Development News

Your Creative Escape triples space with new downtown Eaton Rapids location

Traci Lawson, Your Creative Escape Wednesday, May 09, 2012

After being a stay-at-home mom for some time, Traci Lawson was itching to get back into the working world. One day, while driving through downtown Eaton Rapids, she saw a sign on a vacant storefront that said “For Lease, $700 per month.”

“I said to my husband, ‘I think I can sell $700 of something in a month,’” Lawson says.

She was right. Lawson and her husband Jaime opened Your Creative Escape, a paint-your-own-pottery studio in March of 2011 and received such a positive response, they were running out of room.

“We could seat 49 people in that store and we were very often full to the gills,” Lawson says. “I hated turning people away.”

Exactly one year after opening, Your Creative Escape has moved to a 3,000 square foot studio on Hall Street in downtown Eaton Rapids, tripling the business’ original footprint. Lawson attributes their extraordinary growth to the community atmosphere that has grown in the studio.

“It’s like a big conversation,” says Lawson, “and there’s lots of laugher. It’s a fun environment. There are many people who didn’t know each other before and now it’s like a big family.”

Your Creative Escape is also a fun alternative to going to the bar for many local adults. The pottery studio is open until midnight on Fridays and features such fun events as Diva Night. The studio is currently working with the Island City Dog Park Club on a community fundraiser.

Mason church builds $1.7M recreation center for community

Gerhard Weigelt, Mason Church of the Nazarene Wednesday, May 09, 2012

The idea began more than 15 years ago, and slowly but surely, the Mason First Church of the Nazarene has worked to raise funds and construct a 17,000 square foot Recreational Outreach Center for the community.

“We started by asking the question, ‘What does the community need?’” says Lead Pastor for Mason First Church of the Nazarene Gerhard Weigelt. “We have a strong concern for the youth of today and wanted to provide strong places for the youth to develop.”

The new Recreational Outreach Center intends to do just that. Located on the church’s 45 acre property on West Dansville Road in Mason, the center includes a basketball court, computer lab, warming kitchen and large youth room. Weigelt says the church hopes to add a fitness room in the future.

“Our tagline is ‘Rock Solid Fun,’” says Weigelt. “We’re excited about the journey we’re on and serving the community. We’re having a blast.”

The approximately $1.7 million project broke ground in 2007, though fundraising began way back when the idea first developed 15 years ago. The congregation is raising all of the funds through donations above and beyond their regular giving to the church.

The Recreational Outreach Center opened for use this spring. The church will continue to develop the property, looking first to outfit the computer lab with 10 to 15 workstations and tutoring services for students. Weigelt says the church has discussed adding outdoor baseball fields and other facilities to the property in the future.

New Williamston Bead Works opens in Keller's Plaza

Carol Lacca, Williamston Bead Works Wednesday, May 09, 2012

Keller’s Plaza in Williamston is quickly becoming a crafter’s paradise. Most recently, Williamston Bead Works, a new beading store, has opened in one of the upstairs suites, joining a handful of other craft businesses.

“The ten different suites are all rented now,” says Carol Lacca, owner of Williamston Bead Works of Keller’s Plaza. “It surprised me when I got here it had so much. There is a lot of traffic up here now.”

Beginning in April, all of those visitors have the chance to buy beads, beaded crafts, jewelry supplies and would also be able to take beading classes in Lacca’s new business. After teaching art and science for 30 years, Lacca put her energy into a new art form: beading. She sold her beadwork at a number of places and finally decided it was time to open a store of her own.

“I couldn’t believe it, but I realized I had enough bead in my house to make a store out of,” she says. “I have all kinds of beads from the seed bead to the big beads and semi-precious stones.”

In her 223 square foot store, Lacca offers classes, lectures, workshops and individual tutoring on beading. The former teacher especially loves working with kids and hopes her shop inspires more young people to enjoy beading.

Developer works with community to create a $6.8M housing project, generate two jobs

Scott Gillespie, Gillespie Company Wednesday, May 09, 2012

Scott Gillespie had already decided that the Genesee Neighborhood was a good place to invest in a new housing development, but he didn’t think his opinion was the only one that mattered. While developing the plans for what is now a $6.8 million housing project, Gillespie reached out to the existing neighborhood residents to find out how they might envision their community to grow.

“I’ve engaged the neighborhood association, I’ve had three community forums,” Gillespie says. “We’ve sat down and I’ve presented the project to them and taken in their feedback, questions and concerns. I’ve made a number of adjustments to the development plans to accommodate their concerns, and because of that, we have a better plan.”

