Birmingham officials are making plans for where people walk downtown and which way the wind blows.

The city's Planning Commission is reviewing proposals for a wind-energy ordinance and improving the downtown area's crosswalks. It hopes to tackle both issues this summer.

City officials are reviewing intersection crosswalks to see how the area's walkability can be improved. This could include actions as simple as re-striping the existing crosswalks to building new ones in high-traffic areas. The easier the improvement, the sooner it will be done.

"It depends on what improvements are recommended," says Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham.

The wind ordinance would create the proper bureaucratic framework to permit the creation of wind turbines in the city. The idea is to make it easier to install wind turbines and encourage more production of alternative energy. The City Commission approved a similar ordinance for solar panels earlier this year.

Source: Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham
Writer: Jon Zemke

Few houses in Metro Detroit have the staying power of the historic Kreger House in Franklin, which has seen 150 years pass by its front porch. Now residents in the tony suburb are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to preserve the valuable house by moving it.

The Greek Revival home, barn, and outhouse started as an 80-acre farm in the 1860s. The original family lived on the property, at 26565 Scenic Drive, until a few years ago. It has been vacant ever since. The new owner didn’t want the farmhouse and chose to hand it over to the Franklin Historical Society so he could build his own new house on the 1.6 acre site.

The historical society is moving the Kreger House to the village green's property next to the Franklin Village Hall on Franklin Road. It plans to incorporate parts of the original stone foundation and soil into the home's new home. The historical society has raised $125,000 to move the dwelling and build a foundation, which is set to happen this summer. It needs another $250,000 for its renovation. The Kreger House will be used as a community center for the village.

"It's in great shape," says Bill Lamontt, vice president of the Franklin Historical Society. "Arthur Kreger was a builder and took great care of it."

And he didn't even build it. It became one of Franklin's first farmhouses when Charles and Grace Johnston constructed it around the time of the Civil War. Grace Johnston's maiden name was German and her father was the miller in town. German Mill Road was named in honor of her family.

The Johnstons passed the house down to their daughter, who married Kreger. He lived in it until his death in the 1980s. The last family member lived there until a few years ago.

Sources: Bill Lamontt, vice president of the Franklin Historical Society and Anne Lamontt, president of the Franklin Historical Society
Writer: Jon Zemke

It's down to the painting and carpeting at the Auburn Hills campus of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School. That's about all that's left with the new addition project.

"What they're doing now is putting in the furniture and landscaping," says Nick Wassmiller, spokesman for Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

The project should be done by the end of the month, but students and staff aren't waiting that long. They are expected to start using the new space next week for the beginning of summer term. A grand opening is planned for the end of the month.

It will cap the end of a nearly two-year project where the Lansing-based law school sets up its own Metro Detroit campus. The school took over an old 1980s era GM/UAW building on 67 acres in the shadow of the Chrysler headquarters, renovating and expanding it to 130,000 square feet.

The existing building houses meeting space, offices and a large law library. The addition has classrooms, faculty offices, and courtrooms for both practice and real trials. The modern-looking building is also going for LEED certification with a strong list of environmentally friendly features, such as a 20,000 square foot green roof and recycled materials.

Cooley opened its Metro Detroit campus at Oakland University six years ago with 28 students. Today it has 680 students at its new Auburn Hills campus at 2630 Featherstone Road. It is expected to hold up to 800 within the next year or two and possibly more than 1,000 after that.

Source: Nick Wassmiller, spokesman for Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Writer: Jon Zemke

Crossing Woodward Avenue isn’t for the faint of heart, but even those people will have an easier time now that the Michigan Department of Transportation has approved a new crosswalk improvement project in Oakland County.

MDOT plans to improve the 12 Mile Road/Woodward intersection between Royal Oak and Berkley. The project will provide more shelter for pedestrians with traffic calming measures and pedestrian countdown crossing signals. The median will also be landscaped.

