October 30, 2017
Street Talk: Meet me in the middle
How does Middle America respond to a new snack food product? Or, more precisely, how would the middle of America respond? Grand Rapids-based Cole’s Quality Foods Inc. recently rolled out a new line of cheese-filled bread bites called, ironically, Middles. When contemplating how to launch the new product, the team at Cole’s decided to stage […]
Political, economic ‘to-do list’ is offered in Amazon’s hunt for HQ2
The Right Place deserves much credit for its leadership in a collaborative approach to creating a proposal for Amazon to consider in its search for Amazon HQ2, but even more impactful is what Amazon is teaching Grand Rapids, and other cities across the country, in what it means for a governmental unit or region to […]
New privacy restrictions for monitoring employee communications
If you have operations in Europe, a recent court ruling could affect your access to their electronic communications — even if they are on the company dime. In September, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights scaled back a 2016 ruling in a case where a Romanian man was fired for using […]
Construction materials prices rising faster than inflation
Construction input prices rose yet again in September, according to an analysis of data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nonresidential construction input prices rose 0.8 percent in September and 4.3 percent compared to this time last year. Overall, construction materials prices rose 0.8 percent over the previous month and 4.5 percent on a […]
Public Record
MORTGAGES Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds BRITTON, Luke et al, Huntington National Bank, Byron Twp., 32-5-12, $287,920 MCCARTHY, Kyle A. et al, Mercantile Bank Of Michigan, Grattan Twp., 6-8-9, $204,000 CANTALINI, Melissa et al, AmeriFirst Financial Corp., Smith's Plat Of Brower Lake No. 2, Lot 84, $236,000 SMITH, Sarah C. et […]
Can you look back at your life and be happy?
I recently was riding on a boat down a river I first became acquainted with in 1949. My mother’s family had settled there on the Black River in Cheboygan County in 1863. I have owned a portion of the original farm since 1988. When I took my first trip up that river, there were a […]
-
Change Ups: AvaSure honors provider organizations
Belmont-based AvaSure recently honored provider organizations that use video patient monitoring to help achieve health care’s Quadruple Aim of population health management, patient and staff satisfaction, and lower spending. Awards were conferred during the inaugural AvaSys Symposium in Grand Rapids. Receiving honors: Joyce Ornelas, University Health System, accepting the Superstar Monitor Award on behalf of […]
Don’t get burned by fires
Most people think of Rehmann primarily as an accounting firm. But one of its three divisions handles putting out all kinds of fires. Rehmann Corporate Investigative Services (CIS), available statewide as well as in Indiana and Ohio, is a division that offers IT and digital forensics, fraud and forensic accounting, background investigations and more. Tucked […]
Amazon bid is lesson in cooperation
If practice makes perfect, economic development entities in West Michigan can add another level of experience to their résumés. The Right Place Inc. recently submitted a proposal for Grand Rapids to be the city to house Amazon’s second headquarters. Even if the region does not win the bid, those involved say the initiative will be […]
‘All boats rise’ at architectural firm
When TowerPinkster opened in 1953 with six employees, it focused on health care projects. As the economy has dipped and peaked, the architectural firm has diversified to reach more sectors. With offices in Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, the firm now has 112 West Michigan employees. Its 2016 gross billings were $18.5 million, up from $12 […]
Private equity changing market
After the housing crash, a new industry rose around property management that allowed single-family homes to be treated as commodities. Following the Great Recession, private equity started moving into the housing market, buying tens of thousands of homes and turning them into rental properties. In a recently aired segment on NPR’s WBUR, Dustin Dwyer, reporter […]
-
Back to school on finance
(As seen on WZZM TV 13) If students learned early on the importance of allocating every dollar wisely, would they avoid the pitfalls of debt later in life? A local credit union is sponsoring a program it believes answers that question. Kentwood-based Community West Credit Union is footing the bill to provide access to Banzai […]
-
Helping children one cookie at a time
Rebecca Cruttenden’s life goal is to raise $1 million to help families adopt international, special-needs children. Since 2010, she’s raised $220,000, mainly through Ironman triathlon fundraisers and, now, through a business that donates 100 percent of its profits. Between race training and running the business, Cruttenden volunteers 50 to 60 hours each week toward her […]
-
Inside Track: Learning from defeat
For more than a decade, Chris Andrus struggled to survive as a singer-songwriter. A career choice long deserted by many, Andrus felt he had the talents and what it took to make it as a musician. Following a short stint trying the business world post-graduation from Alma College, he went full time into music. “I […]
-
Four-time MCOY winner faces steady growth
After being named Michigan Contractor of the Year by the American Subcontractors Association of Michigan for the fourth time, Ada-based Dan Vos Construction attributes its years of success and growth to its employees and the trustworthy relationships it builds with its clients. Daniel R. Vos started Dan Vos Construction in 1951. His grandson and current […]