The development will include three, three-story buildings that will include approximately 90 new apartments. Gillespie is working through the approval process now and hopes to begin construction by this fall.

“I think it’s a great location for a variety of reasons,” Gillespie says. “It’s a very short walking distance of downtown, and it has enough space for large, continuous area of park land. We’ll have over two acres of open park land within the development.”

According to Gillespie, this will be a positive thing for the entire neighborhood. His plans include moving the density of the apartments to the southern portion of the site to the northern boarder of the neighborhood as undisturbed as possible, including preserving most of the site’s existing trees. Gillespie estimates the development will create two permanent property management jobs.

Crosaires offers aging adults a new lifestyle in Williamston, creates four jobs

Todd Walter, Crosaires Wednesday, May 09, 2012

By the time Todd Walter opened his first aging community residence in Williamston last month, he already had 18 years of experience serving older adults under his belt. Inspired by his own grandmother’s aging process, Walter has become a leader in progressive eldercare advocacy projects in the state of Michigan and around the country.

“I’ve been involved in a culture change movement,” Walter says. “We’ve been trying to get people to look at this stage of life differently.”

Walter recently celebrated the culmination of those years of advocacy with the opening of Crosaires, a 2,800 square foot home for aging adults on North Zimmer Road in Williamston.

“This has always been a dream of mine to come back full circle to honor my grandmother in this way,” Walter says. “I’ve always had a desire to own my own place.”

Crosaires will not only be the home to six elderly adults, but will also serve as an opportunity for the community members to interact with his residents and vice versa. In addition to regular visits to events and businesses in Downtown Williamston, Walter will invite community groups to garden, enjoy firepits, stargaze and more with his residents.

“It’s an environment where they’re involved with the community,” says Walter. “They’re not just tucked away getting medical treatment.”

Crosaires’ first resident moved in on April 4. Walter currently employs four staff members at the new home.

Carlos and Jorge's to bring Latin dishes to Eastwood Towne Center, add 50 jobs

Chuck Senatore, Carlos & Jorge's Wednesday, May 09, 2012

This fall, the diversity of food options available in the Eastwood Towne Center will expand into Latin America and beyond with Carlos and Jorge’s. The new restaurant is one of four underway by developer Chuck Senatore.

“It will be a truly Latin concept with food from around Latin America and Europe,” says Senatore. “Most are just Mexican, or just tapas, but we’ll roll it all into one.”

The 5,000 square foot Carlos and Jorge’s will have a menu that is about 40 percent Mexican food, as well as Spanish, Cuban and more.

“Everything will be made from scratch,” says Senatore. “That’s something that really sets us apart.”

Sentatore expects to hire about 50 new employees to staff Carlos and Jorge’s. The restaurant is slated to open in September or October.

Blue Gill Grill adds retractable glass walls, 12 new staff members

Denise Warner, Blue Gill Grill Wednesday, May 09, 2012

There’s always something new going on at Haslett’s Blue Gill Grill. Two years ago, it was the addition of an upstairs patio; this year, it’s making the entire bar feel like a patio. The bar recently tore down its three outside walls and replaced them with glass garage doors.

“We added this to make it more of a Floridian, Caribbean flavor,” says owner Denise Warner. “We’re always keeping up with the times, constantly changing. We need to have people go, ‘Oh!’ when they come in.”

The new atmosphere at the Blue Gill Grill is certainly with the exclamation. With the glass doors retracted, the entire bar is now open and breezy. "Even with the doors closed," says Warner, "the added sunlight makes for an entirely new experience." In addition to the new doors, Blue Gill Grill also added a new restaurant in the bar as well as a new wall to separate the dining and bar areas.

In addition to the physical growth, the bar and restaurant has recently added 12 new staff members. Warner also adds that they employed all Michigan contractors to complete the work.

“We buy Michigan and local as often as we can,” says Warner. “If we can find anything in Michigan, we’ll get it here.”

MSU College of Nursing's $17.6M Bott Building nearly complete

Jill M. Vondrasek, MSU College of Nursing Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Michigan State University's College of Nursing is growing – in all sorts of ways. The college's new $17.6 million Bott Building for Nursing Education and Research is now 70 percent complete.

“Program expansion, increased numbers of students and growth of research programs have all led to a need for additional space for the College of Nursing at Michigan State University,” says Jill M. Vondrasek of MSU’s College of Nursing.

