Development News

Developers and merchants in downtown Grand Haven aim to make their main street a destination, an experience.

"We've been way too one-dimensional," says Steve Loftis, downtown business and real estate owner and immediate past chairman of the Downtown Development Authority board. He says the area needs to move beyond people going there for one store or one restaurant. "Eating, shopping and being downtown should be an experience."

Grand Haven's downtown redevelopment plan created in 2005 continues this fall with new streetscape elements, the installation of a snowmelt system and updated sanitary sewer and water mains.

The streetscape elements, which date back to the last upgrade in the 1980s, will include new trees and stone planters along Washington Avenue with walls high enough for seating, traditional style streetlights, new sidewalks with brick pavers and kiosks with information on upcoming events and street maps.

The revamped streetscape will create an inviting environment for shoppers and visitors, says Dana Kollewehr, Grand Haven Main Street Downtown Development Authority Director. The snowmelt system will keep sidewalks clear for pedestrians during winter months, without using salt or sand. GMB Architecture & Engineering is overseeing the snowmelt system installation.

Loftis says the changes will create an energy in downtown to attract shoppers and visitors, and new businesses.
"We're going to lead the way, even in this poor economy," he says. "We’re going to create opportunities and come out of this healthier and smarter."

Infrastructure work began in September, and will continue through fall 2010. Cost estimates are close to $5.6 million. Kollewehr says the city, which is managing the project, has applied for a grant from the Michigan Department of Transportation for the streetscape elements of the project. Muskegon-based Jackson-Merkey Contractors is handling most of the work.

Source: Dana Kollewehr, Steve Loftis, Grand Haven Main Street Downtown Development Authority; Downtown Grand Haven Web site

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

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It hasn't even been a month since The Seasoned Home moved to its new location on downtown Holland's Eighth Street, but the store's owners say business has improved noticeably.

Jody LaCombe and Christina Bensinger opened The Seasoned Home more than four years ago on College Avenue in downtown Holland. They moved around the corner from their old shop to 43 E. Eighth St. on Oct. 29. The space previously housed Thomas A. Davis Jewelers.

"The new store is bigger and Eighth Street is the main shopping area," LaCombe says. "We're getting a lot more walk-throughs and more exposure."

LaCombe and Bensinger are also excited to take advantage of the main street's snowmelt system, which will make their store more accessible during winter months.

The Seasoned Home specializes in gourmet foods and kitchen products, specialty spices and blends, loose-leaf teas, pantry items, serving dishes and cookbooks. The new store is double the size of the previous location, so LaCombe and Bensinger added new gourmet food lines such as Earth & Vine, and expanded the offerings to include products like soups and dips.

LaCombe says the Eighth Street space is more shopper-friendly than the previous store because of its open floor plan. There are fewer nooks and crannies, making it easier for customers to browse.

There is a kitchen in the back of the store, partly for ambiance, but also to use as a space for measuring out teas and spices. LaCombe says the store might offer cooking classes there in the future.

One thing that hasn't changed with the store's move is the owners' commitment to helping their customers and giving them information on food and spices and all things kitchen related.

"We really try to offer good old fashioned customer service," says LaCombe.

Source: Jody LaCombe, The Seasoned Home

Related Articles
Longtime downtown jeweler expands, raises profile

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.
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As an immigrant to the United States, entrepreneur Bing Goei knows the challenges minorities face when they start a business. His dream to create a place where minority and women business owners can support each other as they grow their businesses became realty with last week's opening of the International Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence at 818 Butterworth, Grand Rapids.

Goei, the CEO of Eastern Floral, unveiled the renovated 80,000-square-foot former Kindel Furniture factory at a dedication event Nov. 11. Eastern Floral's headquarters, production and distribution center and an 8,000-square-foot events center occupy most of the building. But the 7,000-square-foot entrepreneurial center could be the portion that changes the face of the Grand Rapids' business community.

"Small business owners who happen to be women or minorities trying to make it in West Michigan have special challenges to overcome," Goei says. "We want to encourage them to stay."