MDOT worked with the Woodward Avenue Action Association (WA3) to plan the project and will work with WA3 to execute it. The $450,000 project could begin as early as next year.

Source: Woodward Avenue Action Association
Writer: Jon Zemke

Construction crews are starting to swarm Grand River Avenue in downtown Farmington, ready to begin work on the city's streetscape project later this week.

Those crews have already been doing a lot of behind-the-scenes work and expect to put shovels in the ground either this weekend or early next week, ahead of its scheduled mid-May start. Construction will go on throughout the summer and finish up this fall.

"It came on us really fast," says Annette Knowles, executive director of the Farmington Downtown Development Authority. "They awarded the bid a couple of weeks ago and they wanted to get started as soon as possible."

The multi-million dollar project will rebuild Grand River between Farmington Road and Warner Street, making the byway friendlier to pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists. It will expand the sidewalk area, add bump outs around parallel parking spaces, and install new sidewalks, crosswalks, benches, bike racks, trash cans and decorative streetlights.

The contractor plans to build the north side of the street first, finishing it in time for the city's Founders Festival in July. The south side will be built during the late summer/early fall.

The planned work for Grove Street between Grand River and Orchard Street has now been put on hold for at least a year until the city finds financing. The Grove portion will receive the same type of improvements, but a boulevard will be added.

Source: Annette Knowles, executive director of the Farmington Downtown Development Authority
Writer: Jon Zemke

The local leaders in Franklin have found a new way to make the historic aspect of their downtown work for them -- host an Architecture ID contest.

Franklin officials took 20 up-close-and-personal pictures of parts of downtown buildings on Franklin Road just south of 14 Mile Road. The idea is to let people figure out where they came from and what building they belong to.

"What it does is it gets people up and walking around downtown looking for these photos," says Eddie Delbridge, main street director for Franklin.

The contest is part of National Historic Preservation Month and Oakland County's Main Street Oakland County program's efforts to get more people to utilize the county's downtowns.

"We're having a great time with this," Delbridge says. "The response we have been getting is incredible."

Franklin was one of the first communities in Michigan to establish a historic district. It was also the first community to take advantage of Michigan's historic district laws.

"They're very progressive," says Bob Donahue, program coordinator for Main Street Oakland County.

Source: Eddie Delbridge, Main Street director for Franklin and Bob Donahue, program coordinator for Main Street Oakland County
Writer: Jon Zemke

Back in the day it seemed like there was a Sanders on every neighborhood corner in Metro Detroit. The local institution provided a place for young and old alike to indulge in their sweet tooth. Those times fell by the wayside in the latter part of the 20th Century, but today they’re making a comeback.

The local icon has opened four shops in places like downtown Wyandotte, downtown Grosse Pointe, Laurel Park Place mall in Livonia, and even up north in Mackinaw. Over the next few months, there are also plans to open new stores in Rochester, 12 Oaks Mall in Novi, and at the company’s Clinton Township headquarters. The company also plans to open one more in a yet-to-be-announced location later this year.

"Fred Sanders had a great vision," says Brian Jefferson, chairman of Sanders. "He was ahead of his time. We're trying to recreate that vision."

The company is going for higher-quality ice cream and sweet treats as it opens new stores. Many of its ingredients are all natural and are used in recipes from the early 20th Century that stressed quality more than quantity. Sanders also plans to incorporate some newer recipes in the near future.

Source: Brian Jefferson, chairman of Sanders
Writer: Jon Zemke

Farmington Hills school welcomes in new lab for its students.

Excerpt:

The center -- more than a year in the making -- is to pilot three weeklong, free summer sessions for middle school, high school and junior college students in metro Detroit. The center is particularly trying to reach students in Detroit.

The idea, said Patty Giorgio, director of development at Steppingstone, is to heed the call for more science education.

She said students rarely see what it's like to work in an advanced lab, and having the used spectrometer -- which retails for more than $100,000 new -- makes this lab unique.

