New Center : Detroit Development News

Stella International Café inside the Fisher Building in New Center has gone through a major renovation and rebranding.
 
Now called "Stella Good Coffee," the café – owned by Shawn Santo and Kevin Borsay, owners of Pure Detroit, Rowland Café, a second Stella location inside the Guardian Building, and Vera Jane (a women's clothing store) – will focus on all things Detroit, starting with the design.
 
After closing last fall, the space was stripped down to bare walls and floor, grinding away layers of concrete to reveal the original Albert Kahn-produced floor from 1928 (which has a slightly different design than the floor of the main lobby, also original). Santo and Borsay oversaw all of the renovation work themselves, working closely with James Willer of Reclaim Detroit on material sourcing and design. They also worked with local companies and artists on the fixtures, including lamp shades from the Detroit Wallpaper Company (which will feature the designs of local artists and will be rotated regularly) and a white neon sign that reads "Drink Good Coffee" from Spectrum Neon Sign Company.
 
The redesign also allows for more seating inside the café, which will have free WiFi, and additional seating will be available in the Fisher lobby.
 
In addition to a new look, a new name, and a new logo (a complicated geometric figure with a long technical name that includes the word "stella," also known as the "Moravian star"), Stella Good Coffee will have a whole new approach to their products. Instead of the quick grab-and-go coffee shop they were previously known as, they will offer only pour-over coffees, which take longer but, as Borsay says, "is worth it." They will also have loose-leaf teas, soups from Russell Street Deli, and baked goods from Avalon Breads and Traffic Jam & Snug.
 
Stella Good Coffee is celebrating a "soft" opening this week, with a grand opening coming later this spring.
 
Source: Kevin Borsay and Shawn Santo, owners of Stella Good Coffee
Writer: Nicole Rupersburg

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Anew Life Prosthetics & Orthotics is putting the finishing touches on the renovation of the Albert Kahn-designed Detroit Savings Bank Branch #3 at Woodward and Milwaukee. The company launched in 2011 as a mobile operation with partners Chris Casteel and Paul Cauley working out of their cars with their equipment and supplies stored in far-flung locations throughout metro Detroit. They knew they wanted to locate their offices (with lab and equipment) in the city, and after a previous deal fell through they found the building at 6438 Woodward in December 2011. Within two weeks they owned it.
 
Anew Life provides artificial limbs and braces to those who need them. While this does include a small percentage of trauma cases, the majority of their clients suffer from vascular disease and diabetes. They see their clients through the whole process, starting with visiting them in the hospital post-surgery, casting them, making molds and testing the prosthesis, then making the final prosthesis that will last for three to five years. "I love seeing people return to life and thrive," says Casteel, who also runs a support group for amputees.
 
The renovated Detroit Savings Bank building will be home to Anew's offices, a lab where the devices will be built, and a physical therapy gym for recovering patients. They are also completing renovations that will make the building ADA accessible and are awaiting certifications that will enable them to bill Medicare and Medicaid for their patients. 
 
Built as a bank branch, the building has previously been used as a church and a nightclub, among other things. Renovation work included gutting much of the interior, though Casteel says they are "trying to save as much Albert Kahn as we can." Casteel and Cauley were working out of the building during the renovation, and are now at a point where they are able to start accepting patients.
 
Anew's offices, storage, and lab don't quite fill up the whole space, so they have made their basement available to Burners Without Borders, where Danielle "Doxie" Kaltz is able to store all her supplies to assemble backpacks of hygiene and emergency items for the homeless. "We want to help support everything local," Casteel says.
 
Source: Chris Casteel, co-owner of Anew Life Prosthetics & Orthotics
Writer: Nicole Rupersburg

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Detroit has a new player in the automotive manufacturing field: Detroit Electric, a revival of the iconic electric vehicle brand first launched in 1906.
 
Detroit Electric produced about 13,000 electric cars before it closed in 1939. In 2008, the brand was revived by Albert Lam, former group CEO of the Lotus Engineering Group and executive director of Lotus Cars of England.

On April 3, the company unveiled its first production car, the SP:01. The SP:01 is the fastest pure-electric sports car in production and is the only pure-electric sports car being built in Detroit. Production will start in August and the cars will be on the street by the end of the year. Only 999 of the SP:01 will be made and it will cost $135,000. Detroit Electric will follow up the SP:01 with higher-production (and more affordable) sedan and hatchback models in 2014.
 
Lam wants Detroit Electric to be the company that offers drivers the everyday electric driving experience they desire. He hopes to grow from 10,000-40,000 cars in production over the next several years in the worldwide market. "We're trying to be realistic," he says. "We're not trying to be GM. We just want to make a product people love."
 
