Mel Trotter Ministries has purchased the former River City Slims bar at 243 Commerce Avenue SW, according to Sandra Gaddy, VP of development and marketing for Mel Trotter.

A round-up of this week's activity on the West Michigan deal front.   

Amway scion and ArtPrize founder Rick DeVos has launched a new venture capital fund that blends elements of elevator pitch competitions, business mentoring and community engagement.

Just nine months after it opened the doors on a new facility in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids, the Urban Institute of Contemporary Arts announced its executive director has stepped down as part of a restructuring plan that it hopes "will stabilize the institution's declining financial situation."

Mezzanine financing is becoming a viable option for small and second-stage businesses, say two veteran Chicago-based financiers.  The pair talked about the mezzanine capital's downstream move at the April meeting of the Association for Corporate Growth Western Michigan chapter.  

The Right Place, Lormax Stern and the City of Wyoming hope a new marketing strategy for the former GM stamping plant on 36th Street will get global companies to notice of what the site can offer.

Rumors of a downtown movie theater could be closer to reality following a deal announced today, April 11.

GRAND RAPIDS — One of West Michigan’s public companies has been acquired in a $625 million deal.

X-Rite Inc. (NASDAQ:XRIT) today announced that it has signed a definitive merger agreement with Danaher (NYSE: DHR) under which Danaher will acquire the company for $5.55 per share in cash, or a total of approximately $625 million including the assumption of debt, net of cash. The offer is 39 percent above X-Rite’s closing share price of $4.00 on April 9.

The day of reckoning will be upon us soon if we don’t address the federal budget deficit, and it’s up to business leaders to push Congress on the issue. That was the dour and instructive message delivered to West Michigan business leaders on Tuesday by former U.S. Comptroller David M. Walker at an event sponsored by the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce. Walker, who served under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, on Tuesday gave the keynote address, “Living on Borrowed Time: Solving America’s Debt Crisis,” at the event held at the Amway Grand Plaza.

Citing a broken promise by the Ontario government, West Michigan-based WindTronics Inc. has closed its Canadian plant and will consolidate manufacturing operations in Grand Rapids.

The Michigan Economic Development Corp. doesn’t want to be in the business of picking winners and losers, but it’s hoping a new venture match fund will provide a market-driven program aimed at filling a funding gap for early-stage companies.

Lacks Enterprises Inc. received a $350,000 Michigan Business Development incentive from the Michigan Strategic Fund to help push through a $31.9 million expansion that could bring 120 new jobs to the area.

Michigan made significant strides in an annual entrepreneurial scorecard issued by the Small Business Association of Michigan. The state’s entrepreneurial climate ranked 15th nationally in 2011, compared to 45th in 2010.

Grand Rapids-based CWD Real Estate Investment today announced it purchased the historic Trade Center Building at 50 Louis Street NW, at the intersection with Ionia Avenue.

A major corner in Grand Rapid’s downtown entertainment district will soon get a new signature tenant.

CB Richard Ellis affiliate CRBE Grand Rapids today announced it will move its office to 634 Front St. beginning March 12.

After 15 years at the helm, Kim Horn decided to step down as head of Priority Health this spring to pursue a new phase of her career in health care.

The number and type of new resources for existing small businesses in Michigan are growing. That's a focus of a March 20 workshop in Grand Rapids on economic gardening, a key strategy the Michigan Economic Development Corp. is deploying to help existing businesses grow.

Grand Action and the Grand Rapids Downtown Development Authority today announced a board of directors to oversee the development of the Urban Market planned for the former Sonneveldt site.