"No other elementary or middle school has a spectrometer," Giorgio said.

Read the entire article here.

Southfield's new youth center is expected to open Memorial Day and will offer up to 400 students daily activities.

Excerpt:

Southfield's new youth center, which is expected to open Memorial Day, will provide activities for up to 400 middle school and high school students daily, city officials said.

With a registration fee of no more than $55 for the summer, a student will get access to 12 new computers, soundproof study areas and music practice rooms, a recording studio, a video gaming area, a stage that doubles as a movie theater and plush couches and chairs for lounging.

The facility, called the Field Zone, is open to kids from Southfield or who attend Southfield Public Schools. It is located below the Southfield Pavilion in the city's municipal complex and is expected to cost nearly $3 million for construction and two years of operation. Private donations covered most of that cost.

Read the entire article here.

Local company ilumisys, Inc., is brought in to instal LED light tubes in San Juan Capistrano, Calif.

Excerpt:

ilumisys, Inc., developer and producer of next-generation solid-state lighting technology, announced today that its channel partner, IHNcorp, has installed several LED light tubes as part of a pilot program for the city of San Juan Capistrano, Calif.

Los Angeles-based IHNcorp and its subsidiary, Ecogreen Solutions Inc., replaced several fluorescent lights with ilumisys MK-1 LED light tubes in the city’s offices.

"San Juan Capistrano is interested in reducing its usage of lighting that contains mercury and in finding energy-efficient alternatives," said Ziad Mazboudi, senior civil engineer, City of San Juan Capistrano. "The residents of our city look for us to be well-versed in alternative-energy solutions."

Read the entire article here.

Lawrence Technological University has a quad area in its Southfield campus near the Taubman Student Services Center. A nice tranquil place that is dotted with landscaping and small pieces of public art, but in need of something more.

"We had an area that has a circular walk and begged to have something in it to finish off," says Carey Valentine, director of facilities for Lawrence Tech.

University officials solved that problem with the Ockham’s Wedge, a large metal sculpture donated by wealthy alumnus Alfred Taubman. The super-sized sculpture was installed earlier this month and now stands guard as one of the university's premier pieces of art.

"This is a signature piece," Valentine says.

It's definitely not hard to miss. The sculpture stands about 24 feet tall and weighs 3,000 pounds. It's designed by Beverly Pepper, a leading American sculptor known for her large steel sculptures and totem figures.

The sculpture's name refers to William of Ockham, a 14th-century English philosopher associated with Ockham's Razor, a principle of scientific inquiry that postulates that the simplest explanation is probably the best.

For more information and photos of the sculpture go here.

Source: Carey Valentine, director of facilities for Lawrence Technological University
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Downtown Farmington is putting on a new face this spring as the McNut building undergoes a facadectomy. The single-story structure next to the Civic Theatre is about to get its original look back, and a second story to boot.

"Something that fits in with the historic architecture of downtown Farmington," says Steven Schneemann, owner of S3 Architecture, which designed the new façade.

The century-old structure served as the home of Books Abound for years near the intersection of Grand River Avenue and Farmington Road before going vacant a few years ago. An ugly mid-20th Century façade covered it for most of that time.

The 1,600-square-foot structure is being renovated to accommodate an office tenant. The space is still available. A second story false front will top the brick façade. A similar job was done to the nearby Exchange Building last year.

The project is expected to wrap up by July.

Source: Steven Schneemann, owner of S3 Architecture
Writer: Jon Zemke

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The Ferndale Public Library has moved into its temporary location and is getting ready to begin renovation work on a permanent location.

"Things are looking pretty good for starting construction sometime in the next month," says Douglas Raber, director of the Ferndale Public Library.

The renovation plans call for adding about 6,000 square feet of space to the nearly 12,000-square-foot building. That includes space for meeting rooms fronting 9 Mile Road, a new children's room facing Troy Street, a new area for teens and a much-needed facelift to the 1954 structure. A virtual tour of the new building is available here.

