Crain's Detroit Business, July 30, 2018 issue by Crain's Detroit Business

How a Canton firefighter became MLB dietitian Page 6

JULY 30 - AUGUST 5, 2018 | crainsdetroit.com

Brush Park projects roll out at a dizzying pace Page 3

Fastest-growing companies

Did your company make the list? Find out on page 14.

he ways businesses can grow can be as varied as the companies themselves. Some roll out a revolutionary new widget. Some buy their competitors. Some disrupt entire industries. Crain’s Fast 50 list of the fastest-growing companies in metro Detroit looks at all of this and more. Read — and be inspired by — their stories. Pages 10-13

HEALTH CARE

Opioid laws hit physicians, patients in unintended ways By Jay Greene

New state laws on opioids intended to save lives have physicians complaining about unintended consequences. None of the doctors interviewed by Crain’s objected to the laws’ intent: Reducing misuse of the powerful painkillers that have contributed to rising deaths and addictions. But they say regulations have added unnecessary administrative headaches, led to a climate of fear for doctors and

left patients unable to get medications when they really need them. Doctors also say some health insurers are using the laws to inappropriately deny or delay prescriptions, sometimes even for patients with cancer and terminal illness. Some pharmacists are also making it harder to get prescriptions filled in ways that go beyond the law, the physicians say. A number of doctors told Crain’s they have voluntarily limited the number of opioid prescriptions they write for patients because they fear

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NEWSPAPER

Need to know

 Physicians say new opioid laws, insurer and pharmacy practices are causing problems  Some doctors limiting pain meds to three or fewer days to avoid charges of overprescribing  Some patients running out of meds after surgeries, heading to the ER

they might be arrested or disciplined for overprescribing. One physician gave up his DEA license because he

didn’t want to learn all the new rules or risk breaking the law. Doctors who include Betty Chu, M.D., president of the Michigan State Medical Society, and Chris Bush, M.D., a family practice physician in Riverview affiliated with Henry Ford Health System, say legislators and the state Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs need to listen to doctors and correct the problems. “We are hoping that LARA (and legislators) work with us and multiple other stakeholders to fix the laws

and improve stakeholders’ goals: reducing deaths and improve patients’ health,” Chu said. Kim Gaedeke, deputy director with LARA, said the department is working with providers to address problems. “There also is misunderstanding with these laws,” said Gaedeke, adding: “The message has been really been letting providers know we are all in it together. We have a mutual mission, including our law enforcement partners, to protect health and welfare of citizens.” SEE OPIOIDS, PAGE 18

INSIDE

LIVENGOOD

Ford Field: Raising the roof for MLS?

Crash course on no-fault stances

Lions study costs, risks of a retractable dome. Page 3

Candidate positions on the auto insurance law. Page 8

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

MICHIGAN BRIEFS

INSIDE

From staff and wire reports. Find the full stories at crainsdetroit.com

Flint judge delays decision on health chief’s trial

A Genesee County judge last Wednesday delayed a highly anticipated ruling on whether state health department director Nick Lyon should stand trial for involuntary manslaughter in Flint water crisis-related deaths. District Judge David Goggins’ decision not to rule from the bench until at least Aug. 20 keeps the outcome of a 10-month-long preliminary examination of the state’s evidence against Lyon from becoming a late political issue for Attorney General Bill Schuette in the Aug. 7 gubernatorial primary. The preliminary exam, stretching over two dozen days in court, has morphed into a proxy battle in the governor’s race between Lt. Gov. Brian Calley and the administration of Gov. Rick Snyder and Schuette, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to replace Snyder in office. Goggins indicated in a mid-June court filing that he would rule from the bench on Lyon’s fate before the primary, spurring Flint residents and top aides and allies to Snyder to pack a Flint courtroom last week. But the Wednesday hearing quickly diverged into another round of closing arguments between

Schuette’s special prosecutor, Todd Flood, and Lyon’s defense attorney, John Bursch, a former solicitor general under Schuette who was hired by the Snyder administration to help save Lyon from being put on trial. “The popular belief before this started was this was a slam dunk for the prosecutor,” Bursch said after the hearing. “But I think we’ve shown in our first closing argument, our closing brief and now this argument that they don’t have a leg to stand on.” Lyon faces two charges of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of two elderly Flint-area men who contracted Legionnaires’ disease in 2015 when the city was using Flint River water as its drinking water source.

Pfizer plans $465 million plant in Kalamazoo County Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. is planning to invest $465 million and create 450 jobs for a new plant in Kalamazoo County. The New York City-based company is developing a 400,000-squarefoot sterile drug manufacturing facility in the city of Portage in response to new regulations by the Food and Drug Administration, according to a news release from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. The new plant, to be called the Modular Aseptic Processing facility,

CALENDAR

CLASSIFIEDS

DEALS & DETAILS

KEITH CRAIN

OPINION

PEOPLE

RUMBLINGS

WEEK ON THE WEB

Grand Rapids to allow medical marijuana

JAKE MAY/THE FLINT JOURNAL-MLIVE.COM VIA AP

Nick Lyon, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, listens to testimony at a March 26 court hearing. He is fighting involuntary manslaughter charges stemming from a deadly Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in the Flint area in 2014 and 2015 that corresponded with Flint’s use of Flint River water for the city’s drinking water supply.

will be the first of its kind for Pfizer, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world with more than $52.5 billion in annual revenue. Without the upgrade, its operation in Portage is at risk of losing financial viability, it said. The project, part of Pfizer’s $5 billion investment into U.S. manufacturing facilities, is expected to begin next year with construction wrapping up in 2021, Pfizer said in a news

release. The plant is scheduled to be operational in 2024. Earlier this year, the company added about 100,000 square feet to its 4 million-square-foot Global Manufacturing complex in Portage, which opened in 1948 and employs more than 2,200 workers. The sprawling operation includes the manufacturing of sterile injectable drugs and supplying of pharmaceutical materials to drug makers.

The Grand Rapids City Commission has voted to allow medical marijuana facilities in the city, the Associated Press reported. The ordinance approved last Tuesday will allow up to 53 provisioning centers and up to 83 medical marijuana facilities, which include growers, processors and others. They’ll need proper state licensing and special land use approval from the city’s planning commission. The ordinance goes into effect Nov. 1. The city’s planning department had recommended up to 41 potential sites, while the planning commission sought up to 143 provisional centers and 293 other facilities. The distance requirement could be waived in specific instances involving parks, places of worship and rehabilitation facilities. Michigan voters approved marijuana use in 2008 for some chronic medical conditions. Michigan voters will decide whether to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

NONPROFIT ROLL CALL:

WHO’S THE BEST-MANAGED? Nonprofits are the heartbeat of counties across the country. They provide resources to those most in need, bring attention to pressing issues, and help inspire others to make positive change. Now, it’s their turn to be recognized. Nominate the best-managed nonprofit in the Metro Detroit area. We want to know which nonprofits are making the most out of their data – collected or received from outside sources – to make smarter and more impactful management decisions. Applicant must be a 501(c)(3) with headquarters in one of the following counties:

◆ Wayne ◆ Washtenaw ◆ Oakland

◆ Macomb ◆ Livingston

The deadline to nominate is Monday, Aug. 20 and finalist interviews will be conducted on the morning of Tuesday, Oct. 23.

Place your nominations today at crainsdetroit.com/nominate.

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

SPORTS BUSINESS

NONPROFITS

Solanus Casey Center expansion underway Capuchins buys or lease half of land sought

By Sherri Welch swelch@crain.com

GAVIN SMITH/DETROIT LIONS

New LED lighting on the sides and roof of Ford Field cost $2 million and was in addition to $5 million in repairs and upgrades, including refreshing the Ford Motor Co. logo, to the stadium roof completed in 2016.

The perils and perks of adding a retractable roof By Bill Shea bshea@crain.com

The Detroit Lions are cautious about the expensive prospect of adding a retractable roof to Ford Field to satisfy Major League Soccer’s criteria for granting the city an expansion team. “We’re not at this point absolutely saying no to it. We’re evaluating it,” team President Rod Wood told Crain’s last week. There’s no formal timeline that’s been disclosed on a roof decision, but Wood said they will “decide soon” on whether the project is feasible and what form it might take. Retrofitting an NFL stadium with a roof that can open and close has never been done. It’s not yet known how much it might cost, but certainly won’t be cheap. Wood said he doubts it would surpass Ford Field’s original $500 million construction price. “That would shock me,” he said. “I’m not going to speculate on (cost) because we’re just beginning the process. It’s going to be an important factor.” The suggestion that the stadium could be retrofitted with a retractable roof for MLS soccer was first publicly broached by Quicken Loans Inc.

Need to know

MLS asked Detroit’s expansion bid to study Ford Field retractable roof feasibility 



Rossetti Inc. hired to conduct roof study

Concerns are about cost, exposing stadium interior to weather 

WIMBLEDON.COM

The retractable roof at the world famous Wimbledon Centre Court weighs 1,000 tons and spans 55,972 square feet.

Chairman Dan Gilbert in June during a session at the AXS Ticketing Symposium held in Detroit. His comments were first reported by Sports Business Daily, which stages the annual event. “If we get that worked out, I think we have a pretty good chance” of landing an MLS franchise for Detroit, Gilbert was quoted as saying. Nothing has been determined on

who would pay for it. Gilbert and Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores have been pursuing an MLS expansion team since 2016, and were joined by the Ford family in November when the decision was made to drop a $1 billion proposal to build an open-air soccer stadium and mixed-used development at the unfinished county jail site in downtown Detroit. The bidders abandoned that plan and instead offered Ford Field as the home pitch. While Detroit was an expansion finalist, MLS again voiced its preference for a soccer-specific stadium and granted teams to Nashville and Cincinnati. Two more expansion markets will be added in the future, and Detroit is a finalist for those expansion slots. MLS has made it clear that the stadium issue set back Detroit’s bid, but the league remains in talks with the GilbertGores-Ford group. Wood said it was MLS that asked the Detroit bid organizers to study the possibility of retrofitting Ford Field with some type of roof that can be opened for soccer games. SEE ROOF, PAGE 22

MUST READ OF THE WEEK

Check out the Crain’s Fast 50 The fastest-growing companies in Metro Detroit, based on our formula that combines growth rate and scale. Pages 10-14

The expansion of the Solanus Casey Center and its campus on Detroit’s east side has begun but with a smaller footprint than what was initially envisioned. Just over six months after the late Art Van Elslander made a $20 million gift to fund the project, the Solanus Casey Center and its parent organization, the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph, have acquired or leased 26 parcels of land and are preparing to close on another 17 from the city of Detroit. With those city-owned properties — the last the project is targeting for now — the province will have rights to just over half of the land it originally sought to develop new parking, a large outdoor gathering space, adjacent green space and a roughly 10,000-squarefoot expansion to the center to house a new café and larger gift shop. An increasing number of tour groups have been coming to the center in busloads since November when

Father Solanus Casey, an American-born Capuchin friar who died in 1957, was beatified, said the center’s director, the Rev. David Preuss. The province Preuss: More made an initial visitors prompt offer to purchase need to expand more lots from the city of Detroit to protect the center’s investment and maintain the immediate surrounding area. “However, (the city) wanted to keep our purchase to a more confined area based on our phase I plan,” said Jaime Rae Turnbull, who is overseeing land acquisition and project management for the province on behalf of the A.A. VanElslander Foundation. Still, “we’re very pleased with what we’ve acquired so far, because it’s allowing us to move forward with our initial phase,” she said. SEE CASEY, PAGE 20

REAL ESTATE

OOMBRA ARCHITECTS

The Brush + Watson development is expected to include about 180 apartments, with half of those being for those making less than the area median income.

Developers push to meet Brush Park housing needs By Kirk Pinho kpinho@crain.com

An average of 256 new residential units were announced every day last work week — in Detroit's Brush Park neighborhood alone. The frenetic pace of development activity in the enclave in greater downtown showcases the demand developers see for new housing options there — for pricey as well as affordable housing options — and the speed at which work is expected to begin. "I remember when the lot behind us was just a grassy lot," Arthur Jemison, chief of services and infrastruc-

ture under Mayor Mike Duggan, said during a news conference last week announcing a $102 million investment to build 366 apartments and for-sale units across three development projects. He spoke in the shadow of Dan Gilbert's 400-plus-unit City Modern development on 8.4 acres in the neighborhood that has had developers salivating the last several years as the QLine streetcar system has become operational and Little Caesars Arena for the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons across Woodward Avenue has opened. SEE BRUSH PARK, PAGE 17

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Seven credit unions go in together — to form a bank By Dustin Walsh dwalsh@crain.com

Seven Michigan credit unions are joining forces in a surprising way — to form a bank. The group has applied to form a new limited-purpose bank to provide trust services, the first of its kind in Michigan, to their 424,000 members. Operating a trust bank allows the credit unions to offer wealth and asset management services to members it can’t do as standalone credit unions. The bank can manage trust assets directly under the new organization. The organizers of the new bank, Credit Union Trust, are: Farmington Hills-based Community Choice Credit Union; Alpena Alcoa Credit Union; Burton-based ELGA Credit Union; Frankenmuth Credit Union; Berrien Springs-based Honor Credit Union; Midland-based Members First Credit Union; and Saginaw-based Team One Credit Union. The group submitted the application for the new bank to the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services several months ago, and the state accepted the application last Monday. The state has 100 days to formally approve the formation of the bank.

Robert Sajdak, former senior vice president and group business manager of personal trust activities for Comerica Bank, will serve as CEO of the new bank. Credit Union Trust will be headquartered at Community Choice’s head office at 31155 Northwestern Highway in Farmington Hills. Sajdak said the bank will start with six to eight employees with plans to add more as business is generated. Trust professionals will eventually work in several of the credit union locations. Historically, Michigan regulators have barred credit unions from offering trust services directly to members, forcing them to either point that business to banks like J.P. Morgan Chase or Bank of America or to outof-state credit union service organizations. But the Michigan legislature changed that with amendments to the Michigan Banking Code and Credit Union Act in 2016. The inability to offer trust services has significantly handicapped Michigan credit unions’ ability to compete, said Patrick McQueen, managing director of Clawson-based McQueen Financial Advisors Inc. McQueen is serving as an adviser on the credit unions’ application and formation of the bank.

