Downtown newsmagazine | Birmingham/Bloomfield by Downtown Publications Inc.

NOVEMBER 2020

RACISM IMPACT: NOT JUST A BLACK/WHITE ISSUE ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT: STATE OF LOCAL BUSINESS OAKLAND CONFIDENTIAL POLITICAL NEWS/GOSSIP ECRWSS Postal Customer EDDM

DOWNTOWNPUBLICATIONS.COM

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ROYAL OAK, MI 48068 PERMIT #792

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DOWNTOWN11.20

Racism: It's not just a Black and White issue When we think of racism, most of us think of it as a Black/White issue. But racism can, and does, affect people of all colors, races and genders. It is a result of decades, if not centuries, of learned and ingrained behaviors that influence our conduct.

LONGFORM

If there’s one word repeated by Oakland County’s business owners, it’s pivot. When Michigan shut down on March 26, 2020 to keep the spread of the coronavirus at bay, businesses of all types had to immediately rethink their operating models.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The United States Postal Service has a lengthy history of service in this country but now it is facing a number of challenges, including raw politics from the current administration, so delayed election mail ballots are only the tip of the iceberg.

CRIME LOCATOR

A recap of select categories of crime occurring in the past month in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills, presented in map format.

THE COVER Cover design: Chris Grammer.

OAKLAND CONFIDENTIAL

The Manoogian juggernaut; cringeworthy endorsement; GOP disavows a candidate; threat to congresswoman; drinking the face mask KoolAid; presidential dollars by zip code; plus more.

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MUNICIPAL

Andiamo expands empire; Tom Markus may return to city; Bloomfield Village millage; clerk involved in fatal accident; Daxton Hotel announces opening; six bistro applications; plus more.

ENDNOTE

Public hearings and a review by the medical and science community are needed for the state House proposal to let counties control the pandemic. Birmingham is on the right track bringing back former city manager.

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FROM THE PUBLISHER Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. There's no way the architecture firm of McKim, Mead & White could have known, when in 1914 they had these words etched above the entrance to the New York City Post Office on 8th Avenue, that the phrase taken from a 500 B.C. book, The Persian Wars, would become the accepted unofficial motto of the United States Postal Service, much less that this public service of the government would fall victim to a history of politics for well over a century and a half. But that is essentially the history of the postal service that had its roots starting with a grant from the British Crown, to only be replaced by the US Post Office created in 1775 with a decree at the Second Congressional Congress and then more formally launched with the signing by President George Washington in 1792 of the Postal Service Act. About fifty years later, Congress elevated the postal service to Cabinet status. One hundred forty years after that, during the Nixon administration, the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 was passed by Congress, replacing the postal department with the independent US Postal Service that now answers to a Postal Regulatory Commission. The US Postal Service (USPS) has been an albatross for most administrations because its original mission to deliver communications for the colonies, then states, now requires an army of employees, nearly 500,000 workers today, trying to keep its head above water in an environment that includes a shift in communication habits on the part of the public – the internet instead of “snail mail.” Then there's the workplace impact of politics that USPS workers have to face, especially nowadays. Since 2006, when 213 billion mail units were delivered each year, volume has dropped to 142.57 billion units in 2019. About the only thing that has kept the post office afloat are periodic loans authorized by congress and the delivery of packages as retail shopping has shifted more to an online model, so its usual $71 billion dollars in revenue taken in each year has been fairly stable, with the USPS holding 18 percent of the national delivery market up against UPS and FedEx. And it certainly doesn't help that the postal service is the only part of the government that faces a stringent requirement to pony up massive amounts of funding each year for future retirement costs. Fast forward to 2020. Once again the USPS is back in the headlines mainly because of changes to current delivery rules enacted in advance of the November general election that took place just after we went to press. Critics charged, with some validity, that alterations in the operations of the post office led to a further and intentional slowdown in deliveries (i.e. absentee ballot mailings) on the eve of a hotly contested election of an incumbent president from the GOP, a party that has already built up a track record across the country of voter suppression efforts (fodder for a future column). Here's the short version – Trump appointed Louis DeJoy as postmaster general (with no experience) who, in mid-July, instituted operational changes to the USPS that reflected the philosophical approach that the post office would now operate strictly as a business, not as a public service of the government. According to internal documents obtained by the Washington Post, and verified by officials from the unions representing the postal carriers, a number of changes were made with the removal of sorting equipment from more than a few post offices, along with new delivery rules and regulations

on those toting the mail to residences and businesses. Among the carrier delivery changes, DeJoy ordered that employees were to leave mail behind if it delayed carriers from their routes. Prior to the rule changes, carriers might have returned to the post office to pick up mail that was not ready when their route should have started. The rule changes would put the kibosh on that. Further, new regulations tried to limit the number of times a carrier could move their vehicles as they were delivering a route. There was also to be an elimination of overtime – you know, the extra pay for your carrier who often came to your house with mail in the evening hours as they were wrapping up a long day of work. All this during a pandemic when I am told that locally there was a shortage of workers, which meant carriers often had to deliver more than their own established route. Let's forget for the moment the impact any USPS changes probably had on timely delivery of mailed absentee ballots for this past election. No doubt there will be thousands of ballots that arrived at municipal clerks' offices after November 3, much like in the August primary election. My ongoing concern is that the post office problems will fade from the headlines within a few weeks, but the poor or spotty delivery service will continue. Long before this election, performance probleme existed but you only heard about it as anecdotal information from time to time. Trust me, it's a major issue. As a Birmingham resident and businessperson, I have complained for years about the postal service. Not my carriers – who continue to provide top shelf service – but the ineptitude of the overall system behind postal deliveries. Here's just a few examples. When the pandemic was declared this spring and our office went to a remote business model, I had all office mail forwarded to my home address (big mistake). On average it took one month, according to postmarks on envelopes, to arrive at my house. We're talking cash flow in those envelopes. Or more recently, maybe someone can tell me why it takes nine days for an envelope with a payment mailed from a Birmingham business to arrive at our office in the same city. Or how about the envelope in mid-October, saved on my desk just for this column, sent from a business in Novi, with a postmark from the Michigan Metroplex sorting center in Pontiac, which then took 12 days later to arrive. And don't even get me started on how each month we field delivery complaints from those receiving our newsmagazine one week after we deliver it pre-sorted by postal route to local post offices, or it fails to arrive at all. This from a business which spends $4,500 to $7,500 each month with the post office. I appreciate the recent news coverage focused on the post office delivery issue prior to the election, the efforts of Michigan U.S. Senator Gary Peters who has been laser focused on this problem, and all the recent studies that show only about 71.5 percent of first class mail in metro Detroit and Oakland County arrives on time. But we don't need another study. We just need the damn problem fixed. David Hohendorf Publisher DavidHohendorf@DowntownPublications.com

