KALAMAZOO — A new funding tool recently signed into law is intended to help finance an event center in downtown Kalamazoo, but it’s unclear if there is a desire or solid plans to move forward with the venue.

The next 10 months will culminate in a landmark year for Michigan politically as new legislative district boundaries are drawn by an independent commission tasked with quashing partisan gerrymandering.

DOWAGIAC — The CEO since the founding of Mno-Bmadsen, the non-gaming economic development and investment arm of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi, is resigning his post to take a role at a similar tribal organization in Washington.

Michigan’s economy that has already rebounded well from the depths of the spring dive should take another year or more before returning to “solid ground.”

TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP — A trio of Ottawa County-based businesses that serve as a one-stop-shop in the fasteners industry has changed hands.

GRAND RAPIDS — Events are planned to slowly return to Grand Rapids’ downtown venues with ramped up safety guidelines, starting with crowdless Grand Rapids Griffins games and Grand Rapids Symphony performances.

LANSING — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed legislation reinstating a tax credit for historic preservation projects that was eliminated in 2011 as part of former Gov. Rick Snyder’s state tax reform strategy.

After a three-month hiatus from operating flights through Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport, American Airlines plans to resume a daily flight starting Jan. 5.

Sports bettors and online casino gamers found themselves sitting on the sidelines in Michigan for all of 2020, even when there was a glimmer of hope that the state would launch online gaming before the year was out.

Here is the MiBiz growth report for January 3, 2021.

MiBiz readers showed a strong interest in our COVID-19 coverage this year, as well as news about free tuition, business layoffs, bankruptcies, restaurants, beer and marijuana. 

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer today signed legislation that provides $106 million in COVID-19 relief that includes grants for small businesses and entertainment venues that have been closed or had operations limited by state orders.

State and federal lawmakers have each reached consensus on COVID-19 relief that will support small businesses like restaurants and venues still confronting pandemic-related restrictions.

The experience of living through the COVID-19 pandemic and helping manage a small business during a (hopefully) once-in-a-lifetime crisis has me leaning heavily on lessons I learned decades ago chasing winter steelhead with my dad on the Manistee River. 

Born and raised in Muskegon, Greg Maki was the first to open recreational cannabis dispensaries in Muskegon, Ottawa and Montcalm counties. While many businesses ground to a halt during 2020, the cannabis industry continued to grow in West Michigan. Park Place Provisionary in Muskegon, Exit 9 in Nunica, and Edmore Provisionary are open under Agri-Med LLC, and Maki is working on opening more locations in the region.

Michigan’s economy could stand to benefit in the years ahead as manufacturers move to reshore work to the U.S. after dealing with severe disruptions in their foreign supply chains when the coronavirus first surfaced in China.

Ben Wrigley — along with fellow attorney Robert Hendricks — created a specialized law practice in 2013 under the CannaLex division of their firm, Wrigley Hoffman PC. As more adult-use dispensaries open across the state, Wrigley has emerged as a local voice in the cannabis industry to help make sense of frequently changing state and local restrictions for business owners. He has represented numerous clients seeking to start cannabis businesses in Michigan’s medical and adult-use markets, which he says are poised to expand to more municipalities. 

The pandemic pushed local retailers that traditionally rely on foot traffic to beef up their online presence and offer curbside and delivery options — mostly out of necessity to accommodate shopping from home and to compete with online retail giants.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created the Office of Outdoor Recreation Industry within the Department of Natural Resources in May 2019, hoping to elevate the state’s status as a recreation destination. It’s tough competition with states like Utah, Colorado, Vermont and Maine, but Michigan has its own set of recreational assets, anchored by the Great Lakes and vast amounts of public land for backcountry activities. Brad Garmon was tapped to lead the office, and he says elevating the industry here means making connections with more traditional sectors like manufacturing. Aligning those sectors, which has accelerated during the pandemic, has been among Garmon’s priorities since taking the job.

The Whitmer administration has announced revised statewide COVID-19 orders that continue banning indoor dining until Jan. 15 but begin to reopen various entertainment facilities based on positive public health trends.

GRAND RAPIDS — Former Lakeshore Advantage CEO Randy Thelen is returning to West Michigan to lead regional economic development firm The Right Place Inc.

GRAND RAPIDS — Perrigo Co. plc is seeking a 12-year incentive agreement estimated at $4.1 million in total property tax savings for its plans to relocate its North American headquarters to downtown.

MUSKEGON — Auto dealership Betten Baker Chevrolet-Cadillac-GMC is now one of the few GM dealerships in the country to provide the automaker’s full line of brands after a recent acquisition.

State leaders expressed cautious optimism on Tuesday as key metrics involving COVID-19 case trends, test positivity rates and hospitalizations are improving under recent emergency restrictions.

KALAMAZOO — Discover Kalamazoo has announced its new president and CEO on the heels of a transitional period for the organization.

LAWTON — Troy-based Secure Investors Group Inc. plans to acquire South Michigan Insurance Agency Inc. and Donald E. Thornton Insurance Agency in Lawton.

GRAND RAPIDS — Public relations and investor relations firm Lambert & Co. formed a joint venture with 9th Wonder, a Houston, Texas-based marketing and brand strategy firm.

In a typical year, the Grand Rapids Griffins would be more than a month into its season on the ice. 

Grand Rapids resident Kelsey Perdue was one of 16 people appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer last month to the state’s newly created Black Leadership Advisory Council. The group will advise the administration on policy recommendations and also “identify state laws, or gaps in state law, that create or perpetuate inequities.” Perdue brings to the council experience in grassroots organizing for equitable policies in West Michigan.

Here's the MiBiz Growth Report for December 6, 2020.