Lansing-based green developer Gene Townsend and the Ingham County Land Bank are working together to build what will likely be Lansing’s first gold-certified LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) residential building.

The $123,000 development encompasses a piece of land in Old Town Lansing on the southwest corner of Maple and Chestnut.

Townsend say he expects to get most if the building’s LEED points from its energy efficient components.

The house will have a panelized insulation system and use SIPs, or structural insulated panels used in floors, walls and roofs on residential units.

“What [SIPs] gives you is a building envelope which is very energy efficient,” Townsend says, adding that the house will also include energy efficient mechanical equipment.

Eric Schertzing, chair of the Ingham County Land Bank, says Old Town is the perfect neighborhood for the project.

“This is a nice, beautiful parcel to being doing this on,” he says. “We want to do everything we can to reposition the image of the area."

The Land Bank generally renovates properties. This is its the sixth new construction project in the last two years.

“We certainly will, as time and financial restrictions allow, try to bring more LEED-certified houses to the market,” Schertzing says.

Townsend broke ground on the property in mid-September, and expects construction to be complete by December. He anticipates the finished home to sell for $140,000 to $150,000.

Source: Lisa Smith, Donovan & Smith

Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here.

Lansing-based Smart Office Systems (SOS) is moving its headquarters to the 90,000 square foot former American Sunroof Corporation (ASC) site on Lansing's Westside.

SOS sells remanufactured furniture to companies all over the country and recently landed a $2 million a year contract with the State of Michigan.

“We’re the first furniture remanufacturer to have a contract with the State,” says Paul Covert with SOS. “We’re excited about that.”

Covert says the company will need to hire 25 to 50 Michigan-based employees over the next two years as a result of new contracts. 

SOS rehabs the older furniture within the company, but also sells rehabbed furniture purchased from other sites.

“We typically save customers between 50 and 75 percent,” he says.

The company spent $800,000 renovating the building. The majority of the renovations increase the building’s energy efficiency.  Covert says it was important for SOS to make its headquarters as environmentally friendly as possible.

“We are the single most green company in the office furniture industry,” he says, noting that his company saves people money while reducing environmental waste. “Really, when it’s all said and done, if it’s done properly, we’re talking about using 98 percent of reused product.”

OS will keep its logistics arm at its Southside Lansing location at 2110 South Washington Avenue. The company’s headquarters, showroom and re-manufacturing and warehousing units are at the Westside location.

Source: Kelly Rossman-McKinney, The Rossman Group

Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here. 

All Photographs © Dave Trumpie

Michigan State University (MSU), the Lansing Economic Area Partnership (Leap, Inc.) and the Prima Civitas Foundation are working with 53 businesses to improve the quality of life and economic development in the Capital region.

The new MSU Community Builders group works to connect students and area businesses to increase the likelihood that students will stick around after graduation.

MSU chose the companies based on their involvement with the university community as well as how consistently they’ve been involved with the community. For example, Dean Transportation is an MSU Community Builder. Each year, Dean Transportation helps 15,000 MSU students perform volunteer work at more than 350 capital region non-profit organizations.

Neogen, another Community Builder, works with MSU to create food safety innovations. TechSmith Corporation works with MSU faculty and students to create education and research opportunities.

New MSU Community Builder members will be announced about every six months. Apparently there’s enough potential members to keep adding members for the next three years.

“MSU Community Builders is not all about the dedication of money, it’s also about making opportunities to have interns in your business,” says Kellie Dean with Dean Transportation.

In conjunction with the program, Community Builders banners will line Michigan Avenue from Lansing through East Lansing.

Source: Patty Mallet, LEAP

Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here.

Old Town Lansing’s artist co-op, which opened with five or six members in October 2007, is now up to 21 members.

“All of us were already in a gallery and we decided to get together and have our own place,” says Tammy Waldowski with the Artisan’s Circle. “It took a lot of togetherness and meetings and talking things over, but it’s been a really awesome experience.”

The 800 square foot co-op now has 21 members, 18 of which own a share in the co-op. The artists experiment with a variety of different mediums. The Artisan’s Circle displays woodwork, fused glass, fantasy portraits, carpentry, soaps, oil paintings, photography, quilts and baby items, soy candles, leather, pencil and graphic art.

“Everything’s been going so well that there’s a possibility that we’ll be expanding to another store,” Waldowski says.

The Artisan’s Circle is in Old Town Lansing at 1236 B Turner St. next to DreamMaker Bath and Kitchen.

Source: Tammy Waldowski, Artisan’s Circle

Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here.