Seven of the eight business spaces are occupied already: three businesses are African-American owned, four are women owned.

Each space has an enclosed office against the outside wall for privacy, with a wide-open center where people can interact. Plants mark each business's boundaries, instead of walls.

"We offer them a below-market rate and an opportunity to be connected to and supported by other small business owners," Goei says.

Goei plans to provide opportunities where the business owners can meet people who can help them in their business. It might be by being part of an Eastern Floral event at the events center or by hosting tours of the entrepreneurial center.
 
"I think that's really what most small business owners need," he says. "We say they need mentoring or this or that, but sometimes what they're lacking is access – access to capital, access to markets, access to customers. They sometimes need that more than capital."

Source: Bing Goei, Eastern Floral; Michael Zalewski and Kris Westman, Seyferth & Associates

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.
 


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Sarah Willets used to be in broadcast news, but after achieving her goal of becoming a news producer and reaching it at a young age, this 23-year-old says it wasn't what she wanted. An investor approached her about financing her longtime dream of owning a coffee shop, and Willets seized the opportunity.  

Last September, Willets opened Wired Espresso Bar in the former Brittany Café space at 1503 Plainfield Ave. NE. From the outset, the plan was to be a 24-hour shop because Willets found that local coffee shops were closed when she left for work as a news producer at the odd hours of the morning.

"One-third of our sales come from between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m.," she says. "I know how to target the college crowd through Twitter and Facebook – they're mostly from Calvin, Cornerstone and GRCC now we're starting to get more GVSU students. I've had times when I've left at 7 at night and come back in at 5 a.m. and the same customers are still here because they're here studying."

Inside, four small dining areas are now one large room with tigerwood laminate flooring. The original tin ceiling is painted silver. The walls are non-traditional coffee shop colors: light blue and light green.

Besides coffee and beverages, fresh baked goods, croissant sandwiches, wraps and soups, the shop serves Waffle Dogs – a breakfast sausage wrapped in waffle batter, cooked in a specially shaped waffle iron, and topped with any of the flavored coffee syrups, powdered sugar, or mustard and ketchup.

Willets is from Erie, Michigan near Toledo and came to West Michigan to attend Grand Valley State University.

"I had friends here and I like the area and that was enough to keep me here," she says.

Wired Espresso Bar won Best New Business at the 2009 Neighborhood Business Awards.

Source: Sarah Willets, Wired Espresso Bar

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.



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To encourage shoppers to visit downtown Grand Rapids, motorists will be offered 60 minutes of free parking again this year during the holiday shopping season -- a $2 value.

Downtown merchants and restaurants will distribute coupons imbedded with magnetized strips that grant shoppers free one-hour parking when checking out at parking lot gates, according to Pamela Ritsema, the city's parking services director.  If shoppers park longer than one hour, the new automatic payment machines installed over the past six months will calculate the remaining amount due.  Payments can be made with cash or credit card, she says.

"We've found that people spend more on parking than the value that we give away," she says, noting that the city is picking up the bill for ticket printing. 

Last year shoppers could print out free one-hour passes by downloading coupons from the Downtown Alliance's website.  Ritsema says 1,184 coupons were redeemed last year, about the same number that has been used each year since the program started in 2005.

The promotion also offers a $2 discount on event rates.  It will start on Thanksgiving Day and continue through Dec. 31. Coupons can be redeemed at any of these five city parking ramps: Monroe Center, Louis Campau, Ottawa-Fulton, Pearl-Ionia and Cherry-Commerce.

Source: Pamela Ritsema, parking services director for city of Grand Rapids
 
Sharon Hanks is the innovation and jobs news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at sharon@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

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When she started the business three years ago, Edith Almanza didn't imagine she'd be operating her massage therapy company, Time to Unwind, in downtown Holland.  But after making a few inquiries this summer about an open space at 64 East 7th Street, the move all of the sudden made sense.