“There’s never been a credit union solution,” McQueen said. “They’d have to refer them to a bank. Many times that led to a bank pulling the customers assets out of the credit union because the trustee was the bank. So this is a somewhat defensive move for the credit unions, but it’s also serving the growing needs of their customers.” Sajdak said more and more credit union customer are asking for trust services as they are now managing more of their money. “Everyone now has IRAs and 401(k)s instead of a pension check,” Sajdak said. “Many people now have a substantial amount of money to manage whether they are blue-collar, white-collar or a farmer. At time of death, it’s now not unusual to have needs that are significant.” The credit union group will supply $5.5 million in capital to launch the new bank, which is expected to open following regulatory approval in the first quarter of 2019. Its longterm plans are to extend services beyond the seven credit union’s membership to broadly serve Michigan’s other roughly 5 million credit union customers. Dustin Walsh: (313) 446-6042 Twitter: @dustinpwalsh

Planned Novi project aims for city appeal By Annalise Frank

afrank@crain.com

Developers are planning a $45 million apartment complex in Novi in a style more apt to be seen in Detroit or Atlanta. The luxury midrise development style, traditionally favored in urban areas, offers a range of amenities and aims for a community vibe, at a higher price. Co-developers Lansing-based DTN Management Co. and Farmington Hills-based Tricap Holdings got the Novi City Council’s OK on Monday for the four-structure project, DTN Chief Investment Officer John Woods said. It still requires Zoning Board of Appeals approval on Aug. 14. The development is just south of Twelve Oaks Mall, I-96 and Novi Town Center. It would have 253 apartments in two four-story buildings, with attached parking and a 5,600-squarefoot commercial building. The urban design, placed in a suburban setting, reflects a trend toward creating more community-focused areas outside of dense cities. These choices are often made to lure in millennials, who are seen as desiring urban-style density and a sense of place. But at the same time, suburbanization is on the rise, according to a Brookings Institute analysis of U.S. census data. More than half of millennials who bought homes or condos last year did so in the suburbs, up from 43 percent in 2015, according to the National Association of Realtors. A decline in suburban growth brought on by the Great Recession has reversed, Brookings found. Since 2012, major city core population growth has halved, while in the exurbs it has quadrupled. In metro Detroit, cities including

HUMPHREYS AND PARTNERS ARCHITECTS

The Bond, a mixed-use development planned in Novi just south of Twelve Oaks Mall, would have 253 apartments and 5,578 square feet of commercial space.

Troy and Warren have crafted downtown community frameworks trending toward density and walkability over sprawl. Woods calls the Novi intersection at which they're building “semi-walkable.” “I really think you’re gonna start to see more and more of this product introduced in the Novis of the world, probably Rochester,” he said. “Walkability, as opposed to a traditional, suburban, two-story apartment complex.” He sees his development’s resident mix as 60 percent young professional, alongside retirees and empty nesters. DTN and Tricap’s development, dubbed the Bond, would be built on a slim, nearly 8-acre plot at the southwest corner of Grand River Avenue and Novi Road, according to city documents. A single-story commercial structure would accompany its two residential buildings with an attached

two-level parking deck. The architect is Dallas-based Humphreys and Partners Architects LP, which also designed the high-rise Foundry Lofts in Ann Arbor. They have yet to choose a general contractor. Pending approval, the team expects to start construction in April or May and finish in the end of 2020. The two apartment buildings and parking deck form a “U” shape that shelters a pool area and adjoining club rooms. The 20,000 square feet in amenities also includes four courtyards within the buildings’ footprints, a fitness center and bicycle storage. In its plans, the one- to three-bedroom apartments are an average of 800 square feet, ranging from around 600 square feet to more than 1,200. Rents aren’t solidified, but they’ll be “market-driven” and likely range between $1,300 and $2,200, Woods said.

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plan. How is the retention rate? Howrani: Right now, I think we’re at about 70 percent. What we did this past year is focus specifically on freshmen retention, because we knew our numbers were showing that we were losing a lot of freshmen at the end of the year. We came up with a freshman advisory program, where members of the leadership team, including the president, the principal, and different staff members who don’t necessarily interact with students on a daily basis, are assigned a specific group of students to mentor throughout the year. Burns: Children’s Hospital of Michigan Foundation recently provided a grant to Cristo Rey. What is that about? Howrani: We know that a lot of our students do not have proper eye care; many of them need glasses. We are providing eye screenings for all students. When those screenings come back and show that some students need glasses, we’re purchasing glasses for them as well. You can’t really learn if you can’t see.

Detroit Red Wings announcer Ken Daniels and his daughter, Arlyn Daniels, of the Jamie Daniels Foundation

Nancy Moody, vice president of public affairs for DTE Energy, and Lynette Dowler, president of DTE Energy Foundation

Larry Burns: We recently announced a partnership between the Children’s Hospital of Michigan Foundation and the Jamie Daniels Foundation. Tell readers about the Jamie Daniels Foundation and your journey and what you’re hoping to achieve with the partnership. Ken Daniels: We’re hoping to educate, end the stigma and end the shame that comes with those who view what they think addicts are. Addicts don’t want to be addicts. My son (Jamie Daniels, who died in 2016 of an opioid overdose while receiving treatment for addiction) didn’t want to be addicted. I just came from the dentist this morning and I asked the doctor, ‘how many Vicodin do you prescribe after wisdom teeth?’ and he replied that ‘they’re checking all of us now.” That’s the key. That’s step one, with the doctors. We want to help families and raise money. There’s a lot we can do. Parents leave unused prescription pills in the medicine cabinet, or kids receive them after getting their wisdom teeth out. If a doctor is prescribing 15, 10, or 20, and you only use five, well then, that 16-year-old comes home and wants Vicodin, wants OxyContin, and it’s available. It shouldn’t be in the house. That’s where we need to educate people: don’t leave stuff lying around. You don’t need that much, and the doctors need to know. Burns: What advice can you give to a parent or family member that is afraid that a child or a loved one is developing or has a problem.

Larry Burns: Talk about some of the things that DTE Energy is doing and your roles. Nancy Moody: On the corporate affairs side, we are responsible for all corporate social responsibility programs at DTE Energy, and we have a statewide strategy, nationwide, but we’re much more focused on Michigan than our other 25 states. Lynette Dowler: The DTE Energy Foundation has been really busy this year. We’ve got a long history of working with our community partners; we partnered with about 600 nonprofit organizations over the course of last year across the state investing about $21 million. We’ve really gotten clear about what our philanthropy is focused on so that when we work with our partners there’s real clarity around what kind of impact we want to make across the state. Our giving priorities are around six key areas. We’re invested in arts and culture; basic human needs (food, clothing, and shelter); community transformation (one of our major community initiatives is Beacon Park); environment; education and employment; and economic progress. Burns: Tell us about your involvement with Grow Detroit’s Young Talent. Dowler: Grow Detroit’s Young Talent is one of those partnerships that we have with the city, and DTE Energy Foundation has been a major contributor to the Grow Detroit’s Young Talent program. We invest in that and bring hundreds of young

Ken Daniels: Every situation is so different. Addicts will lie; addicts will manipulate. If you see that they’re acting differently, or if you suspect something, you need to speak with them and you need to get to a therapist who will get you to a reputable doctor. Most of the counties now are involved with Hope Not Handcuffs and Families Against Narcotics. If you’re struggling, you can walk into a police station and they’re not going to arrest you. They will get you into treatment. Burns: Arlyn, what have you been doing at the foundation to launch the partnership? Arlyn Daniels: I’ve been working on the marketing communication strategy, and we are really trying to push our name out there on all platforms and really trying to get people aware and involved and make our name known on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. You can follow us on there and find out more. Visit the website, jamiedanielsfoundation.org, and sign up for our newsletter.

Nancy Moody (top) and Lynette Dowler

people into work at DTE Energy, but we also have reached out to our supply base and encouraged our supply base partners that we work with to bring young people into their companies. I think it’s really paying it forward in a multiplicative way. Moody: This year, DTE will be bringing in 1,500 students from across the state of Michigan, between DTE and our suppliers. We’re quite proud that we’ve grown this program and we’re now working on quality jobs.

7/24/18 3:52 PM

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

OPINION COMMENTARY

Auto insurance: Where the candidates stand

or your ZIP code — then we haven’t fixed the problem, because they retain the ability to increase your rates arbitrarily on non-driving factors,” Whitmer said in an interview. “I believe that has got to be part of the solution too.”

he highest-in-the-nation premiums motorists pay for auto insurance in Michigan is a top-of-mind issue for voters this election year, and the state’s next governor could play a pivotal role in reshaping this multi-billion-dollar industry. All of the candidates running in the Democratic and Republican primaries on Aug. 7 have staked out positions on reforming 45-year-old nofault auto insurance law. Here’s a rundown of where the candidates stand on this hot-button issue:

REPUBLICANS

DEMOCRATS Abdul El-Sayed: The 33-year-old doctor-by-training has proposed creating a statewide single-payer health insurance system similar to Canada’s universal health care system. In doing so, El-Sayed says it would eliminate the need for Personal Injury Protection, the leading cost factor for auto insurance to cover medical bills for injured motorists. “We know that we pay way too much for auto insurance here in Michigan,” El-Sayed said in an interview for the Crain’s “Detroit Rising” podcast. “And part of the reason why is we’re asking auto insurance to be health insurance too.” El-Sayed wants to prohibit insurance companies from using nondriving factors such as age, gender, marital status, education and credit score to set rates for individual motorists. “They should be focused only on what your driving record is,” he said. El-Sayed also wants to establish a “truth in insurance commission” to examine how much money insurers make, how they set their rates and the liquidity and funding needs of the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association, a Livonia-based not-forprofit organization that pays medical bills for injured drivers that exceed $550,000. “It’s a multi-billion-dollar fund that these insurers are sitting on, and there’s really no oversight over it,” he said. Shri Thanedar: The 63-year-old chemist and entrepreneur also wants

CHAD LIVENGOOD/CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

The high cost of auto insurance in Michigan, particularly in Detroit, has become a top issue in the race for governor this year. This car was involved in an collision with a pickup truck on Gratiot Avenue in Detroit on the morning of July 26.

CHAD LIVENGOOD clivengood@crain.com

‘Detroit Rising’ podcast Crain’s Senior Reporter Chad Livengood talked to all the main candidates for governor and their views on issues that will affect Detroit’s future for his “Detroit Rising” podcast. You can find them on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts.

to ban the use of nondriving factors for determining insurance rates, a practice that is criticized as a form of legalized redlining to charge drivers in poorer urban areas like Detroit more for coverage than motorists in affluent suburban areas. “We’ve got to throw that all out,” Thanedar said in an interview. “Age, gender, education level, marital sta-

tus — what does that have to do with insurance rates? I want to outlaw that.” Thanedar also has called for greater transparency in the financial dealings of the MCCA, which publishes its annual audits but has fought attempts to make its actuarial assumptions for setting rates and long-term liabilities open to public scrutiny. On July 1, the MCCA raised its annual assessment on all insured vehicles in Michigan $170 to $192, a 13 percent increase. Gretchen Whitmer: The 46-year-old former state legislator from East Lansing has the endorsement of Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who has become a leading voice in pushing for auto insurance reform. But Whitmer is not completely aligned with the mayor on this issue. Duggan is pushing a “driver’s choice” plan to let motorists choose to accept lower medical coverage in exchange for rate relief. The plan Duggan pushed unsuccessfully last year would create tiers of medical coverage — $250,000, $500,000 and unlimited. The Duggan plan was opposed by

the Coalition Protecting Auto No Fault, a group that lobbies for medical providers and trial attorneys, who are political allies with Whitmer. Whitmer, who has vowed to make no-fault a reform “a major objective in my first 100 days as governor,” wants to maintain the unlimited medical coverage of the current system. She also has voiced support for creating an unspecified fee schedule, reining in the number of lawsuits in the system and creating an insurance fraud authority to lower medical costs that get passed onto consumers. “We do need to maintain the spirit of no-fault,” Whitmer said in an interview. “People that are catastrophically injured, it is a system that has really given people dignity and the ability to survive and lead decent lives after unimaginable injury.” And unlike Duggan, Whitmer is pushing for a ban on redlining too. “... If we don’t address the discrimination problem — where insurance companies can decide your rates based on your credit rating or your marital status or your education level

tives to give journalists stories for a year. That is not going to happen anymore. But the key point is for the auto show to attract a lot of folks from Southeast Michigan. Particularly folks who might be interested in buying a new car. The international auto show had a good run. It was America’s leading motor show for over a quarter of a century. We attracted tens of thousands of journalists to our city, who watched the city improve every year. I like to think that now we will have a festival in June for everyone who loves the automobile. There will be

plenty of activities for the family to enjoy, and certainly there is nothing better than Michigan in the summer. We can leave it to Chicago and New York and Los Angeles to duke it out to be the top traditional auto show. It may well be that Detroit will be inventing a brand new type of auto show in America. The model seems to be the English Goodwood festival, which gets millions of folks to come out to celebrate the car. In Italy, they used to have a festival of cars in Bologna that also attracted millions. There may be a place for two kinds

Brian Calley: The 41-year-old lieutenant governor has called for ending the “very predictable gridlock” that ensues every time auto insurance reformers try to craft a package of bills that make sweeping changes to the system. Calley wants to start small with the creation of a new state agency to investigate and root out fraud and overused medical procedures in auto insurance claims that insurers say drive up rates. In the Legislature, there’s generally been support for creating a fraud authority. But the proposal tends to die on the legislative vine when lumped together with more controversial reforms, such as capping medical coverage. “Our proposal will break that gridlock,” Calley said. Like other candidates for governor, Calley also wants to subject the MCCA to more transparency. “It will identify why it is that I’m paying $514 every six months for my coverage under the same laws as everybody else and places like Detroit are as much as ten times more,” Calley said. Calley also has aligned himself with Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson and CPAN, who have proposed a fee schedule of 185 percent of the rates doctors get paid for treating Medicare patients. Patrick Colbeck: The 52-year-old state senator from Canton Township is the only major-party candidate for governor advocating for scrapping the no-fault system altogether. Colbeck wants to take Michigan back to a tort-based system, where injured drivers have to sue the other motorist to get their hospital and rehabilitation bills paid. SEE LIVENGOOD, PAGE 9

Maybe it will work

t is with a great deal of sadness that I say goodbye to the North American International Auto Show as we knew it, and welcome back the Detroit Auto Show. No one was ever happy about having the show in January. But it fit into the schedule of international auto shows. But June is fine. There are no international shows scheduled. Detroiters might love June. The new show sounds like a festival. Unfortunately, there are so many activities going on in June, it may be a challenge to get families downtown. But let’s hope and keep our fingers crossed.

