metromode - In the News

CNN Money notes "Treat Dreams" come true for Ferndale ice cream entrepreneur

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Get your scoop while it's hot. The nation's press is descending on Treat Dreams, Ferndale's gourmet ice creamery.

Excerpt:

"Scott Moloney started exactly the kind of business he would have once rejected for a loan.

The Birmingham, Mich., resident closed out his 18-year career as a private lending officer in 2009 to open an ice cream shop. Among the strikes against him: "I was a first-time entrepreneur, with no experience, going into a high-risk industry," he says...

In March 2010 he bought a six-quart ice cream maker, and five months later he opened Treat Dreams for business.

Initially, Moloney offered only one unusual flavor: Loopy Fruit, featuring ground-up cereal in vanilla ice cream. His next concoction, Sunday Breakfast -- with waffles, bacon, and maple syrup -- "got people talking," he says. Since then the store has produced 500 unconventional varieties, including Lobster Bisque and Raspberry Chipotle Bacon."

See CNN Money's coverage here.

And Time magazine calls "Michigan Salad" of the "Fifteen Funkiest Ice Cream Flavors on Earth."

The Autobike is less work, more play

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Why not get your bike to do the work for you this summer?

Excerpt:

"Remember when riding your bike was all about fun and adventure? Well, if you have forgotten, it's time you got to know Autobike. Autobike, a Betaspring alum from Fall 2012, is now shipping an automatic shifting bicycle that delivers the simplest, smoothest, most comfortable riding experience ever to customers across the US...

Driven to bring back a riding experience that could delight a new generation of riders--and get riders who had abandoned their bikes back on two wheels--the team designed an automatically shifting bike with no on/off buttons, no shifting levers. Fast forward six months and the team has shipped to customers in MI, NH, TX, FL, TN, IN, NV, WA, and British Columbia so far and the pipeline is growing by the day."

More here.

TV reality show pilot and "Detroit Rubber" web series to be shot in Metro Detroit

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

And the latest round of film incentives goes to a reality show about the training of pro athletes and the second season of Detroit Rubber.

Excerpt:

"The television pilot project is a reality show following a Michigan gym owner and his staff as they work to train professional athletes and the middle-aged dads that work alongside them. Shooting in Plymouth, the project is being directed by Michigan native Chris Farah with Mike Farah and Anna Wenger producing....

Detroit Rubber follows Rick Williams and Roland “Ro” Coit, owners of the Royal Oak sneaker shop Burn Rubber and boutique two/eighteen. The show will continue to highlight these Michigan entrepreneurs as they balance family, a growing business and day-to-day struggles."

More here.

Benefit party for public art in Ferndale set for June 21

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Give public art a footing in downtown Ferndale at a benefit party on Friday, June 21 from 6-9 p.m. at the Rust Belt Market. Your $20 gets you live music, food, and, hopefully, future art displys downtown.

Tickets and more info here.

Berkley's Amici's Restaurant appears on Cooking Channel

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

The Oakland Press reported that Berkley's Amici's Restaurant, known for its delish pizzas, was featured on the Cooking Channel's Pizza Cuz show on June 3. If you missed it, catch it again on June 8, 9, and 10.

Excerpt:

"When they were teens, Jen Stark and Maureen McNamara played clarinet together in the Royal Oak Dondero High School Marching Band.

Now, all grown up and back together again after varied careers, the two women are marching to the tune of a different drummer.

They are running Amici's Restaurant at 3249 W. Twelve Mile, between Coolidge and Greenfield in Berkley, that is so popular the women and a couple of their crowd-pleasing pizzas will be featured on the Cooking Channel's "Pizza Cuz" show at 9 p.m. Monday, June 3 as one of the nation's top three pizzerias owned by women."

More here.

And check out the show here.

Surprise! The creative class is thriving in Michigan

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

In this Bridge Magazine column, journalist Natalie Burg dispels the popular misconception that the creative under-40 class is leaving Michigan as fast as it can.

Excerpt:

"Hi. I'm Natalie. I'm a self-employed writer, I'm 31, and, if you listen to the headlines, I don't exist. Like a centaur or a yeti, the well-educated, career-driven, creative-class Millennial like myself is not found in the wild here in Michigan. Supposedly, we've all left or are desperately attempting to do so.

Surprise! Not only am I a Michigander by choice (seriously, my husband is a musician; we could literally be anywhere), I get offended when people ask why we're "still here." I try to break it down as simply as I can for them: I know Michigan's challenges as well as anyone, but I love it here, and I know – not think, know – we're on our way back."

More here.

Auburn Hills ranks 5th nationally for engineering jobs

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

No question the Detroit economy is back. Auburn Hills is ranking right up with the major cities when it comes to jobs for gearheads.