Almanza and business partner, Dinorah Lara, say business is thriving since relocating to Holland's downtown in July.  "It's an awesome feeling," Almanza says about the move from their suite at 680 28th Street. "In the other space, you rent your space and go your own way.  When we went downtown, we felt like we were part of a community."

The site downtown offers more exposure to clients who have spread the news of the business by word-of-mouth, she says.  "We're excited to see what happens when we get all of our loose ends tied up and start advertising," Lara says.

The store offers a wide selection of massage therapy, including therapeutic, hot stone, Russian, Swedish, Atshiapsu, prenatal and infant massages and reflexology.  It also offers chair massages in which therapists usually work at special events hosted by other companies and organizations.

Time to Unwind is staffed with three other therapists and is open by appointment before and after normal business hours.  "We try to accommodate people's schedules," Almanza says.  Appointments can be made by calling 616-218-0068.

Source: Edith Almanza

Sharon Hanks is the innovation and jobs news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at sharon@rapidgrowthmedia.com

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After working for four years getting established in Muskegon, the marketing and communications firm Qonverge has opened an office in downtown Grand Rapids to better serve the area's clients.

Qonverge CEO and Co-Founder Jason Piasecki said Remie Pleva has been hired to work in the new office at 250 Monroe Ave. NW, Suite 400, serving as the firm's business development executive.  He brings with him 10 years experience in sales and marketing. 

"We do quite a bit of work in Grand Rapids, so the growth is a logical step," said Piasecki.  Among the company's firms are Fishbeck, Thompson, Carr and Huber, the Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore, and the West Michigan chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. Piasecki said Pleva will work to strengthen client relationships and become involved in the Grand Rapids community.

Qonverge was established in Muskegon four years ago when three self-employed professionals specializing in web, design, video and marketing pooled their talents to form the company.  It has since grown to 10 fulltime and two part-time employees.

Source: Jason Piasecki, Qonverge

Sharon Hanks is the innovation and jobs news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at sharon@rapidgrowthmedia.com

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Nearly 300 people crowded Wealthy Theatre the evening of November 5 in support of Grand Rapids' neighborhood businesses nominated for top honors in the 20th Annual Neighborhood Business Awards.

The awards, sponsored by the Neighborhood Business Alliance and Neighborhood Ventures, celebrate the continual revitalization of the city's neighborhood business districts through the hard work, perseverance and ingenuity of their business owners and organization leaders.

The free event included a reception, Taste of Our Neighborhoods, a popular attraction catered by neighborhood restaurants Brick Road Pizza, Corez Wine Bar, The Electric Cheetah, Empanada Kitchen, Garibaldi Restaurant, GrillMaster BBQ and That Place on Plainfield.

Nominees included nearly 100 businesses, individuals and projects in 14 categories, including two categories that were new this year: the Green Award and Best Neighborhood Restaurant. A committee comprising volunteers from Neighborhood Ventures and the Neighborhood Business Alliance visited each nominee's location and decided the winners. Nominees received a certificate of excellence; winners received an engraved plaque to display at their business.

"The awards are definitely an honor for the business, recognition of the hard work the owners and employees have put into the business," says Mark Lewis, Neighborhood Ventures executive director. "It's also a sense of pride for the neighborhood business district and the neighborhood in general. Neighboring businesses, clients or residents nominate many of the nominees and there's a real sense of pride in the district because of that."

The People's Choice Award sponsored by Rapid Growth was decided by two weeks of online voting by Rapid Growth readers. Winners in each category received a People's Choice Certificate of Excellence.

"The health and vibrancy of our neighborhood businesses is important to us as a publication and as an organization," says Jeff Hill, Rapid Growth publisher. "When you look at the areas where the business districts are vibrant, the surrounding neighborhoods reflect that. Rapid Growth feels it's important to bring recognition and positive exposure to these businesses whose success is so vital to the success of the city as a whole."

Mayor George Heartwell emceed the event, members of the city commission presented the awards and former mayor John H. Logie presented the John H. Logie Neighborhood Business Champion Award.

