ACanadian app developer focused on removing mobility barriers for people with disabilities and the elderly is launching its first commercial deployment in West Michigan.

GRAND RAPIDS — Despite numerous complexities involved with improving the congested Wealthy Street interchange at U.S.-131, city and community leaders seek to create more connectivity with $10 million recently allocated to upgrade the aging infrastructure.

GRAND RAPIDS — City officials are backing plans that would redesign the Wealthy Street interchange at U.S.-131 to bring the street to grade level while elevating the highway.

Very few Grand Rapids cannabis businesses are fulfilling social equity promises they made three years ago to gain an advantage when applying for a city license, though some city officials say the program is filled with “unattainable” goals.

GRAND RAPIDS — Just three out of 11 cannabis dispensaries are fully complying with voluntary social equity commitments they made three years ago to improve their chances of obtaining a license in a highly competitive lottery system, MiBiz has learned.

Muskegon County’s economic development organization has named Marla Schneider as its new president and CEO following a three-year restructuring the organization took on to attract new corporate funders and revamp strategic planning. 

With the upcoming closure of the DeltaPlex Arena & Conference Center on July 31, minor league basketball team the Grand Rapids Gold is looking for a new home arena.

Here is the MiBiz Growth Report for April 11, 2022.

GRAND RAPIDS — Patrick Lyoya’s death took place in a Grand Rapids neighborhood long traumatized by icy police-community relations that’s also in the process of a major redevelopment to help overcome long standing underinvestment.

Business leaders voiced strong confidence in the West Michigan economy in a recent survey by economic development organization The Right Place Inc.

The city of Kalamazoo generated $15.4 million in economic impact from more than 40 different local, regional and national sporting events held in 2021, according to a new report. 

Grand Rapids’ public transportation service will receive $15.8 million in federal funding meant to strengthen transportation in U.S. communities. 

SpartanNash Co. last month released its first Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report to track its corporate responsibility efforts, the start of what CEO Tony Sarsam called a “transformational journey” for the Byron Center-based grocery retailer and food distributor.

In the nearly two years since Minneapolis police killed George Floyd and sparked a national wave of civil unrest, the business community has responded with both internal and external commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion. 

Here is the MiBiz Growth Report for April 11, 2022.

Ferris State University recently tapped Bill Pink as its new president after he served in the same role at Grand Rapids Community College since 2017. Pink starts the position in June after being selected over 70 other applicants. He brings to the new role a firm grasp on the state’s economic needs based in part on his active roles in multiple regional and statewide economic development organizations. Pink recently shared his vision for leading Big Rapids-based Ferris State, including overcoming recent enrollment declines and seizing partnerships after a recent $115 million capital campaign.

A $20,000 Warner Norcross + Judd LLP scholarship for a second-year law student aims to promote greater diversity in the legal profession.

When the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians sought to establish its first 8(a) certified contracting company, the tribe’s economic development arm turned to a key partner within the state of Michigan for help. 

HOLLAND — LG Energy Solution Michigan Inc.’s planned $1.7 billion lithium-ion battery manufacturing expansion is poised to spur further opportunities as the company taps new and existing suppliers to support the project.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, none of Davide Uccello’s four West Michigan restaurants offered an online ordering option. Today, at least half of his restaurant’s takeout and delivery orders are placed online.

Michigan’s retail recreational cannabis market launched just four months before the COVID-19 pandemic swept the state and forced widespread shutdowns and limited in-person shopping.

Recruitment platform Job.com has acquired QCI Healthcare Staffing, a Grand Rapids-based health care staffing agency. The deal was the fourth staffing agency acquisition by Job.com, which seeks to acquire small to medium-sized staffing agencies. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The Michigan Strategic Fund has approved a brownfield plan totaling $14 million in state tax capture for Spectrum Health’s Center for Transformation and Innovation that is under construction in Grand Rapids.

Advertisements touting Michigan as a summer vacation destination have begun running in key markets across the state and the Midwest.

Business and economic development leaders recently released a list of 12 “transformational” projects for Kent County that hope to attract people, as well as public funding, to the region.

Regional business and economic development leaders recently announced a list of 12 “transformational” projects that could reshape Kent County’s ability to attract visitors, new residents and employers.

Here is the MiBiz Growth Report for March 14, 2022.

Seven out of 10 executives responding to a recent Business Leaders for Michigan survey say their business now performs better than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, although labor shortages and inflation concerns persist.

The 2021 merger of Detroit-based TCF Financial Inc. into Columbus, Ohio-based Huntington Bancshares Inc. created the second-largest bank operating in Michigan.

After the acquisition of a Grand Haven-based emerging tech and media firm, Century Technology Group Inc. is already finalizing plans to integrate it with another portfolio company.