Rochester : In the News

Sustainability isn't cheap. But, really, what is these days? It's an estimated $2.6 million to develop an 8,000-square-foot building into a combination brewpub, organic eatery, and sustainable showplace. It would be the first sustainable restaurant in the country. That place, Mind, Body & Spirits, is looking for a September opening.

Excerpt:

"In a nutshell, it's an organic restaurant that specializes in local and organic products. And our goal is to make it a fully sustainable restaurant, which, if that's the case, will be the first fully sustainable restaurant in the country," Plesz said.

The nearly 8,000-square-foot building was constructed in the 1890s, opened as a dry goods and millinery store and most recently housed an interior design firm, said Ed Kelly, principal with Archiopolis.

It's being retrofitted with new, energy efficient windows and ceiling and attic insulation, a relocated elevator shaft and a three-story stair tower. A 2,000-square-foot addition will house a rooftop patio, greenhouse and new Energy Star kitchen facilities.

Read the entire article here.

People love the superlative. The biggest, strongest, fastest, smallest... putting "-est" on the end of a word really draws attention. With that said, Rochester Hills-based Energy Conversion Devices is helping build the largest solar rooftop in the world... it's the superlative.

Excerpt:

The 12-megawatt system is being installed on GM's assembly plant in Zaragoza, Spain and will become operational in the fall of 2008. ECD will supply the solar laminates through its subsidiary United Solar Ovonic LLC.

When fully operational, the photovoltaic system will have a peak capacity of 12 megawatts, producing as much as 15 million kilowatt hours of "green" energy annually, enough to power approximately 4,500 homes.

Read the entire article here.

RelocateAmerica.com, an online resource for people on the move, released their 11th annual America's Top 100 Places to Live. Plymouth and Rochester made the cut. The list is based on neighborhood details, school performances, rec activities, beauty of the area, and economic growth.

The Web site groups the cities by state, they don't rank them in order - except for the top ten.

The three other cities in Michigan were: Grand Rapids, Traverse City, and Brighton.

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Locally, Plymouth boasts its very own: Symphony, Theatre Players, Historic Old Village, Library Historical Museum, and Farmer's Market (May-October). In the center of the quaint downtown, Kellogg Park hosts concerts and festivals year-round: Fall Festival, International Ice Spectacular, Art in the Park, and The Musical Celebration. Seven public golf courses, as well as a complete range of recreational programs and facilities, are available for all ages, youth through senior adults.

Plymouth has also planned for business growth in a way that lends substance to the area, but does not overshadow the community. A solid base of industrial, research and executive parks ring the area, and retailing thrives. Business growth is in balance with the needs of the community. The markets are here and the surrounding communities are amenable to planned business growth.

Read the entire article on Plymouth here.

As they wont to do each year, the Metro Times has released its annual "Best of Detroit" awards.

Check them out here.

The Metrotimes annual restaurant guide runs the gamut: from coneys to caviar, from haute to simply hot.

Categories include eggs, buffets, steaks and vegetarian-friendly. Check it out here.

Crain's has released its annual "40 in their 40s" list. It includes success stories from all over Southeast Michigan and from numerous industries.

The front page of the feature is here.

The Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association is bringing its Go Solar program to Oakland County, utilizing bulk purchasing methods to lower to cost of solar products for homeowners.

Excerpts:

Program options include a solar domestic hot water system or a one-kilowatt photovoltaic solar electric system or both.

The systems in the Go Solar program are standardized. Therefore, as the contractor continues installing identical systems, they are able
to reduce labor costs. All of this translates into savings for the homeowner.

During 2007, federal tax credits are available to homeowners installing solar electric and solar water heating systems. In addition to savings, program participants get the satisfaction of working with a local business.

Read the entire article here.

The Oakland County Competitive Robotics Competition pits high schoolers against one another in the design and assembly of robots.

Excerpt:

OCCRA generates enthusiasm for technical and academic disciplines such as design, engineering, physics, and electronics. These competitions provide recognition and encouragement for students who devote their energies to these areas of studies. OCCRA participants will also have the opportunity to learn more about the diverse technical career options available in our county and state.

Read the entire article here.

This year marks Woodward's 200th birthday -- and the party starts July 19 at Detroit Historical Museum at 10 am.

More events can be found at Woodward Avenue Action Association's website.

Brian Boyle, metromode's founder and co-publisher, talks about Detroit Renaissance's efforts to retain the region's creative talent in the Detroit News.

Excerpt:

Unfortunately, our creative community is scattered in pockets throughout the region, making it difficult to showcase the true depth of talent and "energy" evident dense creative hubs like Brooklyn, Austin or Seattle.

With creative density as a driving theme, the Road to Renaissance task force will work with the creative community to document and interactively map all creative-related assets in the region.

Visually showing the world the depth of advertising agencies, music venues, video production facilities, architectural wonders and more is an important tool in substantiating our claim as a creative hub.

Read the entire piece here.

Thursday, June 21 is the second annual "Dump the Pump" day that calls for the parking of cars and the riding of public transit as a way of calling attention to the environmental and economic benefits of using public transit.

A transit fact:

From 1995 through 2006, public transportation ridership increased by 30 percent, a growth rate higher than the 12 percent increase in US population and higher than the 24 percent growth in use of the nation's highways over the same period.

Find out more here.

Oakland University will host Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition June 8-11 and Oakland Robotics Association will compete in the contest.

Excerpt:

The OSA robot from the host university will compete against teams from around the world in four challlenge areas.

In the design challenge, students defend their design report in front of a panel of industry professionals and faculty members who serve as judges.

The robot must also compete in the navigation challenge and autonomous challenge, in which the vehicle must navigate on a track on its own.

The newest challenge, joint automated unmanned systems, is a requirement in which the vehicle must be set up so the judges can control it remotely.

Read the entire article here.

The Oakland Land Conservancy will host its annual native plant sale on June 3 in Auburn Hills and in Oxford.

A special purchase is a 32-plant balanced butterfly and bird garden, which is available as a package for $64.

Find out more at oaklandlandconservancy.org

AT&T has announced an IP-based TV, voice and data service to launch in the Detroit area, the first of its kind.

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"It's an IP network for the home, and on that IP network wlll be a variety of applications, one of which is television," said Jennifer Jones, AT&T vice president and general manager for Michigan.

Jones also assured GLITR that the service will provide local cable access channels to schools and communities -- although those schools and communities must take the initiative to send their content to AT&T for display on TV channels.

Read the entire article here.

Michigan's tourism website, Michigan.org, was the busiest in the nation in April, according to web trackers at Hitwise.

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"We view this as a clear and important signal that people are looking to Michigan for their leisure travel," said George Zimmermann, vice president of Travel Michigan. "We know from independent research that 65 percent of consumers who use Michigan.org for tourism information, then travel to and within Michigan. So more web traffic means more business at Michigan destinations. We believe our efforts inside and outside of Michigan are making a substantial difference."

Read the entire article here.