Detroit Electric will establish its corporate headquarters on the 18^th floor of the Fisher Building in New Center. This space is currently undergoing renovation; they are launching with six employees in the temporary space inside the Fisher Building, then will increase to 25-30 people once the permanent space is ready. They are also in the final stages of acquiring an assembly facility in an as-yet-unnamed location in Wayne County (this will be one of only two assembly sites worldwide; the other will be in Europe). The assembly facility will employ about 20 people initially. The company's long-term plans also include a research and development center for electric drive trains. All combined, Detroit Electric will eventually create about 300 new jobs.
 
Source: Albert Lam, Chairman and CEO of Detroit Electric Holdings Ltd. and Don Graundstadt, CEO of Detroit Electric North America Operations

Writer: Nicole Rupersburg

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Perhaps you have seen the new sign atop the building U-Haul is renovating into its latest full-service location? Or a few of the upper floors lit up at night showing off doors painted in bright orange while driving by on the Lodge Freeway? If so you have seen the most recent progress of one of the greater downtown Detroit area's largest redevelopment projects.

The moving company bought the former Nabisco Building in New Center (899 W Baltimore St.) last summer and has been slowly but surely rehabbing the 250,000-square-foot structure into its first full-service center in Detroit. The new location, set to open this spring, will feature everything from truck and trailer rentals to storage space.

"One year from now we will have a gorgeous truck, trailer and storage business going there," says Stuart Shoen, executive vice president of U-Haul. "I am just very optimistic for the area."

For now, Detroiters are going to have to settle for the encouraging new visual cues on the building's crown and updates from the company's blog about the work. Workers (three U-Haul employees and about 20 construction workers) are currently focusing on finishing the renovation of the showroom and getting the basics of the rest of the building to come on.

"It's finally starting to look like a retail space," Shoen says. "The building needed a lot of fundamental improvement. It took us longer to get the water and the electricity on than we thought. The windows weren't level in the showroom. This building needed a lot of work in every facet."

National Biscuit Co (or Nabisco today) built the structure in the 1920s as a bakery. It has been vacant for several years before U-Haul purchased it to service Detroit's growing population.

"In a few years, we will be contemplating building more," Shoen says. "That's our hope and expectation."

Source: Stuart Shoen, executive vice president of U-Haul
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

The journey of bringing a streetcar line back to Woodward Avenue in Detroit bears more resemblance to a roller coaster than a tram in recent years. But feel free to breathe a sigh of relief, Detroit. The train is about to pull into the station. Bet on it.

Friday's press conference announcing the final piece of funding needed for the M-1 Rail project, connecting Jefferson Avenue to Grand Boulevard, offered a lot of optimism and back slapping.

The U.S. Secretary of Transportation is giving $25 million in federal funds for the M-1 Rail and another $6 million to get the newly created regional transit authority off the ground. However, a few other key people in the audience of Friday's press conference were equally confident about the project.

M-1 Rail calls for creating a 3.4-mile-long streetcar line mostly along the outer lanes of Woodward Avenue. It will have 11 stops: at Congress Street, the northern tip of Campus Martius, the southern tip of Grand Circus Park, the Fox Theatre, Sibley Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Canfield Street, Warren Avenue, Ferry Street, the Amtrak train station in New Center and Grand Boulevard. More than $100 million for the project has been raised from private, philanthropic and government sources.

Matt Cullen, CEO of M-1 Rail, says the creation of the regional transit authority was the last major hurdle for giving the green light to the project. He expects the final engineering work and construction bidding to be done in the first half of this year. Construction will begin late this summer and take two years to complete.

Megan Owens, executive director of the transit-advocate non-profit Transportation Riders United, echoes Cullen's words and optimism. She adds that drills for the project will go into the ground before shovels. "They're going to start boring to find out of there is anything in the way in the ground," Owens says.

She adds that the $25 million is the last foreseeable major hurdle for the project. M-1 Rail has funding for both construction and operation for the next several years. It won't be impacted by the regional transit authority's efforts to establish a funding source. That means that even though M-1 Rail and the regional transit authority were joined at the hip to land the federal funding, they will independently establish themselves in the next few years. The plan is to bring the two back together when they become established.

"The hope is in 7-10 years the RTA (regional transit authority) will take over," Owens says.

Source: Matt Cullen, CEO of M-1 Rail and Megan Owens, executive director of Transportation Riders United
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Shelborne Development is in the midst of rehabbing two significant historic apartment buildings in New Center and is set to transform the block of Seward Street between Woodward and Second avenues with renovations.