KEITH CRAIN Editor in chief

The only reason that thousands of press arrived in Detroit was because we saw lots of new model introductions and there was access to plenty of international automotive execu-

of shows, and Detroit may be the first to celebrate our Festival of Cars. Sure, we’ll have a lot of empty hotels in January. But we will think of something to fill them. We can attract a major convention to Cobo Center now that it is not being used that time of year. It is a whole brave new world. We had our Super Bowl and we had our North American International Auto Show. They were great while they lasted. Now we have the first annual festival of cars. Just in Detroit. Let us hope it lasts for a quarter of a century.

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

Fanuc plans $51M robotics center in Auburn Hills By Kurt Nagl knagl@crain.com

Fanuc America Corp. is planning to invest $51 million into a massive new high-tech robotics facility in Auburn Hills next to its North American headquarters. The 461,000-square-foot building will be at 1100 Entrance Drive near Squirrel and Butler roads, according to Gary Weisman and Bruce Brickman, co-owners of General Development Co. LLC, which owns the nearly 25-acre property on which it will construct the new facility. General Development and Fanuc finalized on Wednesday an agreement for the developers to construct the facility and sell the building and property to the robotics company, Weisman said. He declined to discuss financial details. The robotics supplier, a subsidiary of Japanese giant Fanuc Corp., aims to have 300 workers at the facility

LIVENGOOD FROM PAGE 8

Thirty-eight states have tort auto insurance systems. Some legislators who live in counties bordering Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin — all tort states — want to go back to being a tort system, citing the fact the no-fault law has not stopped an ever-increasing number of lawsuits. Eliminating the medical coverage “mandate” could lower insurance rates by 40 percent to 60 percent, according to Colbeck. Colbeck has said the MCCA’s existing $20 billion in assets could still be used to pay for the medical bills of catastrophically injured drivers. Jim Hines: The 63-year-old obstetrician is a long-shot candidate for the Republican nomination. But he has staked his campaign for governor on the fact his GOP rivals have been in government for years and not made any traction in reforming auto insurance. Hines favors new cost controls for medical providers who treat injured drivers, whose insurance is often the best-paying customer. “Right now, if you had a cough and went to your doctor and he ordered a chest X-ray, it’d be about $65,” Hines said in an interview. “If you were in an auto accident and you have a chest X-ray, it’s $600 — or even more.” Bill Schuette: The 64-year-old attorney general said he supports letting drivers opt out of unlimited medical coverage to get lower-cost insurance — aligning himself closer to Duggan on this issue than Whitmer is. “We need to crack down on insurance fraud,” Schuette said in an interview. “Second, we need to stop frivolous lawsuits, which means tort reform. And then thirdly, we need to give Michigan families ... choices in terms of their insurance coverage.” Schuette, who was a state senator from 1995 to 2002, has criticized the current Republican-controlled Legislature and Calley for failing to make any progress on reforming auto insurance. “Nothing’s been done in last eight years and double that at 16 (years) — something has to happen," Schuette said. “... I’m going to bring everybody in — no preconceived notion as to who’s a winner, who’s a loser. Everyone’s going to have to give and everyone’s going to have to win a little bit.” Chad Livengood: (313) 446-1654 Twitter: @ChadLivengood

GENERAL DEVELOPMENT CO.

The 461,000-square-foot building will be near Squirrel and Butler roads.

eventually, Weisman said. The project is receiving a $1 million Michigan Business Development Program performance-based

grant for creation of 100 jobs, according to the news release. It is also receiving a $3.5 million property tax abatement from Auburn Hills.

Construction is expected to start in the next couple of weeks, with completion set for fall 2019. General Development is handling the contract and design work, Weisman said. The company will consolidate and expand operations from other locations in metro Detroit area to the new facility. The facility will be used for robotics staging and light assembly for the company, which also delivers CNC systems and factory automation. It supplies various industries, including automotive, aerospace, food, consumer goods and medical. Once built, it will become the third-largest industrial building in Auburn Hills, behind FCA US LLC’s head-

quarters and technical center and ABB’s North American robotics headquarters, the city said in a release. Fanuc employs more than 1,400 people in North and South America. Its parent company had 2017 revenue of $4.8 billion. General Development owns more than 1,000 acres of land in the area as part of the Oakland Technology Park project — a joint venture with Farmington Hills-based Friedman Integrated Real Estate Solutions LLC — which has drawn $100 million in investment from major corporations. Kurt Nagl: (313) 446-0337 Twitter: @kurt_nagl

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13. Co De

2018’s fastest-growing companies By Rachelle Damico and Sonya Hill

elcome to Crain’s Fast 50, our annual survey of the fastest-growing companies on metro Detroit’s business scene. ¶ In the ranks of this year’s list, which are based on results for the past three years, you’ll see the fingerprints of many of the trends shaping our business lives: the construction boom fueled by rising real estate prices and downtown Detroit’s resurgence; high automotive sales that spur the local economy; and big acquisitions that offer overnight growth. ¶ We don’t pick the companies by a pure percentage growth rate alone. Instead, we rank companies by percentage revenue growth between 2014 and 2017, and also by the dollar amount of revenue growth. The two rankings are then added together to create the list. The lower the number, the higher the final ranking.

3. Piston Group

9. General RV Center Inc.

Revenue 2014: $838,242,575 Revenue 2017: $1,707,928,056 Three-year percentage change: 104 What it does: Automotive supplier How it grew: Organic growth from existing customers that include Ford Motor Co., as well as new customers that include FCA and Toyota. The company has also grown through acquisitions, including the $175 million acquisition of Takata Corp. subsidiary Irvin Automotive Inc., which expanded the company into design, engineering and manufacturing. The company has also seen growth from the formation of Detroit Thermal Systems LLC, a majority controlled joint venture with Valeo SA. Company: Holding company for Piston Automotive, Irvin Automotive, Detroit Thermal Systems and Airea.

Revenue 2014: $453,000,000 Revenue 2017: $827,574,349 Three-year percentage change: 83 What it does: Recreational vehicle dealership How it grew: Growth stems from increased market share and out-of-state expansions. It opened new supercenters in Wixom and Tampa in 2014, and a supercenter in Richmond opened last year. The company has also seen strong sales growth and increased market share in each of their markets.

4. Sun Communities Inc. Revenue 2014: $471,675,000 Revenue 2017: $982,570,000 Three-year percentage change: 108 What it does: Real estate operations How it grew: Growth from acquisitions, including a landmark acquisition valued at approximately $1.7 billion in 2016. Also contributing to growth is expansion site development of existing communities, totaling about 2,100 sites developed in 2017 across the country, with many sites located in Michigan. Over the last seven years, their portfolio has increased from 136 communities nationwide and 45,000 housing sites to 350 communities nationwide and over 122,000 housing sites, said John McLaren, president.

UNITED SHORE

Employees at United Shore Financial Services have grown from 1,000 team members in 2014 to more than 2,600 employees, enabling speedier operations. The company built a new welcome center in 2017 as part of a $250,000 office upgrade.

1. United Shore Financial Services LLC Revenue 2014: $355,604,000 Revenue 2017: $1,086,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 205 What it does: Mortgage lender How it grew: Loan production volume has grown from roughly $10 billion in 2014 to $30 billion in 2017. The company has also grown to own more than 18.6 percent of market share within the wholesale mortgage business. Employees have grown from 1,000 team members in 2014 to more than 2,600 employees, enabling speedier operations.

2. Meridian Health Plan Revenue 2014: $2,022,604,510 Revenue 2017: $3,810,647,282 Three-year percentage change: 88 What it does: Government health insurance programs How it grew: Growth has been driven by Meridian’s Medicaid health plans in Michigan and Illinois, expanding into more counties through their marketplace product, MeridianChoice, as well as gaining Medicare members in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio through MeridianCare. Meridian’s pharmacy benefit management company, MeridianRx, has also steadily grown since its inception. Company: Sold to Tampa-based Wellcare Health Plans Inc. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

5. American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. Revenue 2014: $3,696,000,000 Revenue 2017: $6,266,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 70 What it does: Automotive supplier How it grew: In 2017, the company reached $6.3 billion in sales and $1.1 billion in gross profit, a record for the company. Growth from light vehicle production in North America, Asia and Europe. The company also benefited from consumer demand and increased global market share of crossover vehicles, SUVs and full-size trucks, and from strong commercial vehicle and industrial market demand.

LARRY PEPLIN

Rising real estate prices and downtown Detroit’s resurgence fueled a construction boom — and business growth. Little Caesars Arena was one of those catalytic projects. It opened in 2017.

6. Barton Malow Co. Revenue 2014: $1,497,977,769 Revenue 2017: $2,591,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 73 What it does: General contracting, construction management, design/build, engineer-procure-construct, integrated project delivery, self-perform services: civil, concrete, rigging and interiors How it grew: Driving growth is the completion of Little Caesar’s Arena and the Campus Crossroads addition to the University of Norte Dame Stadium. The company also broke ground on the J.L. Hudson’s department store site and the Shinola hotel. Additionally, the company has grown by 300 employees since last year and is doing continuous work with DTE Energy Co., Consumers Energy Co., General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.

7. The Christman Co. Revenue 2014: $61,066,000 Revenue 2017: $305,881,508 Three-year percentage change: 401 What it does: Construction management, general contracting, design/build, facilities planning and analysis, program management, real estate development, self-perform skilled construction trades How it grew: Projects fueling growth include Little Caesars World Headquarters Campus Expansion (in partnership with Brinker Group), Wayne State Mike Ilitch School of Business (in partnership with Brinker Group), General Services Administration Levin Federal Courthouse alteration, and the restoration of Henry Ford’s historic Fair Lane home (operated by nonprofit Henry Ford Estate Inc).

8. Victory Automotive Group Inc. Revenue 2014: $1,033,479,998 Revenue 2017: $1,760,259,716 Three-year percentage change: 70 What it does: Automotive dealerships How it grew: Purchasing and overturning previously struggling automotive dealerships.

10. Loc Performance Products Inc. Revenue 2014: $43,000,000 Revenue 2017: $154,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 258 What it does: Large fabricated structures, final drives, suspension and track systems for Army combat vehicles How it grew: Continuous work with the U.S. army. In 2017, the company was awarded a $417 million defense contract from the U.S. Army Tacom Life Cycle Management Command in Warren to restore lost mobility to as many as 2,264 Bradley Fighting Vehicles.

11. The Diez Group Revenue 2014: $733,000,000 Revenue 2017: $1,190,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 62 What it does: Aluminum and steel sales, processing and warehousing companies How it grew: Added new sites and new equipment to its portfolio and was buoyed by a strong manufacturing sector. However, the impact of current U.S. and foreign tariffs may hold down its future sales.

12. Frank Rewold and Son Inc. Revenue 2014: $70,076,250 Revenue 2017: $182,126,141 Three-year percentage change: 160 What it does: Construction management, general contracting, design/build How it grew: Repeat clients, as well as notable construction projects including Oak View Hall, a $30 million Oakland University student housing complex that opened in 2014 at Oakland University, a bond program for Rochester Community Schools, Par Pharmaceutical Inc., and Oakland County Animal Shelter and Pet Adoption Center.

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13. Oliver/Hatcher Construction and Development Inc. Revenue 2014: $53,756,000 Revenue 2017: $147,163,000 Three-year percentage change: 174 What it does: Construction manager, general contractor and design/build How it grew: The uptick in commercial real estate construction has been a boon to Oliver/Hatcher as the company landed contracts to build Amazon.com Inc.’s 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center in Livonia in 2016-17 and, in 2015, the 575,000-square-foot Tri-County Commerce Center that now houses Amazon, LG Electronics and Bridgewater Interiors. Those two properties accounted for a good portion of the company’s large revenue increase, as did some smaller ground-up buildings and interior office build-outs.

14. The Colasanti Cos. Revenue 2014: $66,900,000 Revenue 2017: $162,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 142 What it does: General contracting and construction management and design/ build; self-perform concrete services How it grew: Construction activity in southeast Michigan has increased in recent years with a flurry of activity in downtown Detroit as well the suburbs. Colasanti has been active in both. It has done projects for Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock LLC real estate development, ownership, management and leasing company as well as the Ilitch family’s Olympia Development of Michigan, among others. Scott Kowalkowsi, vice president of business development for Colasanti, said the company’s revenue as of mid-July was steady from about the same point as last year. “The market is busy and our increase is a result of that,” Kowalkowski said. “There is a lot of activity in the metro Detroit area.”

15. U.S. Farathane Revenue 2014: $500,000,000 Revenue 2017: $810,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 62 What it does: Plastic injection molder, extruder, thermal compression molder How it grew: Continues to succeed on strong global vehicle demand as well as expanded product lines and acquired operations in key markets Mexico and China.

CONTRIBUTED

The uptick in commercial real estate construction has been a boon to companies like Oliver/Hatcher, which landed contracts to build Amazon.com Inc.’s 1 millionsquare-foot fulfillment center in Livonia in 2016-17.

18. Motor City Electric Co.

21. Hatch Stamping Co.

Revenue 2014: $260,482,000 Revenue 2017: $419,838,000 Three-year percentage change: 61 What it does: Electrical contractor How it grew: Numerous projects with Bedrock LLC and Ilitch Holdings Inc. It benefited from the uptick in the economy and worked on Detroit’s Big Three automakers’ plant and office expansions. The company’s subsidiaries, Motor City Electric Utilities, Motor City Electric Technologies and Rotor Electric of Michigan, have also doubled in size.