The winners of each category, the People's Choice winners and the category nominees are:

WINNERS/NEIGHBORHOODS

2009 Green Award
Winner: The Green Life Market   East Fulton
People’s Choice Winner: Fulton Street Farmers Market    East Fulton
Other Nominees:
Brookstone Capital for 101 S. Division   Heartside
Clothing Matters      East Hills
San Chez      Heartside

Best Business Exterior
Winner: Ivy K. Gillespie – Moody Memorial Chapel        Seymour Square
People’s Choice Winner: Wealthy Street Bakery       Wealthy Street
Other Nominees:
Adobe In & Out      West Fulton
Ball Park Floral     West Fulton
Café Aromas         Grandville Avenue
De Vries Companies for Bridge Street Depot       Stockbridge
Eastown Business Association & Tazzia Lawn Care for streetscaping    Eastown
The Green Well Gastro Pub     East Hills
Sundaes in the Heights      Alger Heights

Best Exterior Renovation
Winner: Talk A Lot Wireless      Franklin & Eastern
People’s Choice Winner: Red Jet Café      Creston
Other Nominees:
AllStar Wireless     Michigan Street
Louie's Bar & Rocket Lounge       Stockbridge

Best Interior Renovation
Winner: Lott3Metz Architecture and Highland Group       East Hills
People’s Choice Winner: Bombay Cuisine/The Queen’s Pub    Eastown
Other Nominees:
Brann's Sizzling Steaks & Sports Grille     West Leonard
Fat Boy Burgers    Cheshire
Clear Water Place/Saint Mary's Home Care   Monroe North
Clique Lanes        Stockbridge
From the Heart Yoga           Wealthy Street
Higher Ground Rock Climbing Center      Monroe North
John Widdicomb Trade Center for Spectrum Health        Stockbridge

Best Longstanding Business
Winner: Freewheeler Bike Shop      West Leonard
People’s Choice Winner: Choo Choo Grill       Creston
Other Nominees:
Arsulowicz Brothers Mortuaries, Inc.       Stockbridge & Michigan Street
Baribeau and Sons Jewelry Hospital      East Fulton
Duke's Bar     Michigan Street
The Elbow Room Bar & Grille     Michigan Street
Gallery 154       Eastown
Lady Love by James Price        Wealthy Street
Nawara Brothers Appliance, TV & Bedding       West Fulton
Rocky's Bar & Grill       Monroe North
Russ's Garage    West Fulton
Stone's Throw     Creston

Best Neighborhood Restaurant
Winner: Wolfgang's      Eastown
People’s Choice Winner: Marie Catrib’s   East Hills
Other Nominees:
Ali's Diner       West Fulton
Brick Road Pizza       Wealthy Street
Cherry Deli    East Hills
El Sombrero      Stockbridge
Garibaldi Restaurant        Division South
The Grand Coney        Michigan Street
Kopper Top       Stockbridge
Real Food Café      Alger Heights
Sazerac Lounge      Creston
Taquitos Mexican Grill      Heartside
Yesterdog       Eastown

Best New Business
Winner: Wired Espresso Bar      Creston
People’s Choice Winner: Commute Bicycle Shop      Heartside
Other Nominees:
Beauty House     Wealthy Street
Blu House Properties, Inc.    Eastown
Unlocal Clothing Co.  Heartside
Wing Heaven     Creston

Best New Construction - Large Project
Winner: McGraw Construction for the Bicycle Factor    West Fulton
People’s Choice Winner: The Hauenstein Center at Saint Mary's Health Care    Heartside
Other Nominees:
Grand Rapids Public Schools for César E. Chávez Elementary     Grandville Avenue

Best New Construction - Small Project
Winner: Bear Manor Properties for the Electric Cheetah    Wealthy Street
People’s Choice Winner: Bear Manor Properties for the Electric Cheetah    Wealthy Street
Other Nominees:
Gus Afendoulis for Michigan & Fuller (Subway/Biggby)     Michigan Street
Bazzani Associates for the Phoenix Building        Eastown
Lake Michigan Credit Union    Michigan Street

