Crain's Detroit Business - December 19, 2011 - (Page 21)

December 19, 2011 CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS Page 21 RUMBLINGS Robot mascot (Cobotron) on guard at Cobo ook out Detroit. Cobotron is here. This happy robot activist, sporting a hard hat, tool belt and tires for shoulders, will be on guard at Cobo Center in the coming years as the $299 million expansion work gets under way. In a search for a “mascot” to be part of the sign campaign apologizing for the construction-related messes in the facility, a $1,200 scholarship was offered to students to come up with a design. Bethany Radloff, a junior at the College for Creative Studies, came up with the winning design for Cobotron. Cobo’s general manager, Thom Connors, said the mascot is a way to put a friendly face on the four-year construction process and inform the public. WEEK ON THE WEB FROM WWW.CRAINSDETROIT.COM, WEEK OF DEC. 10-16 L Why do the elevator pitch when you can moonwalk? Eminem he ain’t. A marketer, Jonathon Triest is. So he tried rapping. A San Francisco startup named Undrip has been looking for venTriest ture capital to help it commercialize a service to better filter social networking streams. A startup in the social networking space looking for funding? That’s a dog-chases-squirrel story. In need of a marketing tool to make it stand out from all those pitching for cash, Undrip created a funny hip-hop video pleading its case. It got big play in the VC world, including mentions in The New York Times and Forbes, and caught the eyes and ears of Triest, cofounder of Ludlow Ventures LLC, a seed-stage VC firm Crain’s profiled in April. Back then, Ludlow was based in Southfield. In May, hance the work facilities. These are older buildings (built in 1924 and last renovated in 1978) that don’t have areas that are conducive to creativity,” Hetzel said. “We want to attract people who are looking for a great place and a fun place to work. A lot of companies are considering space amenities like that.” Other features of the first floor include a video conference room with two 60-inch Trieste was named to this year’s class of Crain’s 20 in LCD displays and Cisco videoconferencing equiptheir 20s. These days, he’s ment, and a “Think Tank” ensconced in Dan Gilbert’s rehabbed Madison Theatre area with two 52-inch LCD displays connected to comBuilding in downtown Detroit. Triest put together a puters and video conferencing technology. funny video of his own, A coffee bar also will have moon-walking and rapa 40-inch LCD display with a ping a message to Unsatellite receiver and nearby drip’s founders, co-starring interi- will be a WiFi lounge with a variety of computers and or and rooftop other related equipment. views of the MadiHetzel said the final deson building, online at www.ludlow sign of the Collaboration ventures.com/flow. Center hasn’t been approved He got lots of reand is subject to funding limsponse, too, includitations. ing write-ups in The Blue Cross also is renovatWashington Post, New ing 600 Tower of the RenaisYork Times and on sance Center with plans to TechCrunch.com, a website move more employees in devoted to deal making. during early 2012. Ludlow’s message, in part: “And we hear ya loud and clear. Ya need an angel we got File this in the “didja’ them wings. know?” department for Like our skulls full of Red sports trivia: Bull on private planes. Wayne State University has Let’s fly hands up to the produced three current U.S. sky like we scored a goal. pro sports team owners, ty“With a hockey stick proing it with the likes of Yale, jection of Gretzky proporDartmouth, NYU, Penn and Aritions.” zona for the fourth-most of Triest and Undrip have any American university. since talked about maybe The breakdown comes doing a deal, something from The Wall Street Journal Triest does a lot better than and reflects undergrad and rapping. In November, he graduate alumni who own closed on his 16th investthe 122 franchises that make ment, four of them locally. up the four major leagues. Harvard leads the pack with seven, followed by Georgetown with six. Michigan, Columbia and Blue Cross Blue Shield of UCLA are tied for third most Michigan plans a new crewith four each. ative space for workers to WSU has produced Dan take a break for fun or con- Gilbert (Cleveland Cavaliers), duct a video conference. Peter Karmanos Jr. (Carolina Renovations at the Jeffer- Hurricanes) and Stephen Ross son Street Detroit campus (Miami Dolphins). of Blue Cross will include a The school would have snazzy 6,209-square-foot au- been tied for third, but fordiovisual room complete mer Detroit Pistons owner with three Sharp video disand WSU alum Bill Davidson plays connected to three died in 2009. Xbox Kinect gaming systems. Andy Hetzel, the Blues’ vice president of corporate communications, said the After 58 years with the gaming room is part of a same name, Metro Beach 17,000-square-foot renovation on the first floor called Metropark will be renamed the Lake St. Clair the Collaboration Center Metropark. So now it’s more that is intended to provide clear what’s to be found at an outlet to appeal to younger IT and other work- the end of Metro Parkway. The name change was apers in the building at 441 E. proved by the Huron-Clinton Jefferson Ave. “The build-out is not lux- Metroparks Board of Commisurious. It is intended to en- sioners on Dec. 8. Mullin meeting violated state rules, judge says ayne County Circuit Judge Robert Colombo has ruled that Detroit Metropolitan Airport officials violated Michigan’s Open Meetings Act during the hiring of former airport CEO Turkia Awada Mullin. A lawsuit is expected to be filed this week seeking to set aside Mullin’s contract and a contract awarded to Jack Krasula, head of the search firm Trustinus LLC, which brought in Mullin as a candidate to the authority board’s search committee. W imbursement contract with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan similar to what the Blues tried to negotiate with Beaumont Health System. The addendum includes the possibility of additional bonus incentive payments for meeting quality, process and administrative targets. LANSING NEWS Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law a bill package creating the new Michigan Business Development Program and Michigan Community Revitalization Program to replace Michigan’s expiring tax credits for the Michigan Economic Growth Authority program, historic preservation and brownfields. Snyder told Crain’s in an interview that he will continue to look at changes to the state’s personal property tax next year and he sees eliminating the industrial property portion of the tax as his highest priority. He also said he’ll meet with municipalities to discuss the impact of the tax changes. The Legislature passed several bills this past week: a package aimed at stabilizing the state’s unemployment benefits fund, including a bill that could make it tougher for some to get and keep jobless benefits; a bill that will allow more charter schools in the state; and a short-term plan to provide $58 million in heating assistance this winter to low-income utility customers. ON THE MOVE Dan Lijana has resigned as Detroit Mayor Dave Bing’s communications manager to take a position at the Washington, D.C.based political consulting firm Dewey Square Group. The board of directors of Detroit-based Giffels-Webster Engineers Inc. has elected Scott Clein president and CEO, succeeding Loren Crandell, who remains a partner. Clein had been executive vice president. Wayne State makes team-owner big leagues COMPANY NEWS Detroit Manufacturing Systems LLC, a new auto parts supplier being formed by Andra Rush, CEO of Wayne-based Rush Trucking Inc., has found a home at Gateway Industrial Center on Southfield Road in Detroit as it awaits approval for Michigan Economic Growth Authority tax credits. Rush had sought space at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc.’s Detroit plant, but a deal was not reached. Auburn Hills-based Energy Conversion Devices Inc. said it has begun negotiations with holders of its senior convertible notes, due in 2013, and will delay interest payments on those notes already due. The company has seen revenue shrink dramatically and losses grow since the recession hit. Detroit Receiving Hospital, St. Joseph Mercy Oakland in Pontiac and the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor were named by The Leapfrog Group as among the top hospitals in Michigan. The two others are in Grand Rapids: Blodgett Hospital and Butterworth Hospital. Warren-based St. John Providence Health System has signed a performancebased addendum to its re- OTHER NEWS Detroit has delayed paying some of its vendors and contractors to fund payroll, AP reported. Mayor Dave Bing’s office acknowledged that it’s delaying some payments but said the intention is to fully compensate everyone. The slide in residential home sales that started in August continued into November, although sales increased year over year, according to data from Farmington Hills-based Realcomp II Ltd. for Livingston, Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. In November, there were 4,094 residential sales, down from 4,176 in October and up from 3,876 in November 2010. The median sale price of $70,000 was unchanged from October, up from $67,000 from 2010. TechShop Inc., a forprofit, do-it-yourself fabrication studio founded in Menlo Park, Calif., is scheduled to open Dec. 27 at 800 Republic Drive in Allen Park, a former Ford Motor Co. training center. The Blue Cross adds high-tech creative space to campus Wave goodbye to Metro Beach name shop is filled with tools and machines to help would-be entrepreneurs turn their ideas into manufactured goods. The edgy Aloft hotel brand will put its name on the historic David Whitney Building in Detroit as part of its renovation. It will mark the first appearance in the Detroit area for Aloft, a division of White Plains, N.Y.-based Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. The Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation has eliminated 15 routes and won’t run buses in Detroit outside of rush hours, AP reported. The Detroit Transportation Corp. will use an escrow fund established in 1989 for long-term guideway maintenance to keep the People Mover operating until at least June 2013. Documents say federal authorities last month seized almost $500,000 from accounts tied to the investigation of contractor Bobby Ferguson as part of their investigation into Detroit corruption, AP reported. Ferguson is an associate of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. Detroit’s three automakers and the UAW will jointly commit $100,000 to become the presenting sponsor of the annual Little Caesars Pizza Bowl college football game Dec. 27 at Ford Field. Detroit-based Little Caesar Enterprises Inc. and its franchisees remain the title sponsor. John Hoose and his brother Scott, both of Hartland, were sentenced to 18 months and 12 months in custody, respectively, for their roles in a mortgage fraud scheme while employed at the Brighton office of Shore Mortgage. Wayne State University President Allan Gilmour is proposing that some applicants pass an eight-week summer program before becoming a full-fledged student. Gilmour, who wants to raise admission standards at WSU, said some freshmen would be required to have a minimum 2.0 grade point average in a summer program before being accepted for the fall. Eastern Michigan University has raised $51.9 million, exceeding a year and a half ahead of schedule the $50 million goal it set for its first-ever capital campaign. OBITUARIES Bill McLaughlin, former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and the longest-serving president of the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, died Dec. 11. He was 79. http://WWW.CRAINSDETROIT.COM http://www.ludlowventures.com/flow http://www.ludlowventures.com/flow http://www.TechCrunch.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crain's Detroit Business - December 19, 2011

Crain's Detroit Business - December 19, 2011