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PUBLISHER David Hohendorf NEWS EDITOR Lisa Brody NEWS STAFF/CONTRIBUTORS Hillary Brody Anchill | Stacy Gittleman Austen Hohendorf | Jeanine Matlow | Gigi Nichols | Bill Seklar PHOTOGRAPHY/CONTRIBUTORS Esme McClear | Laurie Tennent | Chris Ward Laurie Tennent Studio ADVERTISING DIRECTOR David Hohendorf ADVERTISING SALES Mark Grablowski GRAPHICS/IT MANAGER Chris Grammer OFFICE 124 W. Maple, Birmingham MI 48009 248.792.6464 DISTRIBUTION/SUBSCRIPTIONS Mailed monthly at no charge to most homes in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills. Additional free copies distributed at high foot-traffic locations in Birmingham/Bloomfield. For those not receiving a free mail copy, paid subscriptions are available for a $15 annual charge. To secure a paid subscription, go to our website (downtownpublications.com) and click on “subscriptions” in the top index and place your order online or scan the QR Code here.

INCOMING/READER FEEDBACK We welcome feedback on both our publication and general issues of concern in the Birmingham/Bloomfield community. The traditional “letters to the editor” in Downtown are published in our Incoming section and can include written letters or electronic communication. Opinions can be sent via e-mail to news@downtownpublications.com or mailed to Downtown Publications, 124 W. Maple Road, Birmingham MI 48009. If you are using the mail option, you must include a phone number for verification purposes. DOWNTOWN GOALS/MISSION The personnel at Downtown newsmagazine bring a special commitment to the publishing effort, reinvesting in the local communities and working to make sure the Birmingham/Bloomfield area reaches its highest potential. Our mission dictates that we strive each month to provide a solid news and advertising product that local residents look forward to reading. Our goal is to build a community of informed citizens through the efforts of our passionate team. We are innovators producing products that go well beyond what others offer. Downtown newsmagazine captures life in the local communities through coverage of major municipal and school issues, personality profiles, the latest news from the business community and the all important social non-profit circuit that makes these communities unique. We also devote considerable effort each month to address major issues facing local residents through our longform story-telling efforts, further setting us apart from others competing for readers' attention. WEBSITE downtownpublications.com

FACEBOOK facebook.com/downtownpublications TWITTER twitter.com/downtownpubs OAKLAND CONFIDENTIAL oaklandconfidential.com METRO INTELLIGENCER metrointelligencer.com Member of Downtown Publications DOWNTOWN BIRMINGHAM/BLOOMFIELD

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CRIME LOCATOR

NORTH

Map key

Sexual assault

Assault

Murder

Robbery

Breaking/entering

Larceny

Larceny from vehicle

Vehicle theft

Vandalism

Drug offenses

Arson

These are the crimes reported under select categories by police officials in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills through October 29, 2020. Placement of codes is approximate.

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Great militia article Great article (Militia/October Downtown). Lisa Brody spoke to a lot of good folks. And, yes, what timing considering the kidnapping plot. They are activated, for sure. Robert Futrell Professor/Chair of Sociology University of Nevada, Las Vegas

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Although we do not have a fixed maximum length for letters sent to us, we recommend a maximum length of 175-200 words. We also reserve the right to edit letters for length if necessary. Opinions can be sent via e-mail to news@downtownpublications.com or mailed to Downtown Publications, 124 West Maple Road, Birmingham MI 48009.

FROM FACEBOOK

Militia coverage The of-the-moment timing may be fortuitous, but the topic selection and in-depth reporting are no coincidence (Militia/October). We're fortunate to have a relevant news-monthly with firstrate journalist Lisa Brody as its editor. Alan Stamm Birmingham I have been aware of the service David Hohendorf’s publications have provided, from BirminghamBloomfield to White lake Township, for the past 40 years. His passion for providing these suburban Detroit communities with first rate journalism has not gone unnoticed. The businesses that have supported these publications with advertising is a further testament to the quality information the publications provide. Great work by his team. Jeffrey Voorheis Palm Harbor, Florida (formerly Birmingham) 11.20

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OAKLAND CONFIDENTIAL Oakland Confidential is a periodic column of political gossip/news, gathered both on and off-the-record by staff members at Downtown newsmagazine. We welcome possible items for this column which can be emailed to: OaklndConfidential@DowntownPublications.com. All sources are kept strictly confidential. The gossip column can be viewed at OaklandConfidential.com where you can sign up to receive updates via email.