Best Non-Profit Project
Winner: Grand Rapids Community Foundation for 185 Oakes SW     Heartside
People’s Choice Winner: Grand Rapids Public Schools for Houseman Field     East Fulton
Other Nominees:
Bethany Christian Services for refugee services       Monroe North
Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids for Cathedral Square     Heartside
Oasis of Hope for healthcare services      West Leonard
The Steil Center for Day for Kids     West Fulton
West Grand Neighborhood Organization for new office space      West Leonard
Western Michigan University for the Occupational Therapy Training Center     Heartside

Best Promotion
Winner: Avenue for the Arts    Heartside
People’s Choice Winner: Cottage Bar for 28th Annual Chili Cook-off    Heartside
Other Nominees:
ArtPeers       Uptown
The Meanwhile Bar for the Meanwhile Movie Series at Wealthy Theatre     Street
Modern Hardware for the 1st Annual Master Grilling Cook-off      Boston Square

Best Reuse of a Building
Winner: The Winchester                            Wealthy Street
People’s Choice Winner: The Winchester                    Wealthy Street
Other Nominees:
Corez Wine Bar      East Hills
Eastern Floral & Gifts      West Fulton

Best Window Display
Winner: Renee Austin    Stockbridge
People’s Choice Winner: Wealthy at Charles    Wealthy Street
Other Nominees:
Blue Door Antiques & Elements      East Fulton
Bridge Street Electric         Stockbridge
Imagination Creations       Heartside
Northwestern Home Furnishings       West Leonard
Venito Clothing      Seymour Square
YT Galleria       East Hills

John H. Logie Neighborhood Business Champion Award
Winner: Bing Goei      West Fulton
Other Nominees:
Haris Alibasic & Kara Wood    Citywide
Johnny Brann, Sr. & Johnny Brann, Jr.    West Leonard
Elissa Hillary   Citywide
Bob Israels    Stockbridge
Rachel Lee    Uptown
    
Gerald R. Helmholdt Grand Award
Winner: Grand Rapids Public Schools for
César E. Chávez Elementary       Grandville Avenue
Houseman Field       East Fulton

Source: Mark Lewis, Neighborhood Ventures; Jeff Hill, Rapid Growth Media

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.



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As part of a series, Rapid Growth is speaking with nominees of several "best of" categories of the 20th Annual Neighborhood Business Awards, a partnership between Neighborhood Ventures and the Neighborhood Business Alliance that honors businesses across the city that have added to the quality of life in their locales.

Best Promotion: Avenue for the Arts, Jenn Schaub/Dwelling Place
Avenue for the Arts branding and events has been one catalyst among many that have changed Grand Rapids' South Division Avenue from abandoned storefronts and littered sidewalks to a business district that has made a name for itself in the regional arts world.

By 2005, the blocks between Fulton and Wealthy had seen significant development. The artists and galleries wanted to differentiate the business district from the surrounding Heartside area. Avenue for (not of) the Arts was born.

As of 2009, Avenue for the Arts events have drawn thousands of people to browse galleries, shop, dine, dance and celebrate the arts.

"Over the course of a year we have seven annual events," says Jenn Schaub of Dwelling Place, the nonprofit organization that considers itself the steward of those events. Schaub helps organize and promote Avenue for the Arts.

"We have three annual events in the fall, winter and spring and four Avenue for the Arts Markets in the summer," she says. During the arts markets, vendors set up booths along the sidewalks, businesses extend their hours and offer special promotions, local and regional artists sell their wares and there's a variety of live entertainment options.

Perhaps the largest impact has been on the retail and dining establishments in the area.

"[During events] we have anywhere from 500 to 1,000 people come through," Schaub says, "and on a regular shopping day our businesses don't pull in anywhere near that many. These are the times when a lot of people get their first re-introduction to South Division, and we hear 'I had no idea it was so different now.'"