19. Domino’s Pizza Inc. Revenue 2014: $1,993,833,000 Revenue 2017: $2,788,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 40 What it does: Restaurant franchisor How it grew: Strong domestic and international store growth. The company has expanded to more than 85 countries, with strong global retail sales. Product reformulation and technology investments that help customers order and interact with the brand have also contributed to growth.

Revenue 2014: $723,500,000 Revenue 2017: $1,110,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 53 What it does: Financial institution How it grew: Growth in consumer loan originations.

Revenue 2014: $646,626,000 Revenue 2017: $997,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 54 What it does: Financial institution How it grew: Growth from strengthening its middle market lending in Michigan, as well as building national business lines in warehouse lending, home builder finance and equipment finance. Flagstar’s pending acquisition of 52 branches of Wells Fargo in four Midwestern states will also fuel the company for future growth.

22. Spence Brothers Revenue 2014: $37,968,124 Revenue 2017: $90,400,000 Three-year percentage change: 138 What it does: General contractor; construction manager How it grew: Benefited from the construction boom in Southeast Michigan, particularly related to new high-rise student housing in Ann Arbor, said Wayne Hofmann, strategic initiatives manager. Higher education, healthcare and municipal markets have remained strong, and the company has seen growth from private development projects.

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23. Commercial Contracting Group Inc. Revenue 2014: $321,000,000 Revenue 2017: $480,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 50 What it does: General contractor, machinery installer, building interiors, concrete How it grew: Automotive spending surge and continued diversification into other markets, said Matt Stone, Vice President of Business Development.

16. Credit Acceptance Corp.

17. Flagstar Bancorp Inc.

Revenue 2014: $129,000,000 Revenue 2017: $217,167,000 Three-year percentage change: 68 What it does: Manufacturing How it grew: Continued expansion in Michigan, Tennessee, Mexico and China. Also saw growth from capital investments and investments in engineering and technology.

24. O’Brien Construction Inc.

DOMINO’S

Domino’s Pizza Inc. has expanded to more than 85 countries.

20. Agree Realty Corp. Revenue 2014: $53,558,857 Revenue 2017: $116,902,000 Three-year percentage change: 118 What it does: Real estate investment trust How it grew: Invested over $1 billion in the development and acquisitions of net lease retail properties, which includes 436 properties in 43 states.

Revenue 2014: $24,756,473 Revenue 2017: $65,233,182 Three-year percentage change: 163 What it does: General contractor and construction manager How it grew: Saw growth from the large uptick in market rate multi-family housing being constructed in Southeastern Michigan, expanding the company’s private client base to 70 percent of their revenues, said Timothy O’Brien, president. Also saw growth from low income housing projects.

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CRAIN’S FAST 50 25. LaFontaine Automotive Group Revenue 2014: $663,286,098 Revenue 2017: $925,238,098 Three-year percentage change: 39 What it does: Automobile dealerships How it grew: Acquired additional dealerships and increased new and pre-owned vehicle sales.

25. Advantage Management Group Inc-Advantage Living Centers Revenue 2014: $60,000,000 Revenue 2017: $108,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 80 What it does: Skilled-nursing homes, assisted living How it grew: Acquisitions during 2015-2017 more than doubled revenue. Notable acquisitions include the purchase of two nursing facilities from Henry Ford Health System for $12.8 million in 2015.

27. Lipari Foods LLC Revenue 2014: $555,000,000 Revenue 2017: $775,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 40 What it does: Wholesale food distribution. Lipari Foods’ truck fleet delivers to 15 states How it grew: Organic growth. Additional growth stemmed from acquisitions and product category expansion, said Thom Lipari, president.

28. The Mars Agency Revenue 2014: $59,838,412 Revenue 2017: $106,072,076 Three-year percentage change: 77 What it does: Advertising and integrated marketing agency with a focus on consumer brands and retail How it grew: Expanded operations in North America and Europe, as well as India, South Korea and several other countries in Asia. Recent growth has come from the company’s expanding product portfolio, including digital, e-commerce and emerging technologies that include voice-activated shopping services. Its service sectors expanded from consumer packaged goods to include wine, beer, spirits, cosmetics, medical products and various retail sectors that include drug, grocery, home improvement and pet goods.

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29. H.W. Kaufman Group Inc./Burns & Wilcox Ltd.

32. Devon Industrial Group

Revenue 2014: $1,625,000,000 Revenue 2017: $2,100,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 29 What it does: Provides insurance services including distribution, brokerage, underwriting, reinsurance, real estate, premium financing, inspections, audits, risk management and third-party claims administration How it grew: Organic growth, acquisitions and investment in hiring quality, revenue-producing talent, said Daniel T. Muldowney, Executive VP and CFO.

Revenue 2014: $90,778,101 Revenue 2017: $145,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 60 What it does: Construction management, general contracting, program management, design build, pre-construction and decommissioning services How it grew: Growth from existing customers, as well as new customers in the higher education sector.

34. MJC Cos.

30. Aristeo Construction Co. Revenue 2014: $315,600,000 Revenue 2017: $448,600,000 Three-year percentage change: 42 What it does: General contractor and construction manager How it grew: Growth is supported by a strong presence in the manufacturing, higher education and energy sectors.

31. TI Fluid Systems (formerly TI Automotive) Revenue 2014: $3,300,000,000 Revenue 2017: $4,193,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 27 What it does: Global tier-one supplier of automotive fluid systems technology How it grew: Customer diversification and investment in technologies. Company: Acquired by Bain Capital LLC in June 2015. In October 2017, started listing shares on the London Stock Exchange under the ticker TIFS. TI Fluid Systems has headquarters in Oxford, England, and a corporate office in Auburn Hills.

ZEE ZEES

National Food Group Inc. has seen growth from the launch of their Zee Zees brand of healthy snack foods for kids, which reached K-12 schools nationwide.

Revenue 2014: $65,125,504 Revenue 2017: $106,898,334 Three-year percentage change: 64 What it does: Residential, apartment, commercial construction, builder and developer How it grew: Invested in talent and purchased foreclosed properties during the economic downturn, increasing inventory. Significant projects include Bradbury at Stoney Creek and single family homes in Washington Township.

35. Sherwood Food Distributors

32. National Food Group Inc. Revenue 2014: $76,411,167 Revenue 2017: $124,907,000 Three-year percentage change: 63 What it does: Wholesale and retail food manufacturing and distribution, commodity processing How it grew: The company has seen growth from the launch of their Zee Zees brand of healthy snack foods for kids, which reached K-12 schools nationwide. Last year, Zee Zees kicked off on Amazon Prime and QVC.

Revenue 2014: $1,740,752,533 Revenue 2017: $2,198,932,826 Three-year percentage change: 26 What it does: Wholesale food distributor How it grew: Acquisitions, and from servicing independent and regional chain grocery stores. It has also expanded product lines to its national, regional and local customers, said Jason Ishbia, president. Company: Sherwood Food Distributors merged with San Diego-based Harvest Food Distributors in April 2017. The firms will continue to do business under their current names under the deal.

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CRAIN’S FAST 50 36. Penske Corp.

43. Acro Service Corp.

45. Clark Hill PLC

48. MPS Group Inc.

ruc-

Revenue 2014: $26,350,000,000 Revenue 2017: $31,800,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 21 What it does: Retail automotive, truck leasing and logistics, motorsports racing How it grew: Same-store growth and acquisitions.

37. Kirco Manix

Revenue 2014: $260,160,000 Revenue 2017: $354,112,233 Three-year percentage change: 36 What it does: Staff augmentation, outsourcing and IT and engineering consulting, application development and enablement, relational database design and development, Web design and development How it grew: Invested in talent and saw growth from creating tailored workforce-related Managed Service Programs. Also saw growth from their technology-enabled staffing services.

Revenue 2014: $135,004,000 Revenue 2017: $193,600,000 Three-year percentage change: 43 What it does: Law firm How it grew: Completed several strategic mergers, doubling the number of attorneys to more than 650. Expanded presence on the west coast, increasing the demand for services. The firm’s Washington, D.C. office has also seen significant growth from services related to governmental and regulatory matters.

Revenue 2014: $69,000,000 Revenue 2017: $106,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 54 What it does: Total waste management, paint shop management and industrial cleaning and maintenance How it grew: New service offerings, customer retention, expansion and diversification, and bolt-on acquisitions have all contributed to the company’s growth. MPS has also seen growth from its Total Paint Shop Management business as well as significant expansion of its steel mill service capabilities that was supported by an acquisition in 2014.

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Revenue 2014: $45,000,000 Revenue 2017: $78,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 73 What it does: Design and build, construction management How it grew: Diversified into the senior living market. Major projects that have contributed to growth include the Dow Chemical Company headquarters in Midland, which opened in 2017.

38. Amerilodge Group LLC Revenue 2014: $28,143,000 Revenue 2017: $57,009,872 Three-year percentage change: 103 What it does: Hospitality How it grew: Continued expansion of new hotels in Indiana and Michigan, said Asad Malik, president and CEO. Additionally, the company has seen increased occupancy in its existing hotels.

44. Alta Equipment Co. Revenue 2014: $275,000,000 Revenue 2017: $370,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 35 What it does: Heavy construction equipment, material handling equipment, industrial equipment, cranes How it grew: Growth from expanding their product lines and service capabilities for their construction equipment group, leading to an increase in sales. The company also completed an acquisition in 2017 of an industrial equipment competitor in the Chicago market, Ryan Greenawalt, president and CEO said.

39. Buff Whelan Chevrolet Revenue 2014: $183,919,100 Revenue 2017: $261,609,317 Three-year percentage change: 42 What it does: Automotive dealership sales and service How it grew: Increased vehicle sales due to rising popularity of General Motors’ brands and increased focus on customer service.

40. Shaw Electric Co. Revenue 2014: $42,000,000 Revenue 2017: $73,183,000 Three-year percentage change: 74 What it does: Electrical, fire alarm, security and teledata contractor How it grew: Expanded low voltage systems services and expanded into the automotive research and development market, Robert Minielly, president and CEO said. Additionally, the company added a service department, and expanded into the Lansing market.

Revenue 2014: $170,500,000 Revenue 2017: $240,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 41 What it does: Distributor of pipe, valves, fittings, heating and cooling, control and instrumentation, boilers, pumps repair, steam products, sanitary piping product and fire protection How it grew: Acquisitions in Indiana and North Carolina.

47. Secure-24 LLC Revenue 2014: $73,000,000 Revenue 2017: $112,720,000 Three-year percentage change: 54 What it does: Global provider of managed cloud and security services, IT operations and application hosting How it grew: Organic growth by expanding services to existing clients and to new, larger clients.

49. Roush Enterprises Revenue 2014: $440,000,000 Revenue 2017: $567,300,000 Three-year percentage change: 29 What it does: Engineering, product development, and integration specialists; development and manufacturing of performance vehicles, aftermarket components and alternative fuel systems for fleet applications How it grew: Continued diversification of its products, services and customer base, as well as strong growth in the automotive sector and other areas that include entertainment (theme parks) and aerospace. The company has also added two facilities in Florida to support work in the theme park industry and the company’s vehicle testing activities. Additionally, new technologies being introduced in the connected and autonomous vehicle market is driving increased demand for vehicle integration services.

Revenue 2014: $81,000,000 Revenue 2017: $121,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 49 What it does: Complex plastic injection molds, premium injection molded parts and assemblies, consumer products, polyurethane and skin form tooling, microcellular foam tooling, conformal cooling technologies, vaccuum metalizing, rapid prototyping and web-based management of tooling and process data How it grew: Growth from the purchase and expansion of a manufacturing company in Windsor, Ontario in 2015, as well as the launch of a digital platform company in Warren in 2015. The company also opened new manufacturing facilities in Tennessee and South Carolina and expanded its Warren-based manufacturing facility.

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41. Art Van Furniture Inc. Revenue 2014: $620,000,000 Revenue 2017: $800,000,000 Three-year percentage change: 29 What it does: Retail home furnishings How it grew: Acquisitions, new stores and new franchises have driven growth. Last year, the company purchased Levin Furniture in Pittsburgh and Wolf Furniture Co. in Altoona, Pa., for an undisclosed amount, adding 53 stores and 1,900 employees. Company: Art Van Elslander, founder, sold the company to Boston-based private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners in February 2017.

45. The Macomb Group Inc.

50. Proper Group International Inc.

Corporate matters including business formations, mergers and acquisitions

Experience assisting companies based outside the United States in compliance matters involving the Committee on Foreign Investment, Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Department of the State, and the Bureau of Industry and Security Assists clients in resolving tax disputes with the IRS and Michigan Department of Treasury

42. Arbor Bancorp Inc. (Bank of Ann Arbor) Revenue 2014: $46,599,000 Revenue 2017: $78,981,000 Three-year percentage change: 69 What it does: Bank How it grew: Organic growth and acquisitions, including last year’s purchase of the Bank of Birmingham.