RECOGNITION JUGGERNAUT: The buzz about Michigan State Represenative Mari Manoogian (D-Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township) seems to have taken on a life of its own in this year. Earlier in the 2020 campaign drive she got a personal boost when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer showed up at a private home fundraising event in Bloomfield Village for Manoogian. Then in August she was asked to make keynote comments as part of the virtual Democratic Party nominating convention. In September, Manoogian penned an op-ed piece (not bad) in the nowWHITMER online Teen Vogue (average visitor monthly count well over one million) and she was invited to reflect on the first presidential debate on the MSNBC Joy Reid Show (Reid Out) where the host left viewers with the impression that Michigan’s youngest member of the House would be invited back in the future. Now a writer for Elle magazine (audience mainly women, majority ages 18-49) has included Michigan’s first Armenian American member of the state House in a group of 2020 candidates “about to become household names” for their efforts either at the national or state legislative levels. As the writer said it best, a “rising star.” CRINGEWORTHY, INDEED: We understand the game of writing endorsements better than most but even we could feel the personal pain when the Detroit Free Press editorial board came out with its October 19 endorsement of Democrat David Coulter for Oakland County Executive, who we also supported. In backing the apppointed-incumbent (a one-time county commissioner and former mayor of Ferndale), they dissed his opponent as “an obscure and underfunded Republican challenger.” Underfunded, yes. Obscure, COULTER ouch! When they finally did mention Republican Mike Kowall by name, (who is a former state Senator, state Representative and former White Lake Township Supervisor, by the way) halfway through the KOWALL endorsement, they threw some added shade by describing him as “exlegislator from one of the county’s most remote townships,” a description generally reserved for Oakland environs like Addison, Rose or Groveland townships, not White Lake. Our thoughts – next time get a map and lay off the pipe, just a bit. LEARN TO PLAY NICE: You know you’re not winning a popularity contest when the leadership of your own political party disavows you. That’s what has happened with GOP state House candidate Paul M. Smith, a former Sterling Heights city council member who was running to represent the 25th District against incumbent Democrat Nate Shannon. Michigan Republican Chairwoman Laura Cox said the state party stopped backing Smith’s campaign prior to the November 3 vote because he has some “crazy” theories – like asserting the plot against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer by SMITH 13 members of armed militia is a “totally bogus sham.” “The Michigan Republican Party is not investing — will not be spending any money or time or energy on his race. He has some very crazy conspiracy theories that do not reflect the beliefs of thousands of Republicans across the state of Michigan,” Cox told reporters. Smith previously drew the condemnation downtownpublications.com

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of his party for a 2009 YouTube video showing him with signs illustrated with President Barack Obamaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s head impaled on a stake and then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm with a noose around her neck. NO IDLE THREAT: As we all learned when the FBI and Michigan State Police arrested several members of the Wolverine Watchmen, an armed militia group who had plans to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer because they were unhappy with her coronavirus restrictions, our elected officials are facing unprecedented times. On October 25, Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin (D-Rochester, Rochester Hills, northern Oakland, parts of Livingston and Ingham counties) revealed her campaign had reported a threat of violence to SLOTKIN the police. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This week, a caller left a voicemail at my campaign headquarters using threatening, sexually explicit, and violent language, including a threat to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;shoot my way to victory.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; My staff coordinated with Lansing and U.S. Capitol police, who traced the threat to a young person in Ingham County,â&#x20AC;? Slotkin said. After an investigation, it was determined the individual didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pose an actual threat. However, Slotkin said this was not the first, nor only, time she and her campaign have received a violent threat. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am making this threat public because the climate has gotten significantly worse in the last few weeks. I also want to make clear that law enforcement will be involved in each and every threat we receive. We cannot let it be normal that political differences are metered out with threats of violence.â&#x20AC;? She said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Leadership climate is set from the top, and every elected leader needs to set an example by calling out violent and intimidating threats and making clear it has no business in the 8th District, our state and our country.â&#x20AC;?

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DRINKING THE KOOL-AID: Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll just say it. Republican Eric Esshaki of Birmingham, who was running in the general election to replace Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens to represent Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Troy, Clawson, western Oakland County and parts of western Wayne County, really should know better. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been on TV stating he understands health care, while pushing to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a registered nurse, before he became an attorney. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the midst of a pandemic. So, how to best explain Esshaki ESSHAKI being photographed â&#x20AC;&#x201C; repeatedly, at several different events, both in metro Detroit and at a fundraiser in California â&#x20AC;&#x201C; not wearing a mask? Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been spotted with National Republican Party Chair Ronna MCDANIEL (â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t call me Romneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;) McDaniel, not wearing a mask at a Trump rally right before her positive diagnosis; at a rally in Novi embracing prodigal son Eric Trump, not wearing a mask; and raising money at an indoor event in California, with fellow Oakland County residents former state Rep. Klint Kesto (R-Commerce Township), who ran for county commissioner and media consultant Derek Dickow, as well as former GOP Congressman Darrel Issa. Hope that sip of kool aid was worth it. BAG OF BUCKS: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, elected in 2018 on the slogan of â&#x20AC;&#x153;fix the damn roads,â&#x20AC;? had her whole agenda waylaid in 2020 by COVID19 pandemic. Subsequent battles with the Republican legislature and lawsuits against her executive authority may have dinged her, but havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t scarred her, even as Michigan, and the United States, is entering a feared next wave of the health crisis. While President Trump calls her â&#x20AC;&#x153;that woman from Michigan,â&#x20AC;? and leads chants of â&#x20AC;&#x153;lock her up,â&#x20AC;? at rallies in Michigan, Whitmer can laugh all the way to the bank. One with a really big safe. According to MIRS, a campaign filing for Whitmer for Governor on October 23 revealed Whitmer has raised an unprecedented $5 million

