November 19, 2018
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Change Ups: McNeely Cobham selected as GRCC’s chief equity, inclusion officer
B. Afeni McNeely Cobham will serve as Grand Rapids Community College’s chief equity and inclusion officer. Selected after a national search, McNeely Cobham will work with stakeholders — students, faculty, staff and community members — to ensure GRCC is a leader in equity and inclusion. An expert in race, identity and culture in American higher […]
Street Talk: Financial literacy
A community bank has ramped up its efforts to reach Spanish-speaking customers. Sparta-based ChoiceOne Bank serves hundreds of local farms that employ seasonal help from Central America and South America. The bank said migrants, as well as the many Spanish-speaking permanent residents in the region, often struggle to get professional services in Spanish. As a […]
What are tax incentives with O-Zone investments?
By now, you may have heard of the federal opportunity zones (O-Zones) that were established by the 2017 federal tax overhaul. In their simplest form, the O-Zones are designed to incentivize taxpayers to invest in low-income areas of economic development. The original law as passed provided for some uncertainty surrounding the specific requirements for investing […]
Kent looks to drop marijuana charges
Kent County is in the process of deciphering which pending marijuana cases to dismiss, but that could take some time. Christopher Becker, Kent County prosecutor, said he is looking to drop some open marijuana cases that involve use and possession of marijuana, as well as marijuana cases that are related to outstanding warrants, when recreational […]
Schools jump on the buy local bandwagon
Locally grown foods are making their way to school cafeterias in Michigan thanks to the Farm to School Network. The Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems has been partnering with the Michigan Department of Education for the last four years to track local food purchases by K-12 schools. In 2017, 888 Michigan school […]
Expert: Mortgage rates should continue to increase
(As seen on WZZM TV 13) Mortgage rates are steadily increasing. According to Joshua Gibbs, community president/commercial lending for Commercial Bank, the mortgage rates in the area now are anywhere from 5 percent to 5.25 percent for a 30-year fixed rate and 4.5 percent to 4.875 percent for a 15-year fixed rate in West Michigan. […]
Public Record
MORTGAGES Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds KOPKO, Curtis J. et al, Hastings City Bank, Del-Mar Farm No. 4, Lot 147, $210,000 RUSSETT, Ashleigh et al, Lake Michigan Credit Union, Kellogg's Add, Lot 89, $210,900 COOPER, Amy Jo et al, Chemical Bank, Windybrook Commons, Lot 2, $269,637 BAKER TRUST, PNC Bank, Albert-Realtors […]
Employers: Consider matching college debt repayment
One of the common complaints of millennials is that they’re too burdened with debt to think about contributing to their retirement plans. Forbes magazine recently said that assistance with student loan repayment is one of the top work benefits that can make millennials happy. If, like most employers, your company maintains a 401(k) plan, there’s […]
The benefits of landlord/tenant remodeling provisions
You are a tenant in a long-term commercial lease and you want to “refresh” your space. How should you approach your landlord about amending the lease? You are a landlord negotiating a long-term lease and you want the option of remodeling the tenant’s space several years down the road during the term. What are the […]
BLM marks Michigan’s strengths, weaknesses
To be a “top ten” state, Michigan needs 36,000 more residents working, $10,000 more income per person and $12,500 more GDP per person. That’s according to the 2018 Economic Competitiveness Benchmarking Report released by Business Leaders for Michigan, a business roundtable that includes top leadership responsible for driving nearly one-third of the state’s economy. The […]
GRCC workforce training generates $423M
Grand Rapids Community College’s noncredit workforce training programs in 2016 had an estimated $423.4-million economic impact and supported about 4,465 jobs in Kent and Ottawa counties. Using data from the 2016-17 fiscal year, the Moscow, Idaho-based labor market data analyzation company Emsi examined the impact created by alumni income and the companies attracting and expanding […]
Two small GR-based companies snag ‘Giant’ award
Every year, Forbes’ list of 25 “Small Giants” in business highlights small companies focused on being of great caliber, rather than just great in size. In 2018, two local companies made the list. Software developer Atomic Object, at 1034 Wealthy St. SE, and Comfort Research, a manufacturer of furniture and pool products at 1719 Elizabeth […]
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Inside Track: After-hours work pays off
Jeff Stevens, president and CEO of the rapidly growing technology supplier Vista IT Group, said he wants to keep his company on a steep growth curve, and part of his strategy is instilling in his sales staff a level of technical proficiency above the industry standard. Stevens walked into the technology space at 26 years […]
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‘Diversity is a strength’ at metal stamping plant
At a time when manufacturers are “dying” for good people, Jireh Metal Products says it has tons. Michael Davenport is president and CEO of Jireh, a local tier-two and tier-three metal stamping company that employs 93 people between its locations at 3635 Nardin St. SW in Grandville and 864 Productions Place in Holland. Davenport co-owns […]
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Furniture industry dips in third quarter
The latest report from Michael A. Dunlap & Associates shows furniture industry executives remain confident despite declines from the second quarter. The Holland-based firm released the results of its October 2018 quarterly MADA/OFI (Office Furniture Industry) Trends Survey, which measures the current business activity of the office, education, health care and hospitality furniture industry and […]