All that growth is needed. After its grand opening set for November 2, the new facility will help the school pursue research endeavors and help the state address its nursing shortage with new programs.

“As we look forward to new growth opportunities, the college will begin accepting applications for our new Doctor of Nursing Practice Program in the fall,” Vondrasek says.

The three-story, 50,000 square foot Bott Building will pursue LEED certification once complete. It will be the first on MSU’s campus to use ground-source geothermal energy for heating and cooling. The project was funded in part by lead donor the Timothy and Bernadette Marquez Foundation, which committed $7 million to the project. Another $7.45 million was contributed by a stimulus funding grant from the National Institutes of Health to support nursing research, which was the largest competitive federal stimulus grant MSU received.

“The Bott Building for Nursing Education and Research is a symbol of nursing excellence that honors the legacy of our distinguished faculty and alumni,” says Vondrasek, “many of whom have dedicated their lives to improving health outcomes.”

Gillespie Group pursues plan for 60,000 sq ft mixed use Midtown development

Jason Kildea, Gillespie Group Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Though many steps are required before the project is certain, the Gillespie Group recently presented plans to the Lansing City Council for a mixed-use development at the location of the former Silver Dollar Saloon on Michigan Avenue.

"It’s the very early stages, but we’re hoping to put it all together,” says Jason Kildea, director of commercial real estate for the Gillespie Group.

The plan presented is for a four-story, 60,000-65,000 square foot building with 57 apartment units and two commercial spaces. Kildea says the Gillespie Group is currently looking at a financial user for one of the commercial spaces. The development is currently called Midtown.

The Gillespie Group purchased the property from the Ingham County Land Bank for $400,000. According to Kildea, the location made the property a good opportunity for the development firm.

“It’s the best of all worlds,” he says. “It’s in the City of Lansing, it’s close the boarder of MSU and it has high visibility on the main thoroughfare. We thought it was a nice location.”

The Gillespie Group is now approval process for a special land use permit to building a flood plain. If granted approval, they’ll move on to working with the Department of Environmental Quality.

“It’s very early on yet,” Kildea says. “We don’t know if it’s a real project right now, but we’re excited to be working on it.”

Apex Accounting moves into 1,000 sq ft East Lansing office

Jim Baxter, Apex Accounting Services Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Now that tax season is officially over, local accounting firm Apex Accounting Services has made a move that will place the business closer to core clientele. The firm, which has been in operation since 1996, moved into an approximately 1,000 square foot office in the Hanna Technology Research Center on South Hagadorn in East Lansing.

“I have a lot of MSU professors as clients, and a lot of other clients in the MSU and Lansing area,” say Apex owner Jim Baxter. “It’s a nice, new building, and there’s plenty of free parking out front.”

In the new location, Baxter and his team will continue to sharpen their focus on servicing non-profit and corporate returns. Apex currently serves nearly 1000 clients, offering payroll, tax and accounting services.

The Dowry bridal shop moves into 2,700 sq ft Grand Ledge space

Michelle Lantz, The Dowry Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Couples often have serendipitous stories about how their romantic relationship came together. The same is appropriately true for business partners Michelle Lantz and Emily Archer, whose new business, The Dowry, is all about romance.

“I had been talking about and planning to opening a bridal shop for about 18 months,” says Lantz, “and she has been on the sort of same timeline.”

Though they only met a couple of months ago, the Grand Ledge women found their entrepreneurial aspirations to be a perfect match. Lantz had recently purchased 750 wedding gowns, and Archer was looking for inventory to stock her future bridal consignment shop.”

“She found out I had all that merchandise, and she realized she didn’t have to stock more inventory,” says Lantz.

The Dowry will be opening on May 1 in Downtown Grand Ledge and will celebrate a grand opening during the city’s Victorian Festival. The 2,700 square foot location will feature new, consignment and rental attire for brides, grooms and their wedding parties.

“Women are realizing that their daughters aren’t going to want to wear their wedding dresses, so they’re getting rid of them,” says Lantz. “We’re also doing gown rental for brides and bridesmaids, which is something that used to be common back in my mom’s mom’s generation.”

Lantz says that Grand Ledge is the perfect location for a bridal store, as the town has become a wedding destination for hundreds of couples every year.

Dart Foundation expands into Armory, plans to add staff

Claudia Deschaine, Dart Foundation Wednesday, May 02, 2012

The continued growth of Dart Container is good for more than just Mason. The Dart Foundation, which is a family foundation established by the Darts, is growing as well. With both organizations taking up additional space, the Dart Foundation has recently moved from their Mason facilities into a new, 558-square foot office in the Marshall Street Armory.