Other nominees are:    
•    ArtPeers, 1130 Wealthy SE
•    Cottage Bar Chili Cook Off, 18 LaGrave Ave SE
•    The Meanwhile Bar, 1005 Wealthy St SE
•    Modern Hardware Grill Off, 1500 Kalamazoo SE

Rapid Growth is proud to sponsor the People's Choice award in each category of the Neighborhood Business Awards.

The awards ceremony on November 5 is from 5 to 8 p.m. at Wealthy Theatre. The public is invited.

Source: Jenn Schaub, Dwelling Place/Avenue for the Arts

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

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After working for almost seven years at Express Employment Professionals in Grand Rapids, Amy Pierce made the decision to open a franchise in Holland.

"I had some clients in the Holland area who were always saying, 'Come help us, come help us,'" Pierce says. Opportunities presented themselves and Pierce made her move; she opened at 162 E. Eighth St. on Sept. 14. "I've always wanted to be an entrepreneur, and now I am," she says.

Express Employment Professionals, an international company, is a human resources firm that helps companies fill positions in administration and manufacturing. Clients include businesses and employment seekers.

Pierce looked at more than 30 locations before settling on the current space.

"I love the vibe in downtown Holland," she says. Before moving in, the office needed renovations.

"We did a build-out on the building to open it up. It was previously a mortgage company, and the changes made it feel warmer," Pierce says. "It doesn't have a temporary service feel to it. We're here to help people find permanent employment."

Pierce estimates her investment in the business is close to $100,000; she spent most of it on local suppliers and services. She also invests in her clients through educational events and programs. For job seekers, she offers resume writing skills and tips on marketing themselves. For businesses, she offers events on social media, time management and timely topics like the H1N1 flu virus.

Pierce says Express Employment Professionals in Holland is unique because it's locally owned, but has the backing of an international company. Though she moved from the Grand Rapids branch, she hired two new employees to work alongside her in Holland.

"We have a large name, but my name is on the door and I have investment in the community," she says.

Source: Amy Pierce, Express Employment Professionals, Holland

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

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It's just under an acre in size, but a tiny spot of hillside greenery near Grand Rapids' Medical Mile is where many people find respite from the concrete, traffic and noise of the surrounding neighborhood. And now elements within the park will honor cancer survivors.

Crescent Park, nestled against the south side of Van Andel Institute (VAI) at Bostwick and Crescent streets, is a city park recently adopted by a nonprofit group called The Friends of Crescent Park and renovated in conjunction with the VAI's current expansion. The VAI established the nonprofit to raise the funds needed to renovate the park and pay for ongoing maintenance.

Cancer research is VAI's primary research focus. The new Crescent Park is dedicated to cancer survivors and features concrete pavers, stone slabs and granite benches purchased by donors and engraved with the names of cancer survivors.

New plantings have revitalized the hillside and include "close to 3,000 new shrubs, ground cover and other plants," says Bill Culhane, VAI spokesperson. "We planted about 35 new trees and added 20 new benches and six new picnic tables. And we added general lighting and accent lighting in the park, where before there was only lighting from nearby street lights."

A central feature is a new circular plaza atop the hillside, overlooking downtown. Flowering walls cascade in steps down the hill below the plaza. When in bloom, the walls will create a living waterfall effect says Culhane.

"The park was donated to the city with the caveat that it always be a park," says Culhane. "It will be used by the VAI scientists and visitors, and historically, it's been heavily used by Spectrum Health staff and by visitors who have loved ones in the hospital, and by GRCC students."
 
The park will open in spring 2010.

Source: Bill Culhane, Van Andel Institute and Culhane & Fahrenkrug Consulting

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

Photograph by Jeff Dykhouse
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Back in 1998 when Grand Rapids' transit system The Rapid set its Mobile Metro 2020 master plan in motion, ridership was 2.9 million trips annually. Today, ridership is 9.3 million trips annually and the initial plan has been implemented 11 years early.