In keeping with Ferndale's focus on sustainability, the library development is also going for silver LEED certification. Among its environmentally friendly features are the windows and skylight, which bring in more natural light. The added sunshine is expected to beautify the interior and reduce electricity use.

The addition, paid for by a 1-mill millage increase last year, will give the library space to add to its staff and collection of material with new books and CDs.

Construction bids will be approved within the next few weeks. Work is expected to take 10-11 months. An April 2010 opening is planned. In the mean time, the Ferndale Library is operating out of a temporary location at 642 E 9 Mile Road.

Source: Douglas Raber, director of the Ferndale Public Library
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Lots of companies like to announce sustainability-based programs, emphasizing their grand ambitions. The follow-up announcements aren't as common. This story is about the latter kind of announcement.

Novi-based ITC Holdings has dramatically reduced its emissions of sulfur hexafluoride (a greenhouse gas) three years after starting a program to contain the problem. The gas was escaping from old transmission equipment at an average of 13,275 pounds per year in 2005. That number stands at 1,836 pounds as of 2008.

ITC Holdings, which runs electrical grids, has been chasing similar efficiencies in its infrastructure for years. It is investing about $10 billion in upgrading the electric grid in the Midwest, a move that will make the grid more efficient and sustainable.

The firm is also expanding the grid to wind farms in places like the Upper Peninsula so that they can provide renewable energy to places like Minneapolis or Detroit. The Green Power Express project will eventually transport 12,000 megawatts of renewable energy to city centers.

Source: ITC Holdings
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Oakland University is in line for a lot of upgrades and renovations this summer as the Rochester Hills-based school redoes everything from entrances to building interiors.

Ted Montgomery, director of media relations for Oakland University, described the work as deferred maintenance that has been a long time coming for the university. The projects will be done throughout the summer and will wrap up in time for the students' return this fall.

The university is revamping its two plazas, bringing in more inviting designs to greet its thousands of students. These plazas are between the North and South Foundation Halls leading to the Oakland Center and the plaza between the Oakland Center and O’Dowd Hall.

Oakland University is also going to repave the main entrance to the campus at Squirrel and University between mid-May and August. Culvert and road repairs will be done on Meadow Brook Road between Hamlin Hall and the University Student Apartments. This will complement sidewalk upgrades throughout campus.

The university also plans to renovate the second floor of O’Dowd Hall for the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. It will also replace floor tile on the first and second floors. Wilson Hall, Anibal House, Dodge Hall, Hamlin Hall, and a corridor in North Foundation Hall will also undergo renovations.

These projects don't have any big sustainable features, but Oakland University officials are looking at incorporating some in the future.

"We are developing sustainable projects, but they are a little ways off yet," Montgomery says.

Source: Ted Montgomery, director of media relations for Oakland University
Writer: Jon Zemke

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The plans for the Birmingham/Troy transit center are taking shape while the funding sources are being targeted.

The planning commissions for the two cities recently met to review architectural renderings of the proposed center. They plan to hold a community design charrette on June 15-16 after the architects come back with more detailed plans.

"We're waiting on them to make some changes and tweaks," says Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham.

The two cities plan to create a $6 million transit center on the Birmingham side of the border between the cities. About $4 million would be set aside for the center while another $2 million would be used to build a pedestrian tunnel underneath the tracks.

The center would facilitate traffic from pedestrians, bicyclists, automobiles, buses and the planned northern extension of the Detroit-Ann Arbor commuter rail line. There has also been talk of creating an east-west streetcar line to connect the station to Birmingham's downtown and Troy's Somerset Collection mall.

The proposed site is in Birmingham's emerging Rail District. The cities plan to create a transit-oriented-development district around the station that would roughly be bordered by Crooks, Adams, Maple and Lincoln streets. A Southeast Michigan Council of Governments official will conduct a walkability tour of the neighborhood on April 29 to gauge how best to take advantage of the expected transit oriented development.

