Old Town : Development News

With all of the growth Old Town has experienced over the past decade, one type of business has been missing from the mix of retail, dining and service that has been drawing people to the neighborhood: a grocery store.
 
Maria Van Atta is looking to soon change that void, giving Old Town residents and workers a place to pick up specialty foods, fresh produce and more with the forthcoming Old Town General Store.
 
"We have somewhat of a food desert here in Old Town," Van Atta says, "and I think if I can create a little oasis of reasonably-priced healthy, and tasty, specialty foods, the Old Town General Store will do quite well." 
 
The idea for the General Store began several years ago when Van Atta made a career change and searching for a new venture that would appeal to her sense of community and appreciation of nature.
 
"I enjoy and appreciate the goodness of nature, a sense of community and giving back, and supporting the local economy as much as possible," says Van Atta. "A general store has traditionally been a gathering place, where you would find interesting and unexpected things as well as convenience items." 
 
The 1,500 square foot E. Grand River location will do just with specialty foods, fresh produce, beer, and wine, with an emphasis on Michigan companies and sustainable and organic items. The Old Town General Store is expected to open May 3, and celebrate a grand opening on June 15. Van Atta plans to employ a staff of approximately four part-time workers at the store. 

Source: Maria Van Atta, Old Town General Store
Writer: Natalie Burg, Development News Editor

The CPAs at PJ Fortin & Associates have more to celebrate than the official end of tax season this week. Though the business moved to its new North Cedar Street location in August, their new signs went up last week and they’re now preparing for a grand opening open house in June.
 
“We were in a fairly ancient building, and also we had some staffing changes, so we wanted to do some space changes well,” says owner Peter Fortin. “We decided to do some reinventing of our business model.”
 
They certainly knew how to go about it. Helping other businesses reinvent their models is, in fact, Fortin & Associates’ specialty. Fortin begin his business in 1989 and has since then grown and changed in a variety of ways. The business now focusing even more on business planning and strategic consulting, and less on traditional accounting and tax services.
 
“We’ve transformed our culture internally,” says Fortin. “It’s a lot better atmosphere. You can tell there is positive energy here since the move.”
 
The 2,800 square foot space is an increase in size for Fortin & Associates, and includes a conference room and convenient, 14’x14’ workout room for employees. According to Fortin, the space is just right for helping the newly reorganized business to continue to grow.
 
“The goal is to stick to our niche market and what are strengths are,” he says, “and try to set an example of being accountable to our employees. Also, to convey to our clients that there are always opportunities to navigate through the tough economy.”

There’s no reason to leave Lansing just because you want to stage a photo shoot on a tropical beach or a foreign country. Old Town’s newest photography studio, Chamberlin Photography, allows locals to have their photo taken in virtually any setting with green screen technology. 
 
“The green screen is a fun technique I developed about five years ago,” says owner Mark Chamberlin. “It’s just a really fun place to go. You can be anywhere you want to be. Hollywood has been doing this for years. Now the photo world said, ‘hey we can do that too.’”
 
Chamberlin and wife moved to Old Town’s On the Grand condos more than a year ago from Portland, Oregon. When he decided it was the right time to open a local studio, he found the spot he was looking for right in his own neighborhood, across Grand River from The Temple Club.
 
“It’s an awesome location,” he says. “It’s a funky and cool inside. The landlords have done a great job with renovations.”
 
Having photos taken isn’t the only service available at Chamberlin Photography’s 625 square foot space. Chamberlin also teaches photography classes to amateur photographers.
 
“In today’s world, everybody wants to shoot their own photography,” Chamberlin says. “People are doing that instead of going to studios. Since I’m good at teaching, I thought, why fight the trend? Now I help people take better photos.”

There’s a lot to be excited about over at Redhead Design Studio. The firm is currently celebrating their four 2011 MarCom Awards, while planning to double their footprint in Old Town with a move into the Walker Building in early 2012.
 
“The MarCom Awards are really exciting for us because they are international awards and that’s a pretty big deal,” says Jessy Harger of Redhead Design. “There’s a wide variety of people who enter, so it’s excite for us because we’re a small company.”
 
More than 6,000 entries were made in this year’s MarCom Awards, which recognizes outstanding creative achievement by marketing and communication professionals. Redhead Design won a Platinum Award for their “Trend in Emerging Talent Report” for Capital Area Michigan Works!, as well as two Gold Awards and one Honorable Mention.

“It has a lot of really cool informational graphic,” says Harger of the platinum-winning CAMW! project. “It’s an annual report, but we were able to jazz it up and give it a really engaging feel.”
 
The excitement over their international recognition comes as the firm is preparing for a move from their current 1,200-square foot studio to a new 2,300-square foot space in the Walker Building that is now under renovation.
 
“We’re doubling our square footage, which probably will mean expansion for us in other ways,” says Harger.
 
Redhead Design Studio intends to make the move in late February or early March of 2012.

Mandy Walton got a big idea from some little heads.

"My kids and I were walking in Old Town and they said to me, 'There's no candy store down here,'" says Walton.

With that, the new Lansing resident and mother of four and her husband Jason set about opening Walton's Old Town Candy Store. The new retail location carries nickel and dime candy on display in glass jars, as well as snacks and drinks.

"We have over 100 kinds of candy," says Walton. "Nothing is over a dollar. Have both old-fashioned candy and all the new stud the kids like the sour stuff. We have been keeping a list of candy people have been asking for, and we'll keep expanding what we have."

Walton hopes to eventually expand her services as well. The former Muskegon resident once owned a balloon and gift store specializing in wedding décor, and would like to continue those services by offering candy bars for special events.

Walton's Old Town Candy store opened in June, just a few months after the family moved to Lansing.

"We just like it down here in Old Town," says Walton. "I like the feeling of the area, and they're always having festivals. We thought it would be fun to have something down there for kids."

After eight years of business, David S. Christian decided to move his firm, DC Engineering, to the center of the action in Lansing.

"The City of Lansing is an important client to us," says Christian, "and besides that, I just love Old Town."

The four-person engineering firm moved from Dewitt to a new 880 square foot office on North Cedar in Lansing's Old Town.

DC Engineering has worked on many recognizable projects in the Lansing area, including the Stadium District development and the rain gardens on the 200- and 300-blocks of Washington Square.

While Christian says overall business is down in his industry, his firm is weathering the trend well.

"Fortunately, we are counting our blessings," Christian says. "We are extremely busy this month."