First Tier Ranking in Corporate Law and Commercial Litigation

Contact John Kenny at jmkenny@varnumlaw.com

C R A I N â&#x20AC;&#x2122; S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

CRAIN'S LIST: THE FAST 50

Company Address Rank Phone; website

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

United Shore Financial Services LLC, Troy

$1,086.0 $355.6

205%

$730.4

Meridian Health Plan, Detroit

3,810.6 2,022.6

1,788.0

Piston Group, Southfield

1,707.9 838.2

104

869.7

Sun Communities Inc., Southfield

982.6 471.7

108

510.9

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc., Detroit

6,266.0 3,696.0

2,570.0

Barton Malow Co., Southfield

2,591.0 1,498.0

1,093.0

The Christman Co., Detroit

305.9 61.1

401

244.8

Victory Automotive Group Inc., Canton Township

1,760.3 1,033.5

726.8

General RV Center Inc., Wixom

827.6 453.0

374.6

Loc Performance Products Inc.,

154.0 43.0

258

111.0

The Diez Group, Dearborn

1,190.0 733.0

457.0

Frank Rewold and Son Inc. , Rochester

182.1 70.1

160

112.0

Oliver/Hatcher Construction

147.2 53.8

174

93.4

The Colasanti Cos., Macomb

162.0 66.9

142

95.1

U.S. Farathane, Auburn Hills

810.0 500.0

310.0

Credit Acceptance Corp., Southfield

1,110.0 723.5

386.5

Flagstar Bancorp Inc., Troy

997.0 646.6

350.4

Motor City Electric Co., Detroit

419.8 260.5

159.4

Domino's Pizza Inc., Ann Arbor

2,788.0 1,993.8

794.2

Agree Realty Corp., Farmington Hills

116.9 53.6

118

63.3

Hatch Stamping Co., Chelsea

217.2 129.0

88.2

Spence Brothers, Ann Arbor

90.4 38.0

138

52.4

Commercial Contracting Group Inc., Auburn Hills

480.0 321.0

159.0

O'Brien Construction Inc., Troy

65.2 24.8

163

40.5

LaFontaine Automotive Group,

925.2 663.3

262.0

10 Plymouth 11 12

13 and Development Inc., Novi 13 Township 15 16 17 18 18 20 21 22 23 24

Combined 3-year revenue Revenue Revenue % Revenue Revenue growth ($000,000) % change change growth growth rankings 2017/2014 2017-2014 ranking 2016-2013 ranking

25 Highland Township

Advantage Management Group

$108.0 $60.0

80%

$48.0

Lipari Foods LLC, Warren

775.0 555.0

220.0

The Mars Agency, Southfield

106.1 59.8

46.2

H.W. Kaufman Group Inc./Burns & Wilcox Ltd., Farmington Hills

100

2,100.0 1,625.0

475.0

Aristeo Construction Co.,

101

448.6 315.6

133.0

TI Fluid Systems (formerly TI

102

4,193.0 3,300.0

893.0

National Food Group Inc., Novi

106

124.9 76.4

48.5

Devon Industrial Group, Detroit

106

145.0 90.8

54.2

MJC Cos., Macomb Township

110

106.9 65.1

41.8

Sherwood Food Distributors,

112

2,198.9 1,740.8

458.2

Penske Corp., Bloomfield Hills

113

31,800.0 26,350.0

111

5,450.0

Kirco Manix , Troy

115

78.0 45.0

33.0

Amerilodge Group LLC,

116

57.0 28.1

103

28.9

103

Buff Whelan Chevrolet, Sterling

117

261.6 183.9

77.7

Shaw Electric Co., Southfield

119

73.2 42.0

31.2

Art Van Furniture Inc., Warren

119

800.0 620.0

180.0

Arbor Bancorp Inc. (Bank of

120

79.0 46.6

32.4

Acro Service Corp., Livonia

122

354.1 260.2

94.0

Alta Equipment Co., Livonia

122

370.0 275.0

95.0

Clark Hill PLC, Detroit

123

193.6 135.0

58.6

The Macomb Group Inc.,

123

240.0 170.5

69.5

Secure-24 LLC, Southfield

124

112.7 73.0

39.7

MPS Group Inc., Farmington Hills

128

106.0 69.0

37.0

Roush Enterprises, Livonia

129

567.3 440.0

127.3

Proper Group International

131

121.0 81.0

40.0

Living Centers, 25 Inc-Advantage Southfield

27 28 29

30 Livonia

31 Automotive), Auburn Hills 32 32 34

35 Detroit 36 37

38 Bloomfield Hills 39 Heights 40 40

42 Ann Arbor), Ann Arbor 43 43 45

45 Sterling Heights 47 48 49

Combined 3-year revenue Revenue Revenue % Revenue Revenue growth ($000,000) % change change growth growth rankings 2017/2014 2017-2014 ranking 2016-2013 ranking

50 Inc., Warren

This list is an approximate compilation of the fastest-growing companies in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw and Livingston counties. Fastest growing is a measurement of revenue growth and does not denote whether a company is profitable. It is not a complete listing but the most comprehensive available. LIST RESEARCHED BY SONYA D. HILL

LIST RESEARCHED BY SONYA D. HILL

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C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

DEALS & DETAILS

CALENDAR

CONTRACTS

TUESDAY, JULY 31

J Clixie Media LLC, Ann Arbor, a technology company specializing in interactive video, announced a new partnership with the Android Partner Training division of Google LLC, Mountain View, Calif. Clixie will add interactive bookmarks, in-video quizzing and conditional learning paths to Google's video training content for Google partners. Websites: clixiemedia.com, google.com. J Verifi 1 Inc. (dba Verifi1), Westland, a provider of dependent eligibility verification (DEV) services, announced a marketing alliance with Liazon Corp., Buffalo, N.Y., a provider of private benefit exchanges (aka benefit marketplaces), to offer DEV services to all of Liazon’s direct and broker-driven clients. Websites: verifi1.com, liazon.com.

EXPANSIONS Calstart, Pasadena, Calif., a national nonprofit organization focused on growing the clean transportation technology industry, announced that it is opening an office in Troy. A key factor in opening a Michigan office was the growth of Calstart’s business in the Midwest. Website: calstart.org. J Domino's Pizza Inc., Ann Arbor, will be opening four new stores in metro Detroit — in Fenton, Garden City, Whitmore Lake and Clio. Mike Murphy of Gerdom Realty & Investment, Novi, represented Domino’s in all of the transactions. Websites: dominos.com, gerdomrealty.com. J Roush Entertainment Systems, Livonia, a division of Roush Enterprises Inc., a product development services supplier, is opening an Orlando, Fla.-based facility to expand the division’s ongoing support of the themed attraction industry. Roush Entertainment Systems engineers, designs and builds ride seat systems, show-action equipment and animatronics for the world’s top theme parks. The new

technical center is expected to be fully operational in November 2018. Website: roush.com.

MOVES J George W. Auch Co., a construction management and contracting firm, has moved its headquarters from 735 S. Paddock St., Pontiac, to a new 20,000-square-foot facility on 3.66 acres of land at 65 University Drive, Pontiac. Website: auchconstruction.com.

NAME CHANGES Lockwood Management LLC, Southfield, a builder, real estate developer and property management company, announced that Lockwood Multifamily has been rebranded to Lockwood Residential. The new name more accurately reflects the range and diversity of services offered to residents. Websites: lockwoodcompanies. com, lockwoodresidential.com. J

NEW SERVICES J ManagedWay Co., Southfield, a cloud services provider, announced that it has begun providing 100 Gbps fiber optic internet access direct to customer premises. Website: ManagedWay.com.

STARTUPS J Airfoil Group, Royal Oak, a public relations and marketing communications firm, has launched a new peer agency — Airfoil Digital — to support local businesses in their digital marketing efforts. Led by industry veteran Jon Pielak, Airfoil Digital will provide strategic services to clients looking to expand their outreach and engage users in areas including content management and demand generation. Websites: airfoilgroup.com, airfoildigital. com.

All Small Mentor Protege Program. 9 a.m.-noon July 31. Schoolcraft College. Class provides an overview of the Small Business Administration All Small Mentor-Protege Program and its qualifications. Expectations for participation, program restrictions and benefits to both the protege and mentor are explained. Joint ventures, teaming and subcontracting are also covered. Free. Schoolcraft College. Contact: Kara or Shannon, phone: (734) 4624438; email: ptac@schoolcraft.edu; website: schoocraft.edu/collegeevents/2018/08/23/college-events/ government-contracting-101 Mobility — Three Important Trends for 2018. 3-5 p.m. July 31. Jacapps Inc. A networking and informational event with executives from software company Jacapps giving brief updates on 2018’s mobile trends. Presentations include: media consumption trends: Fred Jacobs, founder; what are apps for business? Paul Jacobs, president; smart speaker update: Bob Kernen, COO. Free. Jacapps, Bingham Farms. Contact: Christopher Dinnan, phone: (248) 858-1922; email: dinnanc@oakgov.com; website: eventbrite.com/e/ te ch248-sp e cial-event-mobility-three-important-trends-for-2018registration-47517246363

UPCOMING EVENTS

ADVERTISING SECTION

Social Media for Business Growth. 9-11:30 a.m. Aug. 15. Oakland County Economic and Community Affairs. Terry Bean, Motor City Connect, will present what works, what to avoid and how to use LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Topics include: three things to do to find success on each platform, how to use status updates that gain attention, ways to manage priorities, how to make posting simpler and fastest way to grow an audience. $40. Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center, Waterford. Phone: (248) 858-0783; email: smallbusiness@ oakgov.com

www.crainsdetroit.com/onthemove

PEOPLE

Submit Deals & Details items to cdbdepartments@crain.com.

To place your listing or for more information, please call Debora Stein at (917) 226-5470 or email: dstein@crain.com

KNOW SOMEONE ON THE MOVE? For more information or questions regarding advertising in this section, please call Debora Stein at (917) 226-5470 or email: dstein@crain.com

ARCHITECTURE J Richard Hess to principal, Quinn Evans Architects Inc., Detroit, from senior associate.

HOSPITALITY J Frank Novak to director, marketing and public relations, Suburban Collection Showplace, Novi, from marketing manager, Detroit Lions and Ford Field, Detroit.

MANUFACTURING J Alicia Davis to vice president of investor relations, Lear Corp., Southfield, from associate dean for strategic initiatives and professor of law, University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor.

RETAIL/E-COMMERCE J David Lee to general manager of watches, StockX, Detroit, from senior

SPOTLIGHT Measuring the Effectiveness of Goals with Metrics. 8:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. Aug. 16. Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center. Program helps assess a company’s performance, establish relevant business metrics and prevent goals from being missed in the future. Workshop is focused on achieving positive organizational change. Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center, Plymouth. Free. Contact: Theresa Gaston, phone: (734) 451-4208; email: inquiry@the-center. org; website: the-center.org Marshall Plan for Talent Workshop. 1-3:30 p.m. Aug. 16. Lawrence Technological University. Roger Curtis, director of the Michigan Department of Talent and Economic Development, will provide an overview of Gov. Rick Snyder’s Marshall Plan for Talent to prepare students and adults for jobs. Free with online registration. Lawrence Technological University. Contact: Mark Brucki, email: mbrucki@ltu.edu Government Contracting 101. 9 a.m.-noon. Aug. 23. Schoolcraft College. Program covers services and resources available to a business pursuing the government market. $45. Schoolcraft College. Contact: Kara or Shannon, phone: (734) 462-4438; email: ptac@schoolcraft.edu; website: schoolcraft.edu/collegeevents/2018/08/23/college-events/ government-contracting-101. Connecting cultures to business workshop. 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Sept. 13. SchoolCraft College’s VisTaTech Center. Leading representatives engaged in metro Detroit business will provide their unique perspectives on how to successfully manage a multicultural, multigenerational workforce from a women’s point of view. This year’s panel will be led by Crain’s Kristin Bull and will feature: Sumaiya Ahmed Sheikh, Michigan Muslim Community Council; Caroline Vang-Polly, Thai Feast and Bangkok 96; Ronia Kruse, OpTech, LLC; and Mary Engelman, Michigan Civil Rights Department. Contact: Laura Tahmouch, (734) 427-2122. Email: tahmouch@livonia.org. Website: www.livonia.org.

FCA selects Manley to replace Marchionne

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles last Saturday appointed Mike Manley to replace Sergio Marchionne as its CEO, Automotive News reported. Marchionne had suffered serious complications after surgery. He died Wednesday. Manley, 54, a native of England, has headed Jeep since 2009 and the Ram brand since 2015. An emerManley gency meeting of the FCA board of directors to appoint a replacement was chaired in Turin by John Elkann, the FCA chairman and controlling shareholder of Ferrari, FCA and construction equipment maker CNH Industrial.

Better Made parts ways with president Better Made Snack Foods Inc. appointed a new president after parting ways suddenly with Mark Winkelman. Winkelman, 55, had worked at the Detroit-based snack foods producer since 2005 and had been president for more than seven years before his termination. "They just came in and said they wanted to take the company in a new direction," Winkelman told Crain's. "I was completely surprised." His replacement is David Jones, 66, who started the role officially July 2. Jones comes off Jones a 33-year run at Alabama-based Golden Flake Snack Foods. His LinkedIn profile says he retired as executive vice president of operations Dec. 31.

President leaves Providence, St. John foundations vice president of inventory, logistics and fulfillment and head curator, Eleven James, New York City.

SERVICES J Andy Trestrail to vice president of sales, OpTech LLC, from chief operating officer, MCM Staffing LLC, Madison Heights. J Sheena Wells to managed service provider program director, Strategic Staffing Solutions, Detroit, from national managed service provider program manager. Also, Bob Zhang to Detroit market team leader from director, customer care and contact services, and Vee Polite to vice president of solutions from engagement manager.

To submit news of your new hires or promotions to People, go to crainsdetroit.com/peoplesubmit and fill out the online form. Please limit submissions to management- or partner-level positions.

The president of Ascension St. John and Providence Foundations, Scott Smith, has left the organization for undisclosed reasons. A spokesman for Ascension Michigan confirmed Smith's departure but declined any further comment, including whether an interim president has been Smith named. Smith had led the foundations for just shy of two years. He was promoted to president after serving as chief development officer of the foundations for eight years. Ascension Michigan is in the midst of consolidating operations and rebranding its 15 hospitals.

July 30, 2018

DETROIT BUSINESS C R A I N ’ S D E T R OCIRAIN T ’BS U SINE S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

Page1717

BEDROCK LLC

Bedrock’s plan for the former Brewster-Douglass housing project property includes more than 900 residential units.

BRUSH PARK FROM PAGE 3

Building frames punctuated the view behind Jemison, formerly the city’s affordable housing guru. A Crain’s analysis shows at least 2,000 for-sale and for-rent residential units under construction or in the development pipeline for Brush Park’s 117 acres, which once were home to some of the biggest names in Detroit like the Kahn, Whitney and Hudson families. The majority are expected to be complete by 2021. And after two decades of false starts, Duggan said, it's better late than never. “In the late 1990s, I chaired the Detroit/Wayne County Stadium Authority that built Comerica Park and Ford Field,” he told a crowd of reporters, developers and onlookers last week. “As we were building those stadiums, we said Brush Park is going to be the hottest housing area in all of Michigan. It’s been 20 years, but it's finally happening.” The neighborhood saw disinvestment over the decades as declining city services, blight, crime and other issues prompted its downward spiral. It took a third sports stadium, a municipal bankruptcy, a blitz of millennial workers, a big-bang of investment in the greater downtown by a billionaire mortgage and real estate mogul and widespread economic recovery for the vision for the neighborhood to come into full bloom.