Officials from both cities are also meeting with the staffs of Michigan's congressional and senate office holders to help arrange funding. Congressman Gary Peters has already put in for a $2 million federal earmark to help bring the project to fruition.

Source: Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Most building buffs are happy to tour a Frank Lloyd Wright house. Two Lawrence Technological University students did that every day last summer and are looking forward to doing it again this summer.

Seniors Justin Butler and Doug Metiva, architecture and construction management majors, lived in and helped restore the exterior of the Frank Lloyd Wright house in Bloomfield Hills last summer. They plan to work on the interior this year.

"The chance to live in there was pretty amazing," Butler says.

Wright, the famous American architect, designed the 2,350-square-foot house for Gregor and Elizabeth Affleck. The couple moved into the house in 1941. It's one of Wright's smallest single-family homes and was considered a home for a family of modest means. The Afflecks' children donated the house to Lawrence Tech in 1978. The university uses it as a teaching tool for its College of Architecture and Design.

Metiva and Butler got a closer look than most, tearing out rotted parts of the house and seeing how its infrastructure was put together.

"It's amazing to see what they came up with back then," Metiva says.

The students worked with university administrators to plan and perform the restoration projects, such as restoring the house's tidewater cypress siding, and were able to come in both under budget and ahead of schedule.

That earned them an opportunity to return this summer, when they plan to repair damage from a leaky roof in the bedroom wing. They will also do other interior restoration projects to help keep its status as an architectural gem.

The Affleck House is on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, and is one of the 50 most significant structures in the state, according to the Michigan Society of Architects.

Source: Justin Butler and Doug Metiva, architecture and construction management majors at Lawrence Technological University
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Twenty specialty doctors are starting to filter into the new Clarkston Medical Building.

Excerpt:

Twenty specialty doctors are beginning to move into the new Clarkston Medical Building on Bow Pointe Drive in Independence Township.

"The three-story building will have an A to Z offering of health-care services," said Kevin Tompkins, vice president of marketing for the McLaren Health Care Corp.

The office building, owned independently by a group of physicians, is part of Phase I of the McLaren Health Care Village development being built on 79 acres at the southwest corner of Interstate 75 and Sashabaw Road.

Read the entire article here.

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Local business owners get together to discuss ways to improve during economic hardships.

Excerpt:

Jamie Nye, owner of Great Turtle Toys, is one of the 25 business-owner volunteers along Dixie Highway who are working with the Independence Township Planning Commission and the Dixie Highway Property/ Business Owners Improvement Group to help improve the Dixie corridor and make it a more desirable destination for shoppers.

Nye, a Clarkston resident, opened Great Turtle Toys on Dixie Highway with her brother Ben Nye, in March of last year. The brother-sister team has operated stores on Mackinac Island for 11 years.

"I live in Clarkston, and even though the economy is still hurting, Clarkston shoppers seem to be quality conscious consumers and want to buy unique toys for their children."

Read the entire article here.

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Sweet shop Sanders Candy slated to open new store in Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi

Excerpt:

The Sanders Candy company will open a flagship store and restaurant at Twelve Oaks Mall this fall with a menu featuring its old-time favorite sandwiches, soups, salads and light morning fare, as well as panini, espresso drinks and the full array of its old-fashioned desserts.

Two other new restaurants -- an A&W and an elaborate new Tin Fish -- also will open at Twelve Oaks later this year, the mall announced.

The Sanders company has dessert shops in Grosse Pointe, Wyandotte, Birmingham and Livonia’s Laurel Park Place and will open one this month on Mackinac Island. But the Twelve Oaks restaurant will be the company’s first effort to reintroduce the Sanders lunch-counter concept, said operations director Walter Pilon.

Read the entire article here.

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