DOWNTOWN

11.20

since January – and has a whopping $3.25 million cash on hand. In comparison, her predecessor, Gov. Rick Snyder, raised $544,146 for all of 2012, the second year he was in office. “Whitmer raised 10 times that amount in nine months of her administration’s second year,” MIRS wrote. The last Democrat to hold the governor’s office, Jennifer Granholm, raised $1.64 million in her second year in office, 2004, which is equivalent to 2.26 million – or half what Whitmer raised. Huzzah. ZIP CODE DOLLARS: Here’s a snapshot, one week out from the November 3 balloting, on how local donations flowed to the Trump-Biden contest, broken down by zip codes, thanks to the New York Times. A total of $248,000 from 540 donors went into the Biden campaign coffers from the Bloomfield Township zip code of 48301, while 243 donors kicked in $126,000 to the Trump effort. In Bloomfield Township zip code 48302, $196,000 from 596 donors went to the Biden campaign, while 319 donors shelled out $676,000 for Trump. In the 48304 zip code, which includes Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills, 539 donors kicked in $320,000 for Biden and 360 donors threw roughly $487,000 in the hat for Trump. From Birmingham zip code 48009, 960 donors ante upped $597,000 for Biden and 339 donors gave $280,000 to the Trump reelection effort. Nationally, the average donation size was around $70-$75 dollars in both campaigns, so obviously some generous donors from local zip codes got involved prior to the general election vote. BAD TO WORSE: We don’t know what Michigan GOP Chairwoman Laura Cox has to say on this, but we imagine she may not approve. Republican activist Brandon Hall, who was found guilty of election fraud in 2016, announced on October 1 he was running for the state Republican Party chair “to declare war on the failed, corrupt Lansing establishment,” he stated on Twitter. “My efforts behind the scenes as the chair of the campaign to impeach (Gov.) Gretchen Whitmer (D) HALL have shown me how truly bad things really are throughout our party.” Among Hall’s many claims to fame are organizing a protest at Whitmer’s house, pushing for her impeachment and forging signatures in 2012 to get a judicial candidate on the ballot in Ottawa County, for which he was convicted of 10 counts of election fraud. In 2016, he was a volunteer for Trump’s Michigan campaign, and he ran for office unsuccessfully that year, for a state House seat to represent Holly, which he had also failed to win in 2010. Have to see who else the state Republicans have in mind for chair. SIGN OF THE TIMES: The case of Oakland County v Don Valente, a Republican candidate for Bloomfield Township trustee, is still pending after being postponed at 48th District Court a couple of times. Valente, who ran for trustee because he really, really, really doesn’t like current township supervisor Leo Savoie – which he makes abundantly clear at just about every single meeting, where he rants about what he considers Savoie’s poor leadership, in emails and campaign mailings – even though Savoie lost in the primary, finally faced Judge Kimberly Small on October 26 for a pre-trial hearing for stealing campaign signs. A lot of campaign signs. Fifty or 60 signs, from Savoie, township treasurer Brian Kepes, trustee Neal Barnett, Republican clerk candidate Tom Smyly, and a couple of others back in July. Out on $10,000 bail, Valente’s attorney asked Small for a jury trial, which she said isn’t happening until at least January due to COVID-19. Assistant Oakland County prosecutor Brandon Barlog said he was ready to go with a bench trial, but Small adjourned the hearing for the time being – after chastising Valente, 79, for not yet getting fingerprinted, and admonishing that no contact with his victims included all email correspondence, emails about them, as well as driving by their homes. Barnett said he and others have communicated concerns to Barlog about “Valente’s mental stability, his verbal rantings and if he could become dangerous.” downtownpublications.com

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Andrew Sohn ndrew Sohn has been a team player for quite some time. For starters, the cofounder of Pro Insight played baseball at Brother Rice High School and Western Michigan University before going pro. Now, he and Grant Heyman, a former professional player based in Rochester, New York, offer virtual coaching for kids from professional baseball and softball players. “We have really good instructors and coaches,” said Sohn, who is 27. “We get to know their attitude and teaching style to make sure they do this well and connect with kids.” Sohn had pro instructors throughout high school and college, where the shortstop played for three years before being drafted in the sixth round to the St. Louis Cardinals in 2014, where he was a middle-infielder. “It was awesome,” he said. “I worked for that my entire life and I was so fortunate to have people to work with me to get to that place.” Some of his personal highlights include being named First Team All-MAC at Western Michigan University and winning a minor league championship with the St. Louis Cardinals and with the American Association in Winnipeg, Canada. He credits those mentors for his ultimate success. “I wouldn’t have been in that place if it weren’t for the efforts of my instructors and the information they gave me. I took that and used it as motivation. It was a blessing,” he said. “You don’t have to be the best player. It’s just about getting better as the years go on.” Being on both sides of the equation gives him a unique perspective. “It’s really exciting to be working with somebody. I know because I coach and I love working with kids and seeing them light up,” he said. “What we really want to be is a resource for them and their parents, not just for a mechanical flaw, but to create a relationship and mentorship with a professional player.” There’s also a comfortability aspect for parents and kids. “As a parent, you want your kid to be comfortable,” said Sohn. “As a kid, I know it’s exciting and cool to work with a pro, but also nerve-racking. Our instructors want them to feel super comfortable and have a great relationship.” Though the concept first came in February, right before online learning became the norm, their virtual instruction model simply made sense for pairing pros with kids across the country. Still, it would turn out to be rather timely, considering all the restrictions that would soon follow for sports and more. “We want to continue this for years, even when there is no need for remote learning. The mentorship will be just as important and useful for kids after quarantine,” he said. The cost for a 30 minute session through proinsightbaseball.com is $45. Giving back is an essential part of their business as they partner with the Miracle League, a national non-profit organization that makes it safe for kids with disabilities to play baseball. “We want everyone to have that opportunity to play baseball, so $5 of every lesson goes to the Miracle League,” said Sohn. Now his professional life seems to be a culmination of his time as a player and as a coach. “I’ve come full circle with my baseball journey and career,” he said.