Groundwork spanned decades Brush Park has cemented its status as one of the most desired residential areas in the city for developers to plant their flags. But last week’s announcements are the culmination of decades of work, even efforts that can be traced back to the administration of Kwame Kilpatrick and mayors prior. Demolition work at the site of the

MORRIS ADJMIT ARCHITECTS

The Brush House project by City Growth Partners LLC is slated to include 178 units.

both fabled and feared Brewster-Douglass housing projects was completed in 2014. There were six 14-story high-rises, two six-story buildings and apartment row houses, with as many as 8,000-10,000 people living in the buildings at one time. First lady Eleanor Roosevelt presided over the 1935 groundbreaking ceremony for what was the first federally funded public housing development to open to African-Americans. It opened in 1938 with 701 units; by 1941, it had 941. During its lifetime, the complex was home to Diana Ross and the Supremes before they were Motown icons. But over the years, it became a hotbed of crime and symbol of Detroit’s longterm decay. The city has spent more than $39 million since 2001 on work including infrastructure, demolition, land acquisition and historic rehabilitation in and around the site, priming it for redevelopment. Gilbert began investing in Detroit more than seven years ago, bringing thousands of people to work in the central business district and live in its greater downtown area and neighborhoods. Within a four-month period last year, both the Ilitch family’s Little Caesars Arena across the street from Brush Park and the QLine streetcar system opened, marking the completion of nearly $1 billion in investment.

Plans for a mixed-income community The residential development workload is generally spread out across the investor spectrum, ranging from a little over 1,300 units planned by Dan Gilbert and partners to roughly 700 units by smaller players in the Detroit real estate scene who are making waves in an up-andcoming part of town. Last week, a total of 1,279 residential units were unveiled in projects spread across 24.5 acres of city- and Detroit Housing Commission-owned land. Gilbert, the founder and chairman of Quicken Loans Inc. and Rock Ventures LLC, plans 913 units (265 for sale, 648 for lease) on the 22-acre site of the former Brewster-Douglass housing projects; and a pair of Detroit-based developers, City Growth Partners LLC and American Community Developers, plan a total of 366 units across three projects on about 2.5 acres. Those developments alone are north of $400 million, with the Brewster-Douglass project representing more than three-quarters of that figure. Duggan said the important part of the projects is that more than onethird of the units will be set aside for those making 80 percent or less of the federally defined area median income in the region’s metropolitan

statistical area, which includes all of the region’s suburbs, both wealthy and poor. Rents will vary depending on a slew of factors, including bedroom counts and how many people live in the unit. A one-bedroom unit at 80 percent of the AMI is about $1,065 per month for one person making $39,760 per year. Forty-five of the units in ACD’s Brush + Watson project, for example, will be for people making 30 to 60 percent of AMI, or $15,000 to $30,000 per year, meaning that a one-bedroom unit for those renters would cost between $372 and $745 per month. “We are building one of the largest mixed-income communities anywhere in the United States. We are

not having a city where wealthy people live in one area and people of lower incomes live in another area,”Duggan said. “This is a model that all cities should be following with the rapid growth and high rents,” Mike Essian, vice president of ACD, said last week. And Moddie Turay, founder and principal partner of City Growth Partners and a former Detroit Economic Growth Corp. executive, agreed. “When it’s all said and done, it’s going to be a model for rebuilding a neighborhood across the world in terms of affordability and walkability.” Kirk Pinho: (313) 446-0412 Twitter: @kirkpinhoCDB

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OPIOIDS FROM PAGE 1

Gaedeke said LARA issued an online fact sheet earlier this month to answer some physician and pharmacist questions and address unintended effects related to pharmacies and health insurers. One big concern is that laws making it more difficult to get prescription drugs could be pushing addicts and some patients into buying heroin or other drugs on the street, Chu and Bush agree. And that includes black-market prescription drugs. Because prescription drugs for chronic diseases such as diabetes cost so much, some normally law-abiding patients sell their opioid prescriptions to be able to buy insulin or even food, doctors and state officials tell Crain’s. As a result, the number of deaths and addictions hasn’t appreciably changed the past several years in Michigan, physicians and state officials say. Nationally, more than 115 people die per day of opioid overdoses. Prescription opioids are powerful pain-reducing medications such as Vicodin or morphine. Illegal opioids include heroin, illegally produced fentanyl and an array of synthetic substances. In Michigan, opioid deaths and overdoses rank 18th-highest in the nation. In 2016, 2,356 people died of drug overdoses, about six per day, more deaths than from car accidents. Many health systems are prescribing fewer opioids. It’s less clear that has done anything to slow the epidemic. While Chu said she hasn’t seen any data showing reduced deaths, Henry Ford Health has tracked a 40 percent reduction in opioid prescriptions the past five years. Chu is vice president of medical affairs at Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital. “Deaths have not gone down, because of the issue of illicit drugs,” Chu said. “As prescribing has gone down, people still deal with pain.” Chu said more discussion needs to be directed to non-pharmacy pain resources to help patients. “It’s not like people don’t have pain anymore. They do. There are patients who need something. We as doctors are not just responsible for managing opioid prescriptions, but to manage patient care and pain.” But Chu said over the past several months the medical society has been getting “a ton of feedback” from physicians and patients about the negative effects of the new laws. “We are hearing a lot from (doctors) about patients who are suffering because of the laws. We recognize the pressure the legislature had to do something, but ... some of the provisions have been very challenging,” Chu said.

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

Doctors’ and patients’ stories

FRO

Here is a sample of some of the complaints about the opioid bills Crain's has compiled from physicians. JJOnly 42 percent of 50,102 prescribers and dispensers of opioids and other

schedule medications covered in state laws have electronic medical record reporting systems integrated with the Michigan Automated Prescribing System, or MAPS. JJAs a result, some doctors are limiting dosages to three days instead of a longer five-to-seven day or longer supply because of the state law that mandates doctors use MAPS when prescribing more than three days of Schedule 2-5 drugs. The opioid laws' requirement and lack of EMR integration is causing access problems for patients and administrative problems for doctors. JJHospitals are mandating MAPS queries on discharged patients based on the mandate in Public Act 248 of 2017. Some doctors limit opioid supplies to three days to avoid the MAPS query requirement. Many surgical cases need pain relief longer than three days, especially orthopedic and cancer cases. JJSome patients are running out of pain medications on Fridays or on the weekend and can’t get refills until Monday because prescribing doctors are unavailable or pharmacies are not approving seven-day supplies. When patients run out of pain medications, they sometimes seek treatment at hospital emergency departments or seek alternative drugs.

JJTwo patients who were prescribed pain medications were arrested for selling

them. Doctors told Crain's the patients had diabetes and sold their opioids to pay for insulin, which can be expensive. Doctors say the example is illustrative of the larger issue of the high cost of prescriptions where patients who have chronic diseases sell prescribed opioids to purchase other expensive medications or food. JJA long-time family physician was told by a well-known grocery pharmacy that they will not fill any scripts he writes for controlled substances. JJAnother physician said his patient went to fill a prescription for a morphine equivalent only to be told by the pharmacist that he should be going to a pain specialty clinic, implying the patient was getting substandard care from his doctor. JJA patient was discharged from a hospital with multiple myeloma and spinal metastasis. Soon after, the patient was readmitted for a pain crisis because his health plan denied the increase in MS Contin ordered by his oncologist. JJDoctors say some health plans have arbitrarily limited the quantity of tablets filled by patients beyond that mandated by the new opioid bills.

Source: Crain's interviews with physicians in Michigan

GETTY IMAGES

State Sen. Mike Shirkey, chairman of the Senate health policy committee, said the Legislature will look at tweaking the bills to fix any problems. “We have to be patient and avoid reacting to resistance to change versus resistance to unnecessary or non-value-adding regulation,” Shirkey said.

Provider conflicts Bush said doctors have told him the new opioid laws are creating additional conflict between prescribers, pharmacists and health insurance companies over correct dosages. “The bills are mostly good, but legislators took a heavy-handed approach to the crisis, and the result may not have a big effect on opioid” deaths and addictions, Bush said. For example, one patient who is also a physician, who asked for anonymity, was prescribed a seven-day supply of the painkiller Norco from her doctor, 28 pills. However, the health insurer denied the prescription for 28 pills and allowed only 20 to be filled. The insurer had recently changed its policy to limit opioid prescriptions for acute pain to five days,

“We are hoping that LARA (and legislators) work with us and multiple other stakeholders to fix the laws and improve stakeholders’ goals: reducing deaths and improve patients’ health.” — Betty Chu, M.D., president of the Michigan State Medical Society

even though the laws allow for seven. “How did the pharmacist know it was for acute pain and not chronic pain?” the physician-patient said. “The bottle wasn’t marked.” “When I challenged with the fact that the state law now gives pharmacists the ability to do split opioid prescriptions, he said that wasn’t what” the pharmacy does, the physician-patient said. “Clearly, (the pharmacy) is making money.” Beginning March 27, Michigan law allows pharmacists to fill Schedule 2 controlled substances in increments to avoid making the patient go back to the doctor. Dianne Malburg, COO of the Michigan Pharmacists Association, said there is confusion with some of the opioid laws between doctors and pharmacists. She said common questions from pharmacies range from whether to allow partial refills and whether the prescription was intended for acute or chronic pain. “We have heard some physicians write two scripts for patients and predate them so patients don’t have to go back again,” Malburg said. On partial refills, Malburg said patients can’t get the whole prescription filled the same day if there is a

‘Bonafide’ prescriber law on hold

One major area of confusion with the bills had to do with Public Act 247 of 2017, the bonafide prescriber bill, which describes the relationship between the prescriber and patient. Doctors and hospitals objected to the bill’s lack of specifics and legislators passed another bill this year to delay its implementation by one year. Chu said there were too many problems with that bill to start it this year. For example, Chu said the bonafide prescriber bill would have pre-

vented on-call doctors from prescribing a pain medication over the phone if a clinic’s patient ran out of meds on a weekend. The bill required the prescribing doctor to physically see and assess patients for refills. “You can look at the medical records, but if you are covering on-call, you couldn’t prescribe,” she said. Gaedeke confirmed there are several exceptions related to the bonafide prescriber provision involving on-call, backup doctors that need to

be addressed. There are other questions with Public Act 246, which includes the “Start Talking” consent form that mandates the doctor must discuss a care plan with the patient and have it signed. “Does the patient sign one every time? Does the patient have to come into the office sign on weekends if one is prescribed then?” Chu said. Chu said doctors regularly discuss treatment plans with patients and

wonder if the forms required by the opioid laws will reduce the opioid epidemic. “Is it a waste work or value-added?” she said. Gaedeke said some issues have been resolved with the one-page form. “We have noted in our online FAQ that providers can use it as a template. They can take it, modify it. We have provided some flexibility,” she said. But she said providers need to figure out how to be efficient in using it.

limit from the health insurer or state law. “They can come back and get the remainder” when the initial fill has run out, she said. Pharmacists are concerned they might not know if a prescription is for acute or chronic pain, Malburg said. State law limits opioids to a seven-day supply for acute pain, but prescriptions for chronic pain can be longer.

Problems with limits Beginning June 1, Public Act 248 of 2017 requires physicians who want to issue a prescription for more than three days to first check with the Michigan Automated Prescription System, the state’s online database that houses information on prescriptions for opioid and other controlled substances. (See story below). The act excludes prescriptions written for a patient in a hospital or ambulatory surgery center. Fred Van Alstine, M.D., a family physician in Traverse City who specializes in palliative care and is a hospice medical director, said there also should be exceptions in opioid laws for hospice patients and those in palliative care who are dying. SEE LAW, PAGE 19

“We can’t address that from a regulatory standpoint. They have to figure out how to make it work,” she said. For example, Gaedeke said LARA has clarified with prescribers that if a patient is being treated for an ailment requiring an opioid, and there is a decision to change medications, there is no need to fill out a new form. “We said you don’t need a new ‘Start talking’ form for dosage changes or new opioid,” Gaedeke said. — Jay Greene

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C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

LAW

FROM PAGE 18

“This was a solution looking for a problem. ... It is an administrative burden because our patients are end of life and they need” opioids to control pain, Van Alstine said. James Forshee, M.D., Priority Health’s chief medical officer, said his company’s prior-authorization rules on opioids exempt patients in palliative care, hospice or in cancer treatment. “The whole effort of the law is to reduce opioid use, prevent addiction, misuse and abuse,” Forshee said. “That is not an issue with palliative care and hospice treatment. Pain control is the primary purpose.” Bush said the opioid laws’ blanket restrictions illustrates the quandary physicians sometimes face when they must fill a pain prescription for a major broken limb, when a patient has been discharged after a surgery or has another serious condition. For example, say the doctor writes a prescription for a seven-day supply on a Monday and the pharmacist or health insurer instead limits the prescription to five days. “The patient runs out Friday evening, and since no one can ever find their primary physicians on a weekend, the hurting patient goes to the ER, where they will not provide that person with another prescription because they did not take care of the initial problem,” the physician-patient said. “In the end, the poor patient suffers. But the doctor can get two office visits from this and the pharmacy gets two different prescriptions plus markup.” Chu said there have been reported conflicts between pharmacists and doctors that need to be worked out. “We passed laws to punish (offenders), but patients have chronic pain and a lot are feeling like they are criminals now” when they fill their prescription, she said. Elizabeth Pionk, D.O., a hospitalist physician at McLaren Bay Region hospital in Bay City, said the laws have also created problems for doctors at hospitals. “Our hospitalist group has agreed to discharge patients with two or three days of medicine, but sometimes it is difficult for patients to get a refill after they are discharged before two or three days,” said Pionk, who also is on the foundation board for the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians. Doctors fear giving opioids to patients for more than three days because of the laws in place, Pionk said. But that means patients who run out of pain medications will sometimes show up in the emergency room, which won’t give them medications. “The acute pain issue is a difficult one,” she said. Shirkey acknowledged there is a problem, a “gray area between acute and chronic pain (in the bills) ... and the limitations on number of doses per script.” For example, Shirkey said, physicians may need to be able to give a patient pain medication for more than seven days if they know the patient “need(s) back surgery but cannot get into a specialist for weeks,” he said. The medical society has received a number of other complaints about the opioid laws from patients. Among them was a patient whose doctor would no longer prescribe pain medications and sent her to a pain clinic,