The renovations promise to turn some of the biggest, blighted structures in New Center into vibrant buildings filled with new residents. When it's all said and done, the rehabs will bring well in excess of 100 new rental units to the northern tip of the greater downtown area.

"I have always loved that block of Seward," says Kathy Makino-Leipsitz, co-owner of Shelborne Development. "It is one of the prettiest blocks of multi-units in the city. Hopefully, we will be able to turn that block into what it used to be."

The Indian Village-based development firm is the driving force behind the renovation spree taking place in Palmer Park. Its rehabs have expertly leveraged tax credits and other incentives to turn the Art Deco beauties into high-quality rentals that include energy-efficient systems and appliances, insulation, stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops, among other amenities. These rehabs go the extra mile to preserve the historical character of the buildings, which are often chosen in large part because of the architectural beauty.

Makino-Leipsitz plans to do the same thing with at least half a dozen of the apartment buildings in New Center, most of which are vacant and have fallen into disrepair. The first two, which are currently under renovation, are 112 Seward and 628 Delaware.

The apartment building at 112 Seward is called the Birchmont Apartments. It stands as a 3.5-story building with a blond-brick facade and is just east of the 120 Seward condo building. It will house 31 units that include 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom apartments. 628 Delaware is a tudor-style structure that stands four stories overlooking New Center Commons Park just west of Second Avenue.

"That Delaware apartment building is a beautiful building," Makino-Leipsitz says. "It will be 18 units when we're done."

Both buildings, each about 100 years old, are set to come online in August and fully occupied by the end of the year. They will bring 49 units of workforce housing to the rental market. The buildings previously housed 54 units. The developers redesigned the units to offer bigger spaces with more rooms.

Shelborne Development also owns 59, 69, 90, 93, and 100 Seward, which are all high-density apartment buildings on the first block of Seward west of Woodward. The firm has already renovated 93 Seward and plans to renovate 90 and 100 Seward as market-rate rentals next. It recently acquired 59 and 69 Seward, which have long been problem buildings with out-of-town ownership, and plans to renovate those, too, within the next few years.

Source: Kathy Makino-Leipsitz, co-owner of Shelborne Development
Writer: Jon Zemke

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The options for traveling up and down Woodward Avenue are about to grow significantly.

The Michigan State Senate recently passed a series of bills that would establish a regional transit authority that would oversee the construction and operation of a light rail line on Woodward between Jefferson Avenue and Grand Boulevard. It would also oversee the construction and operation of a bus rapid transit systems along the rest of Woodward and across the region. The State House of Representatives is reportedly expected to take up the bills within the coming days.

Working in parallel in those efforts are series of community meetings envisioning what rapid transit along Woodward Avenue could look like and what local residents want to see happen. The meetings are being hosted by the Michigan Suburbs Alliance, Woodward Avenue Action Association and SEMCOG, which is creating a Woodward rapid transit alternatives analysis that will work in parallel with the proposed regional transit authority.

"This is an attempt to create a rapid transit system on Woodward Avenue," says Richard Murphy, programs director of the Michigan Suburbs Alliance. "We're looking at the entire length from Jefferson Avenue to Pontiac."

Among the issues that will be discussed are which mode of transit works best for the Woodward corridor (light rail or bus rapid transit), how such a system should be funded and whether it should have dedicated lanes or mixed in with traffic.

The meetings will be be held along the Woodward corridor. The Detroit meetings will be held today (Tuesday, Dec. 4) at SEMCOG offices in downtown Detroit (535 Griswold St, Suite 300) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at the Detroit Police Dept's Central District (7310 Woodward) from 4-6 p.m. Another one will be held on Dec. 11 at the Detroit Police Dept's Palmer Park Station (12th Precinct, 1441 W. 7 Mile Road).

Source: Richard Murphy, programs director of the Michigan Suburbs Alliance
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Avalon International Breads has long been a staple of the Cass Corridor but it's now becoming a staple in other Detroit neighborhoods.

The artisanal bakery launched in 1997 and steadily built itself into the anchor business near the corner of Cass Avenue and West Willis Street in Midtown. It has since garnered national attention for its breads and goodies made of organic and sometimes vegan-friendly ingredients. Its small storefront at 422 W. Willis is routinely packed with customers and employees making food 24 hours a day to meet demand.

That success prompted Avalon to begin searching for a new space to facilitate its expansion a few years ago. It has now opened a retail outlet at Henry Ford Hospital in New Center, is looking to expand its Midtown presence and is in the process of opening a much bigger production facility on the Near East Side not far from the Packard Plant.

"We have been over capacity for quite some time, at least since 2008," says Ann Perrault, co-owner & CEO of Avalon.