It's time for a new plan and the task force for Mobile Metro 2030 is in place. The Rapid will hold a series of community workshops to get input on what riders and non-riders would like to see in a public transit system in the next five years, 10 to 15 years and 20 years. The first workshop was this week in Wyoming; future workshops will be in Kentwood, East Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids, Grandville and Walker.

"The purpose is to hear input from the community," says Jennifer Kalczuk, The Rapid spokesperson. "We'll do a short presentation, cover existing transit services so people know what it looks like now and talk about what a transit master plan is. If you can't make the meeting in your area, you can go to any of them."

The master plan will look at budget and funding aspects, Kalczuk says. Part of that process is for the task force to conduct peer comparisons with other regions that are similar in size to Grand Rapids, with transit systems similar in size and scope to The Rapid, and to examine how those communities fund their transit systems.

Other factors include an operational analysis and developing a fleet management plan.

Anyone unable to attend a meeting can submit ideas here or at the Project Hotline 616-774-1298.

Source: Jennifer Kalczuk, The Rapid

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.

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As part of a series, Rapid Growth is speaking with nominees of several "best of" categories of the 20th Annual Neighborhood Business Awards, a partnership between Neighborhood Ventures and the Neighborhood Business Alliance that honors businesses across the city that have added to the quality of life in their locales.

2009 Green Award: Clothing Matters, 141 Diamond SE
According to Clothing Matters' founder and owner Marta Swain, this Grand Rapids eco-friendly apparel depot is unlike anything offered across the nation. Customers travel annually from San Francisco, Seattle and Washington D.C. because they can't find sustainable clothing that is responsibly made and offered in the wide variety carried by Clothing Matters.

"They save up their apparel dollars to shop here because they don't have these options," Swain says. "What we've been offering Grand Rapids is way beyond what these cosmopolitan towns have been offering."

The store began in 1998 as Hemp Goods in Eastown, changed to Clothing Matters in 2005 and moved to 141 Diamond two years ago.

Swain carries 33 lines of men's and women's clothing and accessories that are people- and planet-friendly. Swain says the items are responsibly manufactured, high quality goods made from blends of bamboo, soy, organic cotton, hemp and even recycled plastic bottles. Much of the clothing performs throughout the seasons because it is temperature versatile, can be dressed up or down, and holds its shape in a suitcase.

Before starting the store, Swain, 51, spent 20 years teaching businesses how to be more sustainable. That was before "sustainable" was an overused word. But then, and now, she says people didn't think about clothing as part of the sustainable equation.

"In 1994 I learned that cotton was the most heavily treated crop in the world with carcinogenic pesticides and one of the most water intensive crops," she says. "I thought, 'somebody ought to do something' and didn't think it would be me. I researched to see what people were doing as alternatives and discovered the hemp fiber's ten thousand years as food, fuel and fiber around the world. That was a most amazing discovery for me."  

Other nominees are:    

• Brookstone Capital for 101 S. Division
• Fulton Street Farmers Market, 1145 E. Fulton St
• The Green Life Market, 944 East Fulton St
• San Chez - A Tapas Bistro, 38 W Fulton St

Best Nonprofit Project: Oasis of Hope, 522 Leonard NW
For the past two years, an all-volunteer medical clinic on Grand Rapids' West Side has provided health care to uninsured and low-income residents at no cost for services or medication.

Oasis of Hope draws on a pool of about 100 volunteers to operate the clinic, providing urgent care, wellness exams, immunizations, and helps patients manage chronic diseases, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Volunteers include physicians, physicians' assistants, nurses, nurse practitioners, medical assistants and administrative workers.

"My wife was teaching physician's assistants at Western Michigan University's College of Health and Human Services and she had a strong desire to leave academia and get back into clinical medicine in some way where she could serve the underserved," says Dan Grinwis, board of directors' vice president. His wife, Barbara Grinwis, is the executive director and a physician's assistant.

"We joined a small church in the neighborhood and we saw the need in the area and decided to establish Oasis of Hope here," Dan Grinwis says. "We located it here because of the great need here, the people we see have little access to quality healthcare, and the area is designated by the federal government as medically underserved"

Since opening in spring of 2007, Grinwis says Oasis of Hope has offered free medical services on more than 4,000 occasions.