“The bills are mostly good, but legislators took a heavy-handed approach to the crisis, and the result may not have a big effect on opioid” deaths and addictions. — Chris Bush, M.D., a family practice physician in Riverview affiliated with Henry Ford Health System

but the pain clinic was booked for weeks because of the new law, Chu said. Rural Michigan faces problems as well. Loretta Leja, M.D., a family physician in solo practice in Cheboygan, said shortages of doctors in rural northern Michigan cause people to travel hundreds of miles for primary care and surgeries. Sometimes they run out of pain medications before they can get a doctor to refill. “I had a patient who was having major surgery downstate, and her doctor told her she could get seven days of pain medication and to come back and see him after three weeks” for a follow-up appointment, said Leja, who is chairman of the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians. “She was worried because what do you do for two weeks with no pain meds?” Mary Marshall, M.D., a solo practicing family physician in Grand Blanc, said a growing number of her patients are coming to her when they run out of pain pills after they have had same-day surgery. “For whatever reason the physicians or physician assistants don’t want to write more than a three-day supply of pain medications. The problem is the patient runs out,” said Marshall, who also is president of the Michigan Academy of Family Physicians. Marshall said pharmacists and health insurers also are questioning more pain prescriptions. “I prescribed Norco, a common opioid, and the question came up, and you have to stop what you are doing and submit information to the insurance company,” said Marshall. The laws, and policies from pharmacies and health insurers often don’t match up, she said. “It is such a tangled web.” Van Alstine said health insurers have used the opioid laws to deny prescriptions for palliative care patients. “Most hospice patients receive 14day supplies. The prior authorization process is a nightmare. Insurers are using (the laws) as an excuse to deny,” he said. “Before it was a problem, but it became more acute after the laws passed.”

For example, Van Alstine said recently he had a terminally ill patient discharged from a hospital, and he wanted to prescribe a 14-day supply of oxycontin. The pharmacist called to let him know the health insurer had denied the prescription. “I spent four hours on a Saturday trying to get him access to medications” for pain related to liver cancer, Van Alstine said. “I filed a complaint with the insurance commissioner on Monday. They got involved and the situation was resolved, but the guy died 24 hours later. He was in pain for days before.” Some health insurers and pharmacists have over-interpreted the laws, Chu said. “(Some health insurers) will probably use it as an opportunity to decrease utilization,” she said. Gaedeke said she is unaware that health insurers and pharmacists are rejecting prescriptions from doctors. “They may require more visits (by patients), but we were told the laws don’t require additional visits for pain medications,” she said. “Some (pharmacists) are thinking the seven-day supply for acute pain applies for chronic pain. There is some confusion there.” Forshee said he knows there has been confusion among physicians. Last year, Priority Health implemented new policies, which are less stringent than the state laws, that eliminated 90-day prescriptions for opioids, and limited prescription coverage to 30 days for long-acting opioids and 15 days for short-acting opioids. “We saw there was a problem and put in requirements” that reduce the number of opioids prescribed, creates care management plans and offers additional behavioral health and medication management support, Forshee said. Over the next three years, Priority projects a 25 percent reduction the number of prescribed opioids, Forshee said. He said the company will take another look at its policies later this year after it reviews data. “We work closely and talk with primary care physicians, specialists like surgeons and pain-management specialists and groups to make sure our policies are based on science and evidence,” he said.

Fear of discipline In early July, Detroit physician Zeyn Nez Seabron became one of about 53 doctors or pharmacists suspended or otherwise disciplined for overprescribing controlled substances, according to LARA. LARA’s complaint stated that during nine months in 2017 and 2018, Seabron was a top prescriber of oxycodone and oxymorphone, both commonly abused opioids. Forshee said he can understand why doctors might hesitate to prescribe for fear of “gotcha” investigations and discipline. But Gaedeke said LARA hopes over time the new opioid laws will help reduce the number of disciplinary actions taken against prescribers. “Our goal is to go after the worst of the worst. Those blatantly prescribing, violating laws and causing deaths,” Gaedeke said. Chu supports the intent of LARA’s crackdown. “It has been too easy to get prescriptions, but we don’t want to make it too difficult for legitimate purposes,” she said. Jay Greene: (313) 446-0325 Twitter: @jaybgreene

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

CASEY FROM PAGE 3 www.crainsdetroit.com Editor-in-Chief Keith E. Crain President KC Crain Group Publisher Mary Kramer, (313) 446-0399 or mkramer@crain.com Managing Editor Michael Lee, (313) 446-1630 or malee@crain.com Product Director Kim Waatti, (313) 446-6764 or kwaatti@crain.com Digital Product Manager Carlos Portocarrero, (313) 446-6056 or cportocarrero@crain.com Creative Director David Kordalski, (216) 771-5169 or dkordalski@crain.com News Editor Beth Reeber Valone, (313) 446-5875 or bvalone@crain.com Special Projects Editor Amy Elliott Bragg, (313) 446-1646 or abragg@crain.com Design and Copy Editor Beth Jachman, (313) 446-0356 or bjachman@crain.com Research and Data Editor Sonya Hill, (313) 446-0402 or shill@crain.com Newsroom (313) 446-0329, FAX (313) 446-1687, TIP LINE (313) 446-6766

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The plan to expand the Solanus Casey Center and its campus included land set aside as open space and a buffer until it had firmer ideas for further expansion, said Jason Friedmann, development director for the east region in the Detroit Housing and Revitalization Department. “We want to see a plan in place for exactly what you do with the land and to know that you have the resources in hand to accomplish that plan ... (and) that it's in line with the vision of the city that meets our planning and zoning policies,” Friedmann said, noting that’s general policy for the city as it decides on land sales. Some of the excess green space initially sought by the center was plotted for future public parking, “but we need more details,” he said. “As they figure more of exactly what they want to do in those areas, we definitely would entertain any of those offers.”

Assembling property The properties for the expanded campus are largely concentrated in a central square area in the Islandview neighborhood north of Belle Isle Park. The area is bounded by Mt. Elliott Street on the west, Beaufait Street on the east, St. Paul Avenue to the south and Kercheval Avenue to the north. Other properties in adjacent, outlying areas are planned for additional parking and farming use. At the same time, the city is developing a 1.5-mile Beltline Greenway to connect the neighborhood to the river, a path that will run right near Solanus Casey Center’s expanded campus. And the anchor for the city’s investment in the IslandView and villages neighborhoods, announced in June, is just a mile east of the center on Kercheval. Improvements to the 8-acre Butzel Playfield are planned, along with developments to include affordable housing and retail space, streetscape improvements and other investments. The Province of St. Joseph paid a below-market rate for the city-owned land as a community partner developing the parcels, Turnbull said, declining to say how much has been spent on land acquisition and planning. It closed on two lots at Meldrum and Kercheval from Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan for $1 each. In exchange, it plans to sell back two parcels on Meldrum, on the north side of Kercheval, at the same price to the food bank once it has those in hand from the city. And it bought the property directly east of the Solanus Casey Center from Delta Iron Works, its home for more than 50 years, for an undisclosed amount. With the proceeds from the sale, the commercial and industrial steel fabricator plans to build a new, modern production site with a more efficient layout and space to expand its business, owner Chris Manos said. Just as importantly, he said, the sale presented an opportunity to support the work of the Capuchin friars. Delta is leasing the property back from the province while it negotiates — with Turnbull’s help — to purchase property within three or four blocks of its site from the city. It’s hired an engineer to design a 22,000-square-foot production site and hopes to have it built within a year and a half of purchasing the property. There’s been a surge in interest in

HAMILTON ANDERSON ASSOCIATES

A rendering of the planned campus expansion of the Solanus Casey Center and accompanying gardens.

Chris Manos: Sold his business property

SHERRI WELCH/CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

The chapel of the St. Bonaventure Monastery. Work is being done on the steeples as part of the renovation.

the property in the neighborhood, Manos said. There are also a few longtime property owners from when more industrial businesses operated in the neighborhood holding onto land there, Friedmann said. Once Delta has moved to its new home, the province plans to clear the site to create reflection spaces and a large, open area that can accommodate seating for 1,500 people for masses, other public events and even families gathered for a picnic.

Jaime Rae Turnbull: Making land deals

tractors tapped to work on the project. The park will be seeded with grass, and new flower gardens and orchards designed with the Capuchin’s Earthworks garden team will be planted. Work to create permeable parking lots on property leased to the province under a 10-year agreement by the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department is set to begin soon and be completed by fall to accommodate the surge in visitors to the center. Before the snow flies, additional blight removal and a facade grant program for companies, churches and homeowners in the neighborhood are planned, Turnbull said. Hamilton Anderson served as architect on the master plan for the renovation and expansion, the surface lots and storm water management systems, and Spalding DeDecker as surveyor on the newly acquired properties. The providence has a request for proposals out for an architect for the 10,000-square-foot gift shop and café addition. It expects to name one by month’s end and to launch construction by the fourth quarter, Turnbull said.

Demolition kickstarts expansion

Chapel renovations

With the land needed for initial expansion plans and a city-approved site plan, the province recently launched work on the three- to fiveyear project. It demolished three homes on its newly acquired property with help from Farrow Group Inc., a demolition company based in the neighborhood and one of several Detroit con-

At the same time, renovations to the public chapel at St. Bonaventure Monastery, home to the Solanus Casey Center, have also begun. Outside, the steeples are being cleaned up before a new roof is installed. Inside, the seating in the chapel has been reconfigured to more closely resemble its arrangement during the time Casey lived and prayed

there and to create more seating. Efforts are underway to bring the paint color back to something close to what it was at that time, and a statue of Casey has been placed in the back of the chapel where he would have wanted to be, Preuss said. Casey’s glass-encased tomb, replete with kneelers on each side for prayer, is now visible to the public, along with pictures of the exhuming of his casket last year in preparation for his November beatification at Ford Field and the few personal possessions he had at the time of his death, including a small notebook he kept of people who visited asking him to pray for them. The expansion taking shape is focused on the Solanus Casey Center as a place of prayer, pilgrimage and reflection, providing spiritual nourishment for all seeking it, regardless of their religion or station in life, just as the Capuchin Soup Kitchen feeds their bodies, Preuss said. “In essence, we’re looking not just for the poor of the neighborhood. We’re looking for the hungers of the people in Metro Detroit ... (and beyond) ... so that as people deal with illness ... loss ... confusion, that we have a place here for them to ask forgiveness ... pray quietly, reflect, maybe get some counseling.” Casey, who sought to enter the priesthood but did not do well enough academically, was a simple friar, Preuss said. He was the doorman at the monastery, greeting those who came, praying with them and providing sandwiches to those who were hungry. Soon, hundreds of people started coming to the monastery when word got out that his prayers of intercession were helping to heal people. “Here’s a man who had great spiritual power, who was inspirational to many people,” Preuss said. “We’re supposed to do what Father Solanus did: Listen ... pray with and ... serve in whatever way we can.” Sherri Welch: 313 (446-1694) Twitter: @SherriWelch

As the world mourns the loss of a great business leader, we at United Way for Southeastern Michigan remember the passion and impact Sergio Marchionne had on the Greater Detroit community.

When we recognize and embrace our common humanity, we cannot simply turn our backs on those in need. – Sergio Marchionne

Widely known for his business acumen, we will be forever grateful for his leadership and genuine efforts as a humanitarian. He reminded us we all have an obligation to give back, and that in doing so, we are privileged to be a part of something greater than ourselves. Sergio served as United Way for Southeastern Michigan’s Campaign Chair for two terms, from 2012-2013 and 2016-2018. In that time, his leadership secured more than $130 million to support community programs. “We have a moral responsibility to get involved with issues that go beyond the walls of our offices; beyond the walls of our homes,” Sergio said during a United Way event. “When we recognize and embrace our common humanity, we cannot simply turn our backs on those in need. Closing our eyes or thinking that finding a solution is somebody else’s problem would make us part of the problem.” Despite his demanding schedule, he dedicated countless hours to United Way to speak on our behalf, attend meetings and rally others to join our mission and work toward making a difference in our community. He inspired his peers and his competitors to unite for the common good. We honor Sergio’s legacy and mourn this loss alongside his family and friends around the world.

Darienne B. Driver, Ed.D. President & CEO Present

Tanya Heidelberg-Yopp Interim CEO* 2017-2018

* Current COO

Dr. Herman Gray President & CEO 2015-2017

Michael J. Brennan President & CEO 2004-2015

C R A I N ’ S D E T R O I T B U S I N E S S // J U LY 3 0 , 2 0 1 8

ROOF FROM PAGE 3

MLS didn’t respond to a list of questions sent by Crain’s last week.