Story: Jeanine Matlow

Photo: Laurie Tennent

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hen we think of racism, most of us think of it as a Black/White issue. But racism can, and does, affect people of all colors, races and genders. It is a result of decades, if not centuries, of learned and ingrained behaviors that have influenced our conduct and responses. Whether Black or of Middle Eastern descent, Asian, Hispanic or a combination, we live in a diverse world. Our belief systems need to catch up. According to experts, much of it is entrenched in our psyches, what is often termed unconscious or implicit bias. It is described as prejudices that influence our thinking unknowingly and our reactions to events and information. It’s often reflexive – grabbing our purse or bag and crossing the street when a young Black or Brown man is walking down the sidewalk towards us; the experience many Blacks describe as “DWB” – driving while Black – of being routinely stopped by police in predominately white communities when a White person in a similar situation would not be; all things being equal, bank loans are more often approved for White applicants than for Black or other minority applicants. Racism leads to health inequities, education disparities, housing segregation and employment imbalances. It’s a little like the chicken and egg question of which came first, because all of those issues also can, and do, lead to racist and economic stratification. On August 5, 2020, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared racism a public health crisis, ordered implicit bias training for all state employees, and created a state advisory council, the Black Leadership Advisory Council, to focus on issues affecting Black people, led by Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist. “We have a lot of work to do to eliminate the systemic racism that Black Americans have experienced for generations,” Whitmer said at the press conference when announcing the public health crisis initiative, noting that Blacks in Michigan are four times more likely to die from COVID-19 than White residents because of unequal economic and health care treatment as well as racism. “This is something we need to get right as a state and as a nation,” said Gilchrist, who has lost at least 23 relatives and friends to COVID-19. While Michigan as a whole, notably southeast Michigan, was hit hard by the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, and is beginning a dangerous second wave, people of color, particularly those from the African American communities, were hit extremely hard, with a mortality rate 4.5 times higher than the rate for Whites and 7.5 times higher than for Hispanic/Latinx residents, according to AMP research lab statistics reported to the state of Michigan. Blacks make up about 14 percent of the population in Michigan – but have accounted for 41 percent of the coronavirus deaths in the state. However, Gilchrist pointed out that in the last couple of months, with the state heavily prioritizing disparities in the COVID crisis, “only eight percent of infections and 10 percent of deaths are affecting the Black community. Our interventions have made a difference.” In addition, since May of this year, the number of people who have fallen into poverty in the United States has grown by eight million people, according to a study by Columbia University – an increase of eight percent since January 2020. Black and Hispanic people are more than twice as likely as Whites to be poor, data indicated, with child poverty rising at a rapid rate. By the U.S. government’s standards, a family of four is considered to be poor if their annual income falls below $28,170. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Dean Michelle Williams wrote, “Racism is killing Black Americans – both by fueling police violence against them and by propelling adverse socioeconomic conditions that contribute to serious health issues… George Floyd’s death at the hands of police officers is a visceral reminder of a reality we have come to know all too well: Racism is a public health crisis. Police violence kills Black Americans at nearly three times the rate of White Americans… The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inequities even further,” noting that people of color

make up a disproportionate number of essential workers who have been at higher risk of catching the virus – which if they do get, they’re more likely to receive worse care than Whites, as well has having dangerous underlying health conditions which can make COVID-19 more deadly. “When you look at the numbers beyond COVID, for African Americans, they have the worst health conditions – diabetes, heart conditions, obesity, high blood pressure – because of diet and poverty, the stressors for living in poverty,” said Dr. Khari Brown, associate professor of sociology at Wayne State University with a specialization in race, religion and politics. “Living and eating healthy, exercising, is a function of class and education, not just of the individual’s class but of your social class and being in a network.” He explained that we are all in numerous “networks” – friendship networks, networks of our children’s friends, a neighborhood network of where we live, professional networks, religious network, and others. “If you’re in a network with a knowledgeable group, you become more knowledgeable. It’s one of the reasons African Americans have some of the worst health and worst health outcomes. They live in poor communities with poor access to health. You have poor individuals that are living in poor neighborhoods – they’re in poor friendship networks – eating healthy and exercising is a function of class,” Brown said. “It’s one more variable. It’s race and class and place. It’s where you are. If you see people running, biking, kayaking – it looks fun. You may want to try it. It’s exposure. Place matters.” An executive at McClaren Oakland Hospital in Pontiac confirmed that they see higher incidences of hypertension, diabetes and sickle cell anemia in persons of color, but not limited to people of color. Poverty is the greater indicator of health issues. “Poverty hits Whites as well as Blacks, with high numbers of White people dying in their 40s and 50s. They have multiple comorbid conditions – they have vascular problems, maybe the result of diabetes and heart disease. Regardless of color, it’s inherent in how you’re brought up, your lifestyle, how you eat. If you don’t see a doctor regularly, and don’t have your health care monitored, you can be young or old, White or Black. We treat patients equally whoever comes through the door.” ore Blacks live in poverty than the general population. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, approximately 14 percent of Michigan residents live in poverty. The percentage of Blacks who live in poverty is about 27 percent; Hispanics, about 20 percent; and Whites, about 11 percent. According to state data in 2018, African American infants are about three to four times more likely than Whites to die in their first year of life, and African Americans are one and a half times more likely to die of heart disease than Whites. “It is not enough to simply label an injustice. We have to formally take steps to replace injustice with justice,” Gilchrist said. He said by the governor declaring racism a public health crisis, it recognizes the impact of racism and prejudice on the environment individuals live in, which have led to worse health outcomes for people of color. It also allows for the ability to unlock the potential of every state department and agency to take a look at itself, the data it collects and analyzes and to see how they can respond better as they move forward. “We have developed a program to connect people to doctors to manage not only their COVID diagnosis, but also asthma, hypertension, diabetes, and other health issues,” Gilchrist said. “We have to have a comprehensive approach to managing not only public health, but also those social determinents of health, and break down obstacles to economic mobility, such as wiping out records for minor incarcerations. I’m very proud of our record. We believe people deserve a chance in Michigan to be their best selves.”

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Pamela L. Pugh, health chair and education chair for Michigan NAACP, said she believes the governor was spurred to action by a campaign led by civil rights leaders, racial and social justice activists, public health and public policy leaders who, on June 19, 2020 – Juneteenth – called for racism to be declared a public health pandemic in Michigan. “The Michigan State Conference NAACP and Black Lives Matter Michigan jointly called for efforts aimed at compelling Michigan decision makers to declare racism as a public health pandemic; developing policy language and model practices necessary to abolish systemic racism which greatly contributes to health inequities; and advocating for statewide adoption of model policies and practices,” Pugh said. “We looked at issues driving it. “We are done dying. The stress of racism itself dysregulates or suppresses the immune system making those experiencing it to be more likely to have poor quality of life and to be more susceptible to contracting or succumbing to illness and disease. This chronic stress is compounded by African Americans being more likely to live in neighborhoods where there is aging housing, crumbling infrastructure, disinvestment in businesses and schools and which have had clean air and safe water choked from them,” Pugh said in a speech on June 19. “We are now coming together as a collective, to give demand and guidance so that those charged with protecting the health and well-being of all Michigan residents are held accountable for possessing the wherewithal, courage, and appropriate urgency to move beyond symbolic gestures to enacting policies and programmatic actions to disrupt and gut out racism which drives inequities.” “We are declaring racism as a public health crisis not only as race serves as a predictor of health but also experiencing racism can lead to negative mental and physical health impacts,” said Andrea PughKelley, Michigan NAACP NextGen. “The tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery struck us at a time in which African Americans are dying from COVID-19 nearly two times greater than would be expected based on their share of the population. Just as racism, these are structural and not genetic issues. Unfortunately, most public health professionals like myself predicted the racial disparities of COVID-19 based on structural discrimination and lack of access to quality and affordable healthcare in communities of color and low socioeconomic status. Systemic racism has been seamlessly woven into our society. We see it expressed in urban education, housing, banking, professional sports, workforce, and the list goes on. Policy and reform are necessary interventions to address racism as a public health crisis.” Pugh was previously the chief public health director for the city of Flint during its water crisis, and she sees parallels to the COVID-19 crisis. “When there is a total denial of science. When the health of Black and Brown people is a trade off to economics, to the rush to opening up of the economy at the expense of Black, Brown, and low income people, especially,” she said. ugh said she was on the ground for NAACP in the spring of this year when “lots of Black and Brown people couldn’t get tested, and were being turned away with symptoms. They should have been told to quarantine when they were sent home and to contact trace so we could see how and where it was impacting our communities. We also heard from health professionals in Detroit, at hospitals in Detroit, who were told they could not get the K95 masks because it would be a ‘bad look,’ until OSHA proceeded and intervened,” obtaining the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE). She relayed that an auto executive was dismayed that the health department for the county where one of their plants is located had failed to communicate with the auto company that workers had COVID, “and it was spreading throughout the auto plant. “I was on weekly calls with the White House where they were