Oasis of Hope is a faith-based organization, but has no affiliations with any church, hospital or government agency.

The clinic has four exam rooms, a laboratory and an education area where patients can attend classes on nutrition, smoking cessation and health care.

Other nominees are:

• Bethany Christian Services, 45 Coldbrook NW
• Cathedral Square of Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids, 360 S Division Ave
• Grand Rapids Community Foundation, 185 Oakes Street SW
• GRPS for Houseman Field, Diamond & Fountain
• Boys and Girls Club - Steil Center, Lincoln Park
• West Grand Neighborhood Organization, 415 Leonard NW
• Western Michigan University, 200 Ionia Ave SW

Rapid Growth is proud to sponsor the People's Choice award in each category of the Neighborhood Business Awards. Click here to cast your online vote for your favorites.

The awards ceremony on November 5 is from 5 to 8 p.m. at Wealthy Theatre. The public is invited.

Source: Marta Swain, Clothing Matters; Dan Grinwis, Oasis of Hope

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.






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When executives of Lambert, Edwards & Associates agreed to co-host an ArtPrize venue at 47 Commerce in downtown Grand Rapids, they had no idea it was about to be the firm's next home.

After logging corporate growth each of the past 10 years, the company now has 25 employees at its headquarters in the National City Bank building. After several office expansions that split office between two floors, the firm was ready for something different.

"We were looking for space for a while, ArtPrize was announced and one of our clients, Adtegrity, is moving into 38 Commerce across the street," says Jeff Lambert, president. "We partnered with Adtegrity and Pioneer Construction to lease the venue for ArtPrize, and then it got on our list of places we'd be interested in moving to."

Although Cornerstone Architects has just begun preliminary design work for the 10,000-square-foot space, Lambert hopes to incorporate covered on-site parking and a roof deck for employees and clients.

The interior will incorporate a mix of enclosed offices and collaborative workspaces. The firm will pursue LEED certification. Lambert expects the building to include a shower, bike rack for employees, alternative power sources and possibly a green roof.

Renovation will run about $500,000. Pioneer Construction will handle the construction.

"We wanted more of a presence for our team, to present a company culture of professional cool," Lambert says. "We're excited to be investing in downtown Grand Rapids and think this will be a great platform for us to continue to grow."

Source: Jeff Lambert, Lambert, Edwards & Associates

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.



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A hip new space where entrepreneurs and other business leaders can gather to collaborate or work independently will open in downtown Grand Rapids on Tuesday, November 3.

The Factory, at 38 W. Fulton on the third floor above San Chez Bistro, is an idea developed by Elevator Up's Aaron Schaap and Mac Fowler. It's an open office concept that allows individual businesses and entrepreneurs to work in a "co-working, nomadic work style," Fowler says, by leasing office space by the month or day.

"Aaron owns Elevator Up and he opened the doors to whoever wanted to come in and work there," Fowler says. "I approached him because I wanted to do this in Grand Rapids, and we looked around and decided to open up the space."

He and Schaap partnered with Turnstone Furniture, which will furnish the space and use it as a living lab of sorts, Fowler says.

"They’re starting to design furniture geared toward 50-person offices, so they’ll bring in furniture to have people test it out, to help them figure out how to design furniture for a co-working space," he says.

The 2,000-square-foot space is outfitted with a mixture of high-top tables, individual desks with chairs, sofas and club chairs, white boards and dedicated wireless. Users can configure the conference room as a classroom or as a traditional boardroom.

"A couple of big tables will seat four to six people and there are a couple of banks of desks that are on wheels," Fowler says. "They can be grouped together or pulled apart so someone can work independently. It's just meant to be flexible."

Leases are $200 a month for unlimited use, or $25 a day drop-in rate.

An open house will be Tuesday, November 3 at 6 p.m.

Source: Mac Fowler, The Factory

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at deborah@rapidgrowthmedia.com.



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