The new production facility is Avalon City Ovens, a $2.2 million project turning a dilapidated industrial building into a state-of-the-art bakery. Avalon bought the old warehouse at 6555 E. Forrest Ave. (near Bellevue Street) at the 2010 Wayne County Tax Foreclosure Auction. The 50,000-square-foot building is a major upgrade from its 3,000 square-foot-storefront in Midtown. Perrault expects to open the new facility in January.

That project comes not long after Avalon opened its second retail location last summer in the West Grand Boulevard building of Henry Ford Hospital. That space offers all of the foods Avalon is known for and employs six workers. Avalon now employs 55 people after hiring 14 since February.

Avalon is also looking at expanding its Midtown presence in 2013. Perrault says her firm is looking at moving its storefront from its existing space on Willis to a newer space on West Canfield Street next to Traffic Jam & Snug. That move is set to move forward next spring after the Avalon City Ovens project is complete. The new space will be consistent with Avalon's longstanding pledge to remaining a part of the Cass Corridor/Midtown community.

"This is definitely important to us," Perrault says.

Source: Ann Perrault, co-owner & CEO of Avalon International Breads
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

If both art and beauty are in the eye of the beholder, how long should that shelf life last when it comes to public art?

As Detroit becomes a bigger and bigger canvas that attracts more and more street artists, the works often draw both praise and criticism. However, as time and the artists move on, their work stays. More often than not it deteriorates and becomes a part of the blight it was often meant to stand in stark contrast with.

Not so with Hopscotch Detroit. The 3.75 mile installation lined the sidewalks of the Lower Woodward Corridor between Campus Martius and Wayne State University's campus. Ajooni Seth, Dylan Box, Ellen Rutt and Laura Willming partnered with Imagine Detroit Together to create the hopscotch trail in late September.

The group of young people used an organic paint made of water, corn starch, flour and sugar. They tested for a few months beforehand to make sure it would wash away within a few weeks. Much of the paint has already faded and disappeared entirely in some spots a few days after the installation was finished.

"The idea is having a temporary piece of art like this living in the moment," Willming says. "Hop now because if it rains within the next week you won't be able to."

Source: Laura Willming, co-creator of Hopscotch Detroit
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Reclaim Detroit is starting to make multiple visible impacts across the Motor City.

The deconstruction/recycling program run by the WARM Training Center finds a new use for just about all of the materials from buildings that would normally be razed and sent to a landfill. It used century-old wood recycled from a deconstructed home in Hamtramck to build out the interior of Great Lakes Coffee Roasting House in Midtown. Reclaim Detroit has been hired to renovate the Stella International Cafe in the Fisher Building in a similar way.

"It will use reclaimed materials but if will have our own unique style," says Kevin Borsay, co-owner of Stella International Cafe. "Wood can have many different looks."

Work has begun on the small coffee house in New Center and is expected to be wrapped up by October. Reclaim Detroit will use a wide variety of recycled building materials and unearth the space's original terrazzo flooring.

"It's going to look more modern, more design-centric," Borsay says.

Stella International Cafe employs five people and plans to hire two more when it reopens in October. It is also looking at making some upgrades with Reclaim Detroit to its Guardian Building location in downtown.

Source: Kevin Borsay, co-owner of Stella International Cafe
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Momentum appears to be building for the M-1 Rail proposal that would bring a streetcar line to Woodward Avenue in the greater downtown Detroit area.

Matt Cullen, CEO of M-1 Rail, bubbled with confidence about the project while speaking to a group of young people at the presentation of [de-fine] Detroit competition last week. To him, M-1 Rail is a matter of when, and he expects to get the green light for it soon.

"M-1 Rail is going to happen," Cullen says. "We're going to get that done."

This coincides with a number of other reports in local media that the proposed streetcar line is close getting federal approval. The Detroit News reported earlier this month that U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood expects to a very good announcement regarding funding the project soon. Other local news reports have a regional transportation authority to run the streetcar line also in the offing.

A number of local corporate and philanthropic leaders have come together to raise more than $100 million to fund the 3-mile streetcar line. The proposal calls for building a light rail system along Woodward Avenue between Jefferson Avenue and Grand Boulevard. The privately raised money will act as the local match to leverage public funds from the federal government for the streetcar line and a regional bus rapid transit system.

M-1 Rail has been several years in the making and has come close to breaking ground a few times in recent years before suffering minor setbacks. Cullen believes those setbacks are behind the project and M-1 Rail's efforts is close to coming to fruition.

"You would have thought it would easier to hand somebody a $125 million check," Cullen says.

Source: Matt Cullen, CEO of M-1 Rail
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

U-Haul is staking a claim in Detroit by opening an office in one of the city's most visible buildings.

U-Haul bought the former Nabisco Building in New Center, which stands vigil next to the Lodge Freeway just south of West Grand Boulevard. The moving company is renovating the seven-story structure at 899 W. Baltimore St. so it can become a full-service moving and storage center.

"There is a lot of work internally that needs to be done," says Stuart Shoen, executive vice president of U-Haul. "For instance, we need to get water and power throughout the building."

U-Haul expects to have the space ready for truck, trailer and moving supplies by this winter. It has a long-term ambition of turning the entire building into a full-service station that offers both trailer and truck rentals and storage space in the structure's 250,000 square feet. The U-Haul office will employ about 10 people when it opens later this year. That staff has the potential to grow exponentially as it continues to build out the storage portion of the building.

The circa-1920 building was originally built as a bakery for the National Biscuit Co, which is now Nabisco. The building has been vacant for several years before U-Haul purchased it this summer and began renovations. U-Haul is taking on the project with long-term intentions to take advantage of the burgeoning growth in the greater downtown Detroit area.

"We know that we're going to be there for a long time," Shoen says. "We want to fulfill our obligation to the community."

Source: Stuart Shoen, executive vice president of U-Haul International
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

For the Farbman Group, "chartreuse" represents more than the color green. Chartreuse is a pop-up dining experience held at various locations. This month, it'll take place at the Fisher Building.  
 
Corrine Rice, a certified raw and vegan chef is hosting the event to create "a memorable culinary social movement that exists briefly and disappears immediately, as if It were a dream."
 
The evening will feature a four-course all vegan meal with menu items including an Asian-salad, crab cakes, jalapeno-watermelon gazpacho and an almond nougatine. Tuesday is the last day to visit the Fisher Building or New Center building to win tickets to the pop-up dining experience.
 
Live entertainment is part of the event and a video crew from American Hipster Presents will film the meal for its YouTube documentary series.
 
"Farbman Group is committed to doing our part to support the creative entrepreneurs that make Detroit a one-of-a kind place to live and work," said Farbman. "Guests will get to experience the grandeur of the Fisher Building while enjoying a culinary experience that is unmatched."
 
The pop-up dining experience is Friday June 22 at 7 p.m. in the Fisher Building. Tickets are $50 and must be purchased by Tuesday, June 19 (that's today) at chartreusedetroit.com. 

Source: Andrea Trapani 
Writer: Leah Johnson 

Wayne State University's nascent Zipcar fleet is growing fast, doubling in size since launching last fall.

The fleet started with two cars and has added two more thanks to rising demand for the car-sharing service. Zipcars are available to university students, staff and residents of the greater downtown Detroit area.

"Car sharing is a great alternative for our students," says Kate Baker, senior project manager for economic development at Wayne State University. "We have students combine their trips with Zipcars, going on one big trip to the grocery store and it costs a few dollars."

Also in alternative transportation options in the greater downtown Detroit area is the pending addition of bigger cars for the Amtrak's Wolverine Line which runs between Detroit and Chicago. The Wolverine Line will received 25 bi-level rail cars as part of a larger federal purchase of train cars.

The bi-level cars will allow for more passengers than what the current single-level cars can accommodate. It will also offer Wi-Fi and space for bicycles. These car are already used elsewhere through the country, such as California.

Source: U.S. Dept of Transportation and Kate Baker, senior project manager for economic development at Wayne State University
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Life is about to get easier for pedestrians in Midtown and New Center around Wayne State University as the latest phase of construction begins for the Midtown Loop and Second and Third avenues become two-way streets.

Work is set to begin today on turning Second Avenue into a two-way street between I-94 and West Grand Boulevard in New Center. A similar project for Third Avenue between Ledyard and Forrest streets is set to break ground on Monday. Both streets are multi-lane, one-way thoroughfares that cut through Wayne State University's campus. The hope is to ease traffic flow and slow down motorists.

"Hopefully this will help in several ways in slowing traffic down," says Jon Frederick, director of parking & transportation services at Wayne State University. "You are consolidating lanes and making motorists more aware with the addition of on-coming traffic."

Second Avenue will receive new LED street lighting. Third Avenue will receive bike lanes in both directions and maintain parking on both sides of the street. Work is expected to wrap up in mid July.

The second phase of the Midtown Loop construction began in mid-April on the southern edge of the loop, turning a square of sidewalks along Cass, Kirby Street, John R and Canfield into a pedestrian friendly space with colorful sidewalks, benches, bike racks, landscaping and decorative lighting, among other amenities.

Source: Midtown Detroit Inc. and Jon Frederick, director of parking & transportation services at Wayne State University
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.