saying testing was happening, that the PPE was there. The White House was lying – but on the local level, local health departments weren’t using their professional judgement. “Is the government responsible? Hell yes they’re responsible,” Pugh said. “Someone should have been contact tracing. Infectious disease doctors should have been doing testing and providing protective gear to health care workers. “We were not getting out the right message at first in our community,” Pugh emphasized. “We were told initially it was not necessary to wear masks, to be tested. When people see our community they see us immediately because of the color of our skin. It was quite disheartening to see all of this. When you have public health interfacing with politics, public health has to speak up with urgency – and that wasn’t happening” he Black Leadership Advisory Council which Gilchrist is leading was created by an executive order from Whitmer for an advisory body in the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity to develop, review, and recommend policies and actions designed to eradicate and prevent discrimination and racial inequity in Michigan. Along with Gilchrist, 16 individuals were to be appointed by the governor representing Black leadership in various fields, such as economics, law, public policy, education, health and wellness, technology, the environment (including environmental justice) and agriculture, community safety and preparedness, arts and culture, and media and communications, with at least one member to be an immigrant, and at least one member aged 18 to 35. Members are to serve three year terms. Among the council’s objectives are to identify state laws, or gaps in state law, that create or perpetuate inequities, with the goal of promoting economic growth and wealth equity for the Black community. Gilchrist said the state received a number of excellent applications for this “first of a kind body, and we will be announcing the members of the advisory council soon.” He anticipates it will help empower the state to make recommendations to move forward to remove issues where racism played a role. “Race does not cause disparities – racism does,” explained Agustin Fuentes, anthropology professor at Princeton University. “It is because the way racism works is bias-based. Someone’s social race is backed up on our system of power. It takes off the table the issue of individual bigotry. Racism is the result of systematic discrimination and oppression.” He emphasized that the importance of that is because “it takes reverse racism off the table. It’s really dangerous, harmful and violent. The reason this perspective is so important is because it does not come from biology, it comes from systematic discrimination, not from nature – but from systems and policies, and that means it’s changeable.” “People often define racism as disliking or mistreating others on the basis of race. That definition is wrong,” said Steven O. Roberts, assistant professor of psychology, Stanford University and codirector, Social Cognition and Development Lab. “Racism is a system of advantage based on race. It is a hierarchy. It is a pandemic. Racism is do deeply embedded within U.S. minds and U.S. society that it is virtually impossible to escape.” New York Times bestseller Caste, by Isabel Wilkinson, compellingly compares the socioeconomic strata in the United States post-slavery with the caste system in India, noting “The dominant caste devised a labyrinth of laws to hold the newly freed people on the bottom rung ever more tightly, while a popular new pseudoscience called eugenics worked to justify the renewed debasement...The idea of race,’ anthropologist Ashley Montagu wrote, ‘was in fact the deliberate creation of an exploiting class seeking to maintain and defend its privileges against what was profitably regarded as an inferior class.’… Caste is structure. Caste is ranking. Caste is the boundaries that reinforce the fixed

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assignments based upon what people look like...Caste is the granting or withholding of respect, honor, attention, privileges, resources, benefit of the doubt, and human kindness to someone on the basis of their perceived rank or standing in the hierarchy.” She said because racism and casteism are interwoven in America, it can be hard to separate the two, with casteism the investment in keeping the hierarchy as it is in order to maintain your own ranking, even if you are in a disadvantaged or marginalized caste. Because someone can always be lower. And the fear of equality is based in a fear by some Whites of losing power. “The real fear is of change and equality,” said Fuentes. “This country has run for so long on systemic racism that if you get rid of that, things will change, and those in power are afraid of change.” lvin Tillery, associate professor of political science at Northwestern University, expounds further. “First of all, flip your causation around. Racism is the cause of health disparities, economics, housing, crime – all of those things. Racism is the result of our founding since 1789 until 1964,” Tillery explained, when the Civil Rights Act was signed by President Lyndon Johnson. “We were a racial dictatorship, where the color of your skin determined if you could vote, where you could go to school, for how long, if you could immigrate, if you could enter the military, where you could get a job. All of these are the legacies of the racial dictatorship.” “These are not human biological categories if you map any biological markers,” Fuentes said. “Variations are not a reflection of biology. But – race is very real. It is the social, political and historical processes that got us to where we are today, and that’s very real to those who inhabit them. “In the U.S., it matters when you walk down the street if you are White, Black, Asian or Latinx. Because of racism, which is the systematic discrimination based upon social categories of race, then you see the economic, political and health disparities and the discrimination.” Fuentes sees solutions coming not from the federal government – “The place it is not happening is the federal government. The executive branch is actually doubling down. But for the first time ever, solutions are coming from corporations and institutions, whether universities, corporations, museums. There is an active movement to look internally at their history and current realities and do something about them, not just bias training and hiring. It’s about changing culture and the way they function and getting real diversity and inclusion at every level.” As Dr. Riana Elyse Anderson, assistant professor of health behavior and health education, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, pointed out, racism, discrimination, health and economic disparities have not only impacted the Black population, but whoever has been impacted by the issues. In metro Detroit, 70 percent of the population is White, 23 percent is African American, 6.2 percent is Hispanic, and 3.3 percent is Asian. The city of Detroit is 78.6 percent Black and 14.6 percent White, according to 2019 estimates of the U.S. Census. “In Detroit, when there was an entire wall that prevented education, home ownership (redlining), that was contrived to prevent their achievements and is responsible for that gap, it would be quite irresponsible to create that gap and then just shrug your shoulders,” Anderson said. “When we see these gaps in achievement or education, it’s incredibly important to think about why and how it happened.” She said that beyond coronavirus, hypertension, diabetes and other health care issues, discrimination affects the mental health trajectory of adolescents of color. “It’s not just the personal incidents of racism, but every time we don’t see someone like us, when they’re not reflected on TV, on a screen that looks like us, in society, it affects their mental health through depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, academic achievement. If we want our children to be the best they can be then how can we be okay with racism and how it shapes them?”

