first Black-owned brewery at Start Garden back in 2018.
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Chef Jenna embodies a spirit of helping and generosity as Newsmaker of the Year
Amid the garbage fire that was 2020, a plucky local celebrity chef used her platform to lead the way in helping others across West Michigan while also working to reinvent her own business during a year that required flexibility and creativity for restaurants to survive.
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Newsmakers overcome a tough year
The Newsmaker of the Year winners in 16 industry categories overcame significant odds in 2020 and many of their challenges stemmed from the coronavirus.