“The move gives us a better chance to collaboration with other funders,” says Dart Foundation Grants Manager Claudia Deschaine. “There is a movement with many of the local foundations to come together and get behind projects together, and being here makes that easier.”

The new location also makes it easier for the foundation itself to grow. While Deschaine is current the organization’s only staff member, she hopes to add one new permanent job and a intern position in the near future.

Last year The Dart Foundation granted $3,435,276 to causes and organizations throughout the United States. Deschaine estimates about $500,000 of those funds were granted in the foundation’s focus area of Mid-Michigan. This year, The Dart Foundation is renewing the Dart Family’s original focus on the STEM fields for youth.

“Science is a natural interest of [the Dart Family],” says Deschaine, “because they were engineers. But there are a lot of important needs in the community, and they responded to those needs. Now they’re coming back to what they feel is most important.”

Emergent BioSolutions to invest $108M in facilities, adds 50 jobs

Jessi Wortley, Emergent BioSolutions Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Being the nation’s only producer of the anthrax vaccine has made Lansing’s Emergent BioSolutions a big deal for years. Soon, a $108 million investment will make the company’s campus on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard look like a big deal too.

The first phase of improvements will come in the form of a $9.6 million, 32,000-square foot, three-story administration building including offices, conference rooms and an employee workout facility that will become the new face of company.

“This building will be a very aesthetically pleasing gateway to our campus” says Jessi Wortley, communications specialist for Emergent BioSolutions. “We are very excited.”

Aesthetics aren’t the primary motivation for the improvements, however. A five-year plan will bring the total investment up to $108 million and will include such developments as new warehouse space and a new science building, enough to allow the company’s production of the anthrax vaccine to double.

“We’ve run out room,” says Wortley. “The company has been growing so rapidly, we’re up over 400 employees at our facilities here in Lansing.”

Approximately 50 of those employees have been added over the past year, and Wortley expects the number of new jobs to continue to grow over the next year.

Construction on the new administration building is pending the approval of a brownfield tax credit approval. According to Wortley, Emergent BioSolutions hopes to begin work on the facility in June.

Moe's Southwestern Grill to open in East Lansing, add 25 jobs

Lauren McGowen Barash, Moe's Southwestern Grill Wednesday, May 02, 2012

A new kind of burrito experience is coming to Grand River in East Lansing. Moe’s Southwest Grill will open a new, 2,013 square foot location across from MSU’s campus in late May. According to Lauren McGowen Barash, Director of PR/Corp Communication for Moe's Southwest Grill, the new fast casual restaurant won’t be like anything downtown East Lansing has seen before.

“The experience at Moe’s from start to finish is entirely unique,” she says. “The vibe is irreverent, laid-back and cool with menu names like the Homewrecker burrito, Close Talker salad and Billy Barou nachos and the music that is played is exclusively dead artists.”

Prior to opening, the company invested in adding windows to the alley side of the building and adding new, branded storefront. A patio area will be soon added as well. Moe’s will employ 20 to 25 workers at the new restaurant.

According to Barash, East Lansing’s business mix was a natural fit for the national food chain.

“We believe there is a great retail and restaurant synergy in that area, and as an added bonus it’s near Michigan State,” she says. "Moe’s offers generous portions, speedy service, a fun atmosphere and great prices making it extremely attractive to college students.”

Moe’s Southwest Grill plans to open a second location on the west side of the Lansing, and the company is currently in the process of looking for viable real estate.

Aladdin's to add Downtown Lansing location, 12 jobs

Ali Elbast, Aladdin's Express Wednesday, May 02, 2012

In his 15 years of owning Aladdin’s Restaurant in Frandor, Ali Elbast noticed a pattern in his lunch crowd.

“Most of our customers for lunch come from downtown,” he says. “So we decided we’ll come to them.”

That’s exactly what the new Aladdin’s Express on Washington Square will do when it opens in mid-May. The 2,400-square foot restaurant will serve fast, fresh meals to downtown diners, including soups, salads and both chicken and beef on a shawarma grill.

“We are going to have a big variety of vegetarian options on the menu,” says Elbast, “and also a meat menu.”

Aladdin’s Express will also serve fresh breads and pies in their bakery, utilizing the ovens from the pizza business formerly at that location. The restaurant will seat 88 diners and offer take out. Elbast will hire 12 employees to open the new restaurant. After opening Aladdin’s Express with his sister, Elbast hopes to next open a Lansing-area bakery.