Princeton’s Fuentes said a common White statement of “‘I don’t see color, I judge by the individual,’ is actually a racist statement because it denies the systemic bias and very real process of racism.” It is the thesis of Ibram X. Kendi’s bestseller, How To Be An AntiRacist. “To say I don’t see you as Black, I just see you as a person is to deny the history of systemic racism in the United States. You’re not acknowledging that society views everyone as Black, White, Asian, Latinx,” Fuentes explained. “It’s to be complicit in a racist system. If you’re not actively being anti-racist, you’re supporting the racist system. This is not some lefty theory of discrimination. We’re not arguing that everyone is the same, it’s that how people are treated is unfair and not an accurate representation.” “Michigan is probably the most segregated state in the country by race,” said Michigan State University economics professor Charles Ballard, who co-authored a study with John Goddeeris comparing Black/White earning differences in September 2020. He said that if “zero on the index means completely integrated, race doesn’t matter, and 100 is total segregation and separation between the races, somewhere in the middle the percentage of people who would have to move in order for race not to matter, to have a totally integrated community – metro Detroit is at 74 percent.” Of the 233 metro areas he and Goddeeris looked at, “29 of the most segregated places by race, 15 are in the Great Lakes region, and six are in Michigan,” he said. Detroit was the fourth most segregated city, with only Milwaukee, New York City and Chicago more segregated; Muskegon, Niles, Flint, Saginaw and Grand Rapids were also in the top 30 most segregated cities. “You do not have to have Jim Crow laws to be segregated,” Ballard said. “Redlining, white flight, informal segregation – all of that has economic effects that lead to the lack of education, the lack of opportunities, the lack of good health care, food deserts, and codependents, such as the lack of health insurance. It leads to a whole bunch of social problems piled upon each other.” nterestingly, Ballard noted that income inequality decreased dramatically between 1928 and 1944, driven largely by policy changes affecting education, labor relations and wagesetting institutions, financial regulations and taxes – many of which were reversed in the 1970s and 1980s. In the 1920s through 1950s, Blacks headed north in droves – called the Great Migration – seeking and finding jobs in factories in the auto, steel and other industrial industries that paid well and did not require higher education. “Forty years ago, typical Black workers earned more in Michigan than anywhere else. Our economy was a juggernaut – especially with the auto industry. But our economy has sagged since 1970 or so,” Ballard said. “The payoff to higher education, especially with a college education, has really paid off, and over the long haul, Blacks were denied any education, especially in the south, but if you hold constant with 12 years of education for Whites and 12 years of education for Blacks, the payoff is bigger with Whites because of the perceived difference in the quantity and quality of education. Therefore, Blacks have never caught up with Whites. “That means there has been occupational segregation – it explains the differences in occupation, where a White person is more likely to be in a higher-paid occupation; residential segregation – it’s why our schools are segregated, because we organize our K-12 education by where we live, and since we live in a society that is profoundly segregated, our educational systems are segregated,” Ballard said. In Oakland County, Whites make up 71.5 percent of the population, with Blacks 13.8 percent; Asians 7.79 percent; Hispanics 3.21 percent of the population. Over 93 percent are U.S. citizens. According to the Michigan League for Public Policy, 48 percent of immigrants in Oakland County arrived in the U.S. before 2000, and since 2010, the number of immigrants has increased by 17.5 percent, with 59 percent arriving from Asia; 20 percent coming from Europe; and 18.5 percent coming from Latin America. Oakland County Board of Commission Chairman Dave Woodward

FOSTERING HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS the Birmingham shopping district presents The Great Decorate, a holiday tree decorating contest to raise awareness and funds for local foster teens aging-out of the foster care system. The foster teen recipients will be selected through a partnership with the Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange (M.A.R.E.). Each year in the United States, more than 250,000 children are placed in foster care and over 26,500 age-out, including 1,700 in Michigan alone. Starting November 27th, visitors can view magnificent, beautifully decorated trees in restaurants and retail locations throughout downtown Birmingham and vote for their favorite tree by donating online. 100% of donations will go directly to local foster teens to use toward their future when they turn 18.