Roof concerns What shape that project could take is being studied, he said. It’s unknown if the roof would require major structural support for retraction equipment and panels, and just how much the roof could be opened. Wood said the field itself would likely remain artificial turf and not be replaced by natural grass, which normally cannot grow indoors. A field drainage system likely would have to be added, too. The Lions have hired Detroit-based architecture firm Rossetti Inc., the stadium’s original designer, to study how a retractable roof might work. Rossetti also created the concepts for Gilbert-Gores’ abandoned soccer stadium unveiled in 2016. Rossetti President Matt Rossetti declined to comment for thsi story. A retractable roof involves more than just a couple of mechanical panels. The team has concerns about exposing the stadium’s interior to the elements, which it wasn’t designed to endure. Concerns about opening the stadium to weather include humidity, moisture, temperature, sunlight and wind. Wind can affect kicks, punts and passes, and sunlight can cast shadows that affect both on-field play and how well TV audiences see the game, Wood said. “We’re trying to understand all those issues and the risks associated with them,” he said, adding that the roof would not be open during any sort of rain or snow. Rossetti’s study will include wind and sunlight surveys, Wood said. “I want to make sure we understand all those issues before we decide,” Wood said, adding that both the Dallas Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts have shadowing or sunlight issues because of open or translucent roofs. Ford Field was built so that the field has a northeast-southwest orientation, meaning the sun would pass from the home bench on the east side of the field to the visitor bench on the west side. Wood said he’s discussed the possibility of a retractable roof with Lions General Manager Bob Quinn and new head coach Matt Patricia, but neither had an opinion. The Lions originally intended for the downtown stadium to be open air, but the city insisted on a dome because it didn’t want a pair of open stadiums — Comerica Park was developed around the same time — sitting vacant in winter. Another complicating factor: Ford Field is more than just a sports and concert venue. Several businesses, including ad agency Campbell Ewald and law firm Bodman PLC, lease space for hundreds of employees in the former J.L. Hudson Co. warehouse that’s part of the stadium interior. Ford Field has 230,000 square feet of Class A commercial office rental space. Wood said he’s not yet talked to the stadium’s other tenants about the roof proposal. The stadium is owned by the public Detroit-Wayne County Stadium Authority, but that body wouldn’t formally be informed of the roof project until a decision is made on whether to do it, Wood said. The

MERCEDESBENZSTADIUM.COM

Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home to the Atlanta Falcons, opened officially last summer. Its eye-popping retractable roof has made it one of the more distinguishable venues in sports, but it was also plagued with problems when the stadium first opened.

Detroit-based firm Rossetti designed a $150 million retractable roof at Arthur Ashe stadium in New York.

“It is not cheap; $100 (million) to $200 million is not unreasonable.” — Kourosh Kayvani, managing director for design and innovation at Aurecon

team has a 35-year stadium lease, and six 10-year options, under its deal with the stadium authority. The Lions pay $250,000 in annual rent, and also put $300,000 annually into a stadium maintenance fund.

Roof history The stadium’s roof got a makeover not that along ago: The Lions paid $5 million in 2016 to replace weather-damaged roof sections, insulation improvements, and an application of weather reinforcement and protection material.

The roof repairs were separate from a $2 million project to add 250 LED lights, with RGB color projection capability, to the roof in 2016. Additionally, the massive Ford Motor Co. logo on the roof was repainted. The automaker, founded and majority-owned by the Ford family that also owns the Lions, paid $50 million in 2002 for the naming rights to the building, and in 2005 agreed to pay another $6.6 million through 2015 to add its name to the stadium roof and elsewhere on the exterior. It’s unclear how a retractable roof would affect utility bills at Ford Field, which run nearly $2 million a year. The new and more energy-efficient lights both inside and on the stadium exterior already is saving up to $20,000 a month, the team said. The 10,500-ton, 320,000-squarefoot stadium roof was built from structural steel sheets, fiberglass and gypsum roof boards, foam insulation, and a plastic protective membrane. It’s supported by a set of massive steel trusses and a pair of 18-footwide concrete columns. The roof pitches 30 degrees from its center to its edge that faces I-375, but is less steep on the edge facing downtown, according to a 2002 story from the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council. Ford Field already underwent $100 million in renovations in 2016-17, mainly to its 129 suites, that was pri-

ROSSETTI

vately financed by the Ford family. The Lions play two preseason matches and eight regular-season games at the stadium each season, and it’s also used for the occasional large concert. MLS teams play 17 home matches from March through October, and the season ends with the MLS Cup in December.

Other stadiums A handful of MLS clubs play permanently at pro football stadiums, including the Seattle Sounders FC at 69,000-seat Century Link Field and the New England Revolution at 66,829-seat Gillette Stadium. Sections of seats are covered for soccer matches, which is what has been proposed for Ford Field. The Detroit bid’s backers have pointed to the success of MLS team Atlanta United FC sharing Mercedes-Benz Stadium with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons. The $1.6 billion stadium has a retractable roof and artificial turf, and the soccer team averaged nearly 40,000 fans in its inaugural 2017 season, and nearly 52,000 per match so far this season. However, the stadium’s eight-panel retractable roof, which moves in a pinwheel shape to open, has been opened only a handful of times because of an extended construction and testing process. It’s the only MLS stadium with such a roof. There are no examples of large U.S.

domed stadiums being retrofitted to add a retractable roof. “It’s a little bit of an unusual first. I’m confident we’ve got the right people analyzing it,” Wood said. One of the world’s leading experts on retrofitting stadium roofs said he’s unaware of any large stadium that’s added a retraction system to a structural steel roof. But it could but done, said Kourosh Kayvani, managing director for design and innovation at Aurecon, an engineering and design consultancy based in Australia and South Africa. Opening the top of Ford Field would be complex and expensive, and will require extensive engineering because the center is a critical part of the roof’s design that affects the load-bearing elements. “It is not cheap; $100 (million) to $200 million is not unreasonable,” said Kayvani, who has designed stadium roof structures globally, including London’s 90,000-seat Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007. A couple of large sports venues in Canada have added retractable roofs after the stadiums were constructed. BC Place in Vancouver opened in 1983 with an air-supported fabric roof much like the Pontiac Silverdome. The roof collapsed in 2007, and the next year a $514 million renovation project began (paid for by the provincial government) that included a fabric retractable roof system that consumed about half the project’s cost. That roof has struggled with escalating maintenance costs and occasional leaks, according to Canadian news reports. That stadium is home to MLS’ Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the Canadian Football League’s BC Lions. Montreal’s 61,000-seat Olympic Stadium, opened in 1976 as home of the Expos, didn’t get its retractable fabric roof until 1987. It suffered continual problems, and was replaced in 1998 with a $26 million permanent fabric roof, which also became a problem. Last year, the Quebec provincial government pledged $250 million for a new roof by 2023. The stadium is the occasional home of MLS’ Montreal Impact, and the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes. Large tennis stadiums have had retractable roofs added in recent years. The U.S. Tennis Association’s 23,771seat Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City, site of the U.S. Open, got retractable fabric roof at a cost of $150 million in 2016. London’s All England Club, site of the Wimbledon matches, added a $105 million fabric retractable roof for its 15,000-seat Number One Court in 2009, and slightly smaller Court One will get one in 2019 at a reported cost of $92 million. Retractable roofs eventually have maintenance costs as they age. For example, the Toronto Blue Jays spent $10 million over 2016-17 to modernize their 8-acre, 11,000-ton retractable roof and associated technical systems at the Rogers Centre, which opened as the SkyDome in 1989. While the Lions may be wary of adding a retractable roof, Wood is fully on board with the notion of Ford Field being home pitch for an MLS team. “Ford Field is the best location; it’s right downtown, within walking distance from restaurants and bars, from where young people work and live,” Wood said. “With or without a roof, MLS should be looking at Ford Field as the best location.” Bill Shea: (313) 446-1626 Twitter: @Bill_Shea19

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Redevelopment rights for the Joe Louis Arena site were part of the city of Detroit’s bankruptcy settlement.

Deadline extended for Joe Louis Arena plan submission

he Detroit City Council has agreed to give a holdout creditor from the city's Chapter 9 bankruptcy another 18 months to submit a redevelopment plan for the vacated Joe Louis Arena property. Gotham Motown Recovery LLC, a subsidiary of New York City-based Financial Guaranty Insurance Corp., now has until January 2020 for the plan; under terms of the settlement forged in bankruptcy court in 2014, it had until Nov. 21, 2017, to submit it. Gotham Motown sued the city in February for more time. The entity said it had requested a 24-month extension on July 20, 2017, but the city agreed to just a 180-day extension, even though the settlement approved in bankruptcy court allows for a two-year extension. In April, Gotham Motown asked U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Thomas Tucker to appoint a mediator to resolve the dispute. Law Offices of Barry L. Howard PC in Bloomfield Hills was appointed as mediator the following month, and after two mediation sessions on June 8 and July 16, a settlement was reached, according to court documents. Mayor Mike Duggan has to sign off on the settlement, which does not include any monetary damages. Representatives from Gotham Motown declined comment; a message was left with Duggan's office seeking comment. The complex nature of the 9-acre site and the city's changing real estate market have made it difficult to submit a redevelopment proposal, Gotham argues. One city official has called what surrounds the arena "an absolutely wicked entanglement of infrastructure" that makes redevelopment difficult. Donna Rice, senior project manager for the Detroit Building Authority, said Tuesday that demolition of the arena is expected to begin in the first quarter of next year.

BUSINESS NEWS J Southfield-based Lear Corp.'s second-quarter earnings report last Thursday came and went with no direct mention of the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum. Local

Detroit digits A numbers-focused look at last week’s headlines:

223 The number of jobs Spanish defense contractor Sapa expects to add at a new North American subsidiary headquarters in Shelby Township.

$8 million The brownfield financing Dan Gilbert received from the state for his $78.9 million redevelopment of the former Detroit Free Press building in downtown Detroit.

12 The number of new establishments set to move into Detroit Metropolitan Airport's North Terminal, including Atwater Brewery and Jolly Pumpkin.

suppliers seem insulated from the tariffs' impacts — for now. J Service Employees International Union Local 1 janitors in Detroit voted last week to strike if an agreement isn't reached by July 31 in contract negotiations for higher wages and more benefits. J Kelly Services Inc. provided seed funding to Indianapolis technology apprenticeship school Kenzie Academy — its first investment through its corporate venture capital Kelly Innovation Fund. J Autonomous driving technologies are among 10 projects to receive approximately $700,000 in investments from the University of Michigan MTRAC Innovation Hub program. J Southfield-based Vesco Oil Corp. added an oil distribution company in Dayton, Ohio, to the family business. J McLaren Macomb union nurses in Mt. Clemens have planned an informational picket for Wednesday as they negotiate a new contract. The nurses and Grand Blanc-based McLaren Health Care Corp. are negotiating over pay, safe staffing and workplace violence issues. J The Detroit Lions got their first solar panels over the past month at the Ford Field parking garage and their training facility in Allen Park. J A massive $300 million-plus hotel water park and mixed-use development

could be coming to Wixom if the grand vision of a local developer, Wixom-based Damas Group LLC, comes to fruition. J Swedish automotive safety systems supplier Autoliv is proposing a $32 million expansion of its North American headquarters in Auburn Hills. J The Adcraft Club of Detroit hosted an induction ceremony last week to bring 10 new ad professionals into its Hall of Fame. J The Art Institute of Michigan is planning to lay off 114 employees at its Novi-based school. J Strategic Staffing Solutions redesigned and plans to add jobs at its Detroit headquarters in the Penobscot Building. J Two developers have planned a $45 million luxury apartment complex in Novi that they say features an urban design becoming more popular in the suburbs.

OTHER NEWS J Nancy Adams Johnson, a former top aide to ex-UAW Vice President Norwood Jewell, entered a plea deal in federal court in Detroit last Monday for her involvement in a scheme to misappropriate funds to top UAW officials that's under investigation. J Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor was expected to host some of the biggest names in professional soccer over the weekend for the International Champions Cup match between Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC. J Detroit City Council approved Detroit's $7 million purchase of 90 percent of the former Michigan state fairgrounds site at Woodward Avenue and Eight Mile Road. J Robert Stanzler, owner of The Detroit Mercantile Co. in Eastern Market, was arraigned last Tuesday morning in connection with an assault on a security guard July 17. J A partnership between Chicago-based Walsh Construction Co. and Wixom-based Toebe Construction LLC has signed on for a $224 million contract to design and build the second phase of Oakland County's major I-75 modernization project. J Two new energy-efficiency projects at Roberts Riverwalk Urban Resort Hotel in Detroit and the Liquid Web Data Center in Lansing, worth about $8.5 million, have begun through the Lean and Green Michigan program.

CONTRIBUTED

Chemical Bank will build a 20-story high-rise at Woodward Avenue and Elizabeth Street for its new Detroit headquarters.

Chemical in for city banking; who’s out?

he move of Midland-based Chemical Bank's headquarters to Detroit — and the news that the city government would move bank accounts to Chemical — brought up some memories last week of another headquarters move. In one of the biggest corporate recruitment victories for the city in recent memory, Chemical Bank (NASDAQ: CHFC), currently based in Midland, plans to move more than 500 executives and other employees into a new high-rise at Woodward Avenue and Elizabeth Street in downtown Detroit. The building would be next to the Ilitch family’s new Little Caesars Global Resource Center. Flash back to 2007: Comerica Inc. stunned its hometown when the

bank announced it would move its headquarters to Dallas. In response, then-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick decided it would be a good time to start shopping around for a better banking deal, according to his memoir. The city wound up moving about $90 million in accounts from Comerica to Detroit-based First Independence Bank. However, the city still kept a substantial share of its accounts at Comerica. This time around, it's a bank headquarters coming to town, and money going into that bank. Which bank lost out on the main body of Detroit government's banking business? According to the city, it is Comerica.

Local filmmaker Keith Famie points lens at Casey story J ust weeks before his death, Art Van Elslander, the late founder of Art Van Furniture and philanthropist who made a $20 million gift late last year to the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph for the expansion of the Solanus Casey Center and its Detroit campus, met with local filmmaker and celebrity chef Keith Famie. Van Elslander spoke about the humble life Father Solanus Casey had led and how revered he was for his work with people, many of whom said they were healed. Famie left their conversation curious and spurred to do not only more research on the friar, who lived at the St. Bonaventure Monastery in Detroit, but also to begin production of a documentary on his works, path to sainthood and example he provides of how to treat others. “I think I’m supposed to tell this story,” Famie said last week. “Blessed Solanus Casey’s Journey to Sainthood” will follow not only the expansion of the center’s Detroit campus but the journey Solanus Ca-

sey went on from his teenage years to the time he spent in Michigan and other Midwest states, as well as what Capuchin friars are. It will also explore Catholic Keith Famie: and religious Casey documenconcepts, includtary planned ing what constitutes a miracle, the steps to sainthood and the concept of faith. As work gets underway on the center’s campus (see Page 3), Famie and his Wixom-based Visionalist Entertainment Productions have begun filming there. When it comes out in late 2019, the Solanus Casey documentary will be shown at a public premiere in Detroit before its initial broadcast on Detroit Public Television. The A.A. Van Elslander Foundation is the presenting sponsor of the film with a $100,000 sponsorship.

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