Excerpt:

"According to a survey by Monster Worldwide Inc., owner of Monster.com, Auburn Hills ranked No. 5, behind Houston; San Jose, Calif.; San Diego; and Chicago.

New York; Dallas; Irvine, Calif.; Atlanta; and Austin, Texas, rounded out the list."

More here.

Nonprofit looks to open "art gym" in downtown Milford

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Oakland County's forward thinkers are envisioning a gym where patrons can sweat over their sculptures instead of the treadmills.

Excerpt:

"Several physical fitness gyms are located across Oakland County — but how about gyms, instead, that focus on exercising community members' minds and creativity?

A nonprofit organization in the Village of Milford is looking to raise money to open an "art gym," a center where Oakland County residents can pay a monthly fee for studio space and use of supplies."

More here.

Improving quality of place goes with economic success, Lou Glazer says

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Sixty years later, Michigan Future's Lou Glazer calls for Michigan to adopt the same forward thinking of a CEO in 1950s southern Indiana. Good points.

Excerpt:

"So I was reading, not for work, a New York Times article on the architecture of Columbus, Indiana when I came across this: It was, in fact, J. Irwin Miller, scion of the Irwin-Miller family and arts patron, who transformed Columbus into an architectural mecca. As head of the Cummins Engine Company for 30 years, Mr. Miller reasoned that extraordinary buildings would help Cummins lure top talent to the rural Midwest. (Emphasis added.)

All of sudden, I was reading it for work. In the 1950s the CEO of the Cummins Engine Company in a small southern Indiana town understood, what we are still having trouble understanding today in Michigan, that place matters. What was important in the Fifties is almost certainly more important today."

More here.

To reach out, do a dance

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

NPR takes time for the Ruth Ellis Center, which is energetically reaching out to disenfranchised youths in the area.

Excerpt:

"If you're a homeless young adult, chances are good that you're gay, bisexual or transgender. And if you live in the Detroit area, the Ruth Ellis Center is trying to reach you. The center, based in Highland Park, Mich., has taken an unorthodox approach to helping homeless LGBT youth — and it starts on the dance floor, specifically with the dance form known as "vogue."

"It's all about your wrists and your imagination," says 21-year-old dancer Donnie Dawson. "You just have to make sure your hands are coordinated with your imagination."

"Attorneys, teachers, social workers ... saw LGBTQ youth falling through cracks in all these systems — in our families, in our schools and job opportunities — and realized that we really needed to pay special attention to this community," Fullenkamp says.

So the drop-in center always makes a space available for dancing."

More here.

Digital media projects targeted for state incentives

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

More state incentive money is propping up digital media projects. Animation work for "Don Cheto" and "Series One" will be handled by Southfield-based Pixo Entertainment.

Excerpt:

"Digital media, including animation, post-production and video game development, has tremendous potential for growth here in Michigan," said Margaret O'Riley, director of the Michigan Film Office. "The fact that these projects chose Michigan companies to do this animation and post-production work is a testament to the talent we have here in the state."

Don Cheto – First Cycle is an animated web series based on the popular Spanish-language variety radio program "El Show de Don Cheto," featuring Mexican entertainer and radio star Don Cheto. The program will air on the NuevOn YouTube channel. Southfield-based Pixo Entertainment has been tapped to provide the animation on for the series..."

More here.

Cinetopia International Film Festival to premiere at Detroit Film Theatre

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Some new feature-length films will make their North American or Michigan debuts at Cinetopia, a festival showing of over 40 such films culled from the world's most prestigious festivals. The shindig runs from June 6-9. Check it out the Detroit Film Theatre or in Ann Arbor at the Michigan Theater, State Theater, and the University of Michigan's Angell Hall.

Tickets and more info here.

Michigan ranks 8th nationally in economic development success

Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Call Michigan the nation's comeback kid. Site Selection magazine just named it 8th best for job creation and economic development.

Excerpt:

"Michigan advanced eight spots in this year’s Competitiveness Awards, up from 16th in 2011.
The state's many business climate changes have resulted in other noteworthy improvements, including:
No. 1 for states that recovered most from the Great Recession.
No. 4 in the nation for most new corporate expansions or building projects in 2012.
Third most business-friendly tax ranking among the nation’s 12 largest states.
Third in the nation for high-tech growth."

More here.

Beaumont Hospital garners national environmental excellence award

Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

A sick person is often decribed as having a green pallor, but green is healthy and well at Beaumont Hospital.

Excerpt:

"Beaumont has received the 2013 “Partner for Change” award from Practice Greenhealth, the nation’s leading health care membership community that empowers its members to increase their efficiencies and environmental stewardship while improving patient safety and care....

Some of Beaumont’s sustainability efforts include:

Supply chain - Beaumont has worked with suppliers to reduce excess packaging and materials to achieve less waste. The hospital also works with vendors who offer “green” office supply products; 30 percent of Beaumont’s purchases are made from eco-friendly materials.

Transportation/commuting - Beaumont offers an employee carpool program and has more than 150 participants. The hospital also encourages bike riding. The campus has clearly marked bike lanes and provides employees bikes to use and covered racks to store bikes."

More here.

Metro Detroit high schools score in national rankings

Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Odds are, you can get a good education in Metro Detroit. About 30 of them are in Metro Detroit, and seven others in Washtenaw County, rank in the nation's top 2,000, according to the Daily Beast.

See the list here.

Detroit's Lafayette Coney Island is among America's hot dog gods

Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

With Memorial Day upon us and baseball in full swing, USA Today scouted the country for America's best hot dogs and found a winner in Detroit!

Excerpt:

"Greek immigrants in Michigan concocted a cinnamon-rich beef chili that came to be known as Coney sauce, but it has nothing to do with Coney Island, while 'michigans' are big in Upstate New York but have nothing to do with the state."

Of Lafayette Coney Island, USA Today says: "The hot dog has a juicy, salty, smoky snap, the Coney sauce is spot-on, and the fries are crispy, but it's the experience that puts it over the top in our book..."

More here.

After 20 years, American cars are hot again

Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

While Detroit has changed much for the better in terms of start-up activity and economic diversification, its renaissance is also circling back to the four-wheeled heritage the city was built on.

Excerpt:

"Detroit's boom-and-bust history was built on a dependence on big, fuel-thirsty vehicles. Now, with freshly stocked showrooms of new cars and more-efficient trucks, U.S. automakers are gaining ground on their Asian competitors with the best lineup in a generation.

"No matter what the economy does, no matter what fuel prices are, I've got a car for all seasons," said Chuck Eddy, a Chrysler dealer in Youngstown, Ohio, who is seeing sales boom for Dodge Dart compact cars and Ram 1500 pickups. "I didn’t have that in ’09."

"Detroit is arguably much more competitive than they have been, from the broad spectrum of their lineup, in a decade or more," said Jeff Schuster, an analyst with researcher LMC Automotive. "Right now, Detroit has the momentum."

More here.

Metro Detroit schools tops in country for music education

Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Strike up the music! The NAMM Foundation has called out the school districts of Berkeley, Bloomfield Hills, Dearborn, Ferndale, and Troy, as being among the best in the nation for music education.

Read the full list here.

Corp! magazine lauds Detroit region's tech and science innovations

Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

From the Clarkston-based Mobile Technology Association of Michigan to Wayne State University's College of Engineering, high-tech breakthroughs are garnering attention.

Excerpt:

Michigan companies are leading the way in innovation focused on digital, scientific and technological pursuits. To recognize those companies and individuals pushing the boundaries of science, technology and the digital world – Corp! magazine inaugurated the Business of Science and Technology Awards in 2010 and added a separate Digital Award category the following year. For the fourth annual DiSciTech awards, 40 companies were honored April 18, 2013, during a breakfast and networking event at Oakland Community College in Auburn Hills.

More here.

Detroit area fares well in national comparison of drop in unemployment rates

Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Metro Detroit's 1.1 percentage-point decline in the unemployment rate from 2011 to 2012 puts it in the top half of the nation's largest metro areas in terms of improving job markets.

See the national stats here.

Oakland County's job market is healthiest in years

Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

This is the best it's been in years for job seekers in Oakland County, economists say. And the jobs pay well above the minimum wage.

Excerpt:

"On the heels of its strongest two-year job growth in almost 20 years, Oakland County's economy will add nearly 42,000 jobs through 2015, say University of Michigan economists...

In their annual forecast of the Oakland County economy, Fulton and colleague Don Grimes of the U-M Institute for Research on Labor, Employment, and the Economy say that high-wage industries—with average pay of more than $62,000—accounted for more than half of the new private-sector jobs created during the recovery, a trend that will continue throughout the forecast horizon...

Overall, Fulton and Grimes say that Oakland remains among the better local economies in the nation, ranking 10th among 36 comparable U.S. counties on a series of measures that indicate future economic prosperity."

More here.

Laundry entrepreneurs think outside the box

Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

With not enough hours to get to the laundry, apartment dwellers and office workers in Detroit (and soon its metros) won't be left hung out to dry.

Excerpt:

"Michigan's own laundry barons Wayne Wudyka and Jeffrey Snyder want to place rows of high-tech lockers inside every downtown Detroit apartment building and office complex.

These computerized and smartphone-enabled lockers – call them Bizzie boxes – are the pick-up and drop-off sites for the longtime business partners' latest venture in dry cleaning and laundry services. The target user: tech-savvy urban dwellers and busy office professionals.

"Our plan is to locate the Bizzie box in every apartment complex in the downtown area and then work our way out into the suburbs," Wudyka said in a recent interview."

More here.

Downtowns say no to blank walls, yes to active facades

Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

In Oakland County's downtowns these days, businesses that want to put a blank face to the street have to keep walking.

Excerpt:

"Last fall, a developer approached West Bloomfield trustees asking for a zoning change in order to place a storage unit business at Orchard Lake and 14 Mile. Then, a business owner approached asking for approval to open a fitness club in a former dealership on Orchard Lake Road.

"The new businesses didn’t conform to our (zoning)," said Supervisor Michele Economou Ureste.

The requests were for properties in the township’s "town center" — defined back in 2007 as Orchard Lake Road between 14 Mile and Maple roads. In the area, zoning rules require active first floors, not blank walls, which was intended to make that area more appealing to people walking...That desire is enthusiastically echoed in communities across Oakland County."

More here.

International Academy ranked no. 18 high school in the nation

Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Bloomfield Hills' International Academy has consistently ranked among the country's best in recent years, but hasn't rested on its laurels. It's still the best high school in Michigan, and is in the country's top 20, according to U.S. News & World Report.

See the rankings here.

Metro Detroit ranks 14th nationally in percentage job growth

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

In a good comeback story, Metro Detroit is no. 14 in the country in terms of percentage job growth from 2011 to 2012, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

More here.

Post-industrial? Detroit needs a new word

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Detroit's economy is facing forward. Now it just needs some new verbiage.

Excerpt:

"Former heavy manufacturing hubs around the Great Lakes like Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, and Milwaukee often get roped together under the heading of "post-industrial" (when, that is, we're not otherwise identifying them by their prevalence of rust). The term poses at least two problems, though: Industry still exists in many of these places, and the very notion of defining them by their relationship to the past can hamstring us from planning more thoughtfully for their future.

"You've got the 'post-war,' you've got 'post-modern,' you've got 'post-9/11,'" says Paul Kapp, an associate professor in the school of architecture at the University of Illinois and an editor of the book SynergiCity: Reinventing the Postindustrial City. He was speaking Sunday at the annual meeting of the American Planning Association (hosted in what's often considered the post-industrial city of Chicago). "You get to a point," Kapp says, "where you've got to say, 'When does post-something end and you do something new?' I think with 'post-industrial,' we're at that opportunity now. I think it's now time to come up with a new term."

More here.

Food Tripping mobile app scouts out local, fresh food

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

A new app with some entertainment industry pros behind it can point you to the berries and kale.

Excerpt:

"A new mobile app will let organic- and health-food nuts scour where to buy nourishment that fits their diet regimen. It also lists microbreweries...

SHFT.com is a mobile app development founded by film producer Peter Glazer and “Entourage” television star Adrian Grenier. Ford was one of the founding partners of that company - launched in 2009 - whose stated goal is educating people about healthy food options."

More here.

Champions of the New Economy event set for May 8

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

An opportunity to mix and mingle with top business minds at a strolling dinner presents itself at the 2013 Champions of the New Economy on Wednesday, May 8 from 6-9 p.m. at Quicken Loans, JA Finance Park, 577 E. Larned St., in Detroit.

A couple of the luminaries include Joseph L. Welch, chairman, president & CEO of ITC Holdings Corp. and Matt Mosher, founder & CEO of hiredMYway.com.

Click here for more information, and register by May 3.

Garage Mahals rising in Metro Detroit

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

It's the latest way to run with the Joneses after parking your car. In Metro Detroit and the rest of the nation, garages are becoming hangouts, even watering holes.

Excerpt:

"Once seen as a catchall space to store bicycles, trash cans and lawn tools, garages are being rediscovered as the ideal place—who knew?—to park cars. Increasingly, many of these spaces are also becoming more lavish—loaded with high-end finishes and man toys, such as flat-screen TVs, underground car lifts and welding equipment.

"People are beginning to see that garages can be as cool as the rest of the rooms in the house," says Lou DesRosiers, president of DesRosiers Architects in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., who has seen a 15% to 20% uptick in garage projects in the past five years...

Even garages used for entertaining are designed around the car: the vehicle might be parked on an electronic turntable and surrounded by a bar and seating area. "People love to have their cars on display," Mr. DesRosiers says. "When they have parties, they bring the parties out to the garage."

More here.

At the Detroit Zoo, a smaller green footprint

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0400

This spring and summer, green at the Detroit Zoo will go above and beyond vegetation, alligators, and tropical parrots. Its big green project, energy-efficient building rehabs, solar and electric golf carts, and ditching the disposable plastic water bottles.

Excerpt:

"The Detroit Zoo has joined a handful of its peers nationally that are implementing green operational practices ranging from intense energy savings programs to green education.

It plans to invest about $4 million total in sustainable projects as part of a seven-year "greenprint" strategic plan during that time and in return to see zero waste going to landfills and a 25 percent reduction in the zoo's energy usage by 2020, COO Gerry VanAcker said."

More here.