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noted, “Oakland County is so rich with diversity.” Unlike the African American community, which has long had NAACP and now Black Lives Matter, many ethnic communities may have business chambers or organizations, but do not have strong advocacy institutions representing them but Oakland County is starting to address the issue on a broader basis for all non-white populations. On July 1, Oakland County Executive David Coulter introduced Robin Carter-Cooper as the county’s first Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion executive. According to Woodward, her job is to look at the “full gamut – taking a look at the full diversity of our full operations at the county level, with the hope to eventually provide support and tools to local communities.” Carter-Cooper will be the person at the county to vet and identify structural racism and determine the steps to improve, Woodward said, for all diverse communities – “from Arab Americans, Chaldeans, Hispanics, Asians, women, LGBTQ. This is very intentional to address systemic racism and make Oakland County better.” In addition, county executive David Coulter announced the formation of a new diversity council to work with Carter-Cooper, to examine county operations. “We have to be willing to move forward,” Woodward said. “The Asian American and Hispanic American movements are working to be at the same place, at the same starting gate,” said Jo Reger, professor and chairman of the sociology department, Oakland University. “Whites are at the startling line or a few steps ahead of other groups because of privilege, which means having greater access and opportunity versus those who don’t have that. It leads to a gap in opportunity. Often we forget how that plays into things today. There’s often a lack of acknowledgement by people of privilege of that inequality.” She used the example of the GI bill after World War II, which provided a wide range of benefits to returning soldiers, including stipends that covered tuition for college education and made low interest mortgages available. While it did not specifically exclude Black Americans, as Northwestern University’s Alvin Tillery pointed out, “the military was segregated, so those veterans were primarily White. It was an unintended consequence. The suburbs that popped up became bastions of White segregation.” “We often forget how that plays into today,” Reger said. When we don’t remember history, she said, we ignore that inequality. “We don’t recognize why they can’t achieve these things. Why they’re having a different kind of struggle than we’re having. For COVID, it’s not just a lack of health care, it’s a lack of being healthy to start with and often, they’re unable to risk losing their employment.” ccording to the 2010 census, there are approximately half a million Hispanics in Michigan, with the largest numbers concentrated in southwest Detroit, Pontiac, Lansing, Flint and western Michigan, according to Mark Moreno, executive director of Michigan Hispanic Chamber. The largest country they come from is Mexico, then Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Columbia and Venezuela. “During the Mexican Revolution in the ‘30s, there were a number of individuals who fled the country, including members of my own family, who went anywhere from Oklahoma to Michigan,” Moreno said. “Where there is oppression, persecution or social injustice, people either look to combat it and change things, or flee. The tragedy that is happening in Venezuela today is an example. Some older family members are not going to leave their home. But younger generations are looking to pave the way for their families and help those who are choosing to stay behind in their country of origin.” Decades of violence and upheaval in the Middle East have led to immigration from numerous Arab countries. The Middle Eastern population is counted as White, according to professor Florence Dallo of Oakland University’s School of Health Science. “The Middle Eastern community is sometimes invisible in Michigan, and can pass for White,” Dallo said, although their health issues should force them to be recognized as their own category. “If they were to

disaggregate the category, they would find that Arab Americans have a higher percentage of diabetes (than Whites). If we can’t show that there is a large population, then we can’t justify the allocation of resources. The census information is valuable so the federal government can determine where the money can go – which communities, who can have health access and care. “We know discrimination still exists.” iddle Eastern residents, who in Michigan have come in the greatest numbers from Lebanon, Iraq or Yemen, she said, have come in waves over the last 130 years, with about a half-million now in Michigan, for about six percent of the population. There are about 800,000 Arab Americans in California, she said, but they are spread out, and represent only one percent of California’s population. “As they live in ethnic enclaves, there have been some protective benefits to their health, for blood pressure, diabetes and cancer,” Dallo said, noting as they become more acculturated they often move from neighborhoods of immigrants to other communities. Hospitals may not recognize cultural and holistic treatments that residents desire to complement western medicine. “Oak Park years ago had a high population of Chaldeans, but they moved to West Bloomfield, Farmington Hills. In Sterling Heights, there is a mix of both newer immigrants and those who’ve been there a long time. Bloomfield Township is a place where Arab Americans go who are acculturated,” she said. In Michigan, there are approximately 400,000 Asians, 100,000 of which are Chinese Americans, according to Roland Hwang of the Association of Chinese Americans. Besides Chinese Americans, there are Southeast Asian Indians, Filipinos, Japanese Americans, Korean Americans and Southeast Asian Americans, primarily Vietnamese and Hmong, who came from Laos. “In metro Detroit, the Chinese population is primarily concentrated in Troy, Novi and Ann Arbor. Different subgroups are concentrated in different areas. Large groups of Filipinos live in Sterling Heights and Canton; big populations of Southeast Asian Indians live in Canton and Troy,” Hwang said. Health problems for Asians are a systemic issue, he said, because sampling data of the Asian population is underrepresented and “often Asians are left off the map,” he said. “There are a lot of health disparities within the Asian community based on cultural norms.” Women’s health issues are often neglected because of a lack of willingness by members of the community and lack of proper communication, to undergo mammograms, pap smears and general gynecological exams. But significantly worse, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, is an increases in stress and anxiety due to a spike in anti-Asian violence, Hwang said, “as people are blaming the Asian community for its spread and the rhetoric from on high calling it ‘Chinese flu’ or ‘Kung flu.’ It’s causing stress, anxiety and worries among everyone, especially among kids returning to school. It’s just an additional overlay to the Chinese American community. “For someone with racial animus who wants to take out hate against Asians, they don’t necessarily differentiate between Chinese and other Asian groups,” Hwang said, noting there have been about 2,800 incidents of anti-Asian acts during the pandemic. “They’re acting out of racial animus. They don’t know who they’re targeting and that’s a concern.” There has been an economic impact to the Chinese community directly tied to the COVID-19 pandemic as well. “Certainly, Chinese restaurants felt the brunt early on, in January and February, before the rest of the shutdowns. Americans knew about the flu in Wuhan, China. There were a few months when people were shying away from Chinese restaurants,” Hwang said. “Way before the pandemic hit here, it was pretty bad,” confirmed Lisa Gray, head of the North American Chinese Restaurant Association, Michigan Chapter. “The virus is from China, and people thought there was an issue with Chinese food, that it could be with people in the kitchen. Social media really played a major role in this. The perception was that if you were Chinese, you were possibly carrying it.”

FACES

Izabel Kruse and Ella Easterwood s she weeded the landscaping outside the Angels' Place Pine Center adult group home in West Bloomfield this spring, Notre Dame Preparatory High School senior Ella Easterwood of Rochester knew she had made a friend. Through the window, a resident had picked up her clarinet and started playing the school’s fight song as a show of appreciation. “Volunteering for people with learning disabilities just fits in with our school’s community-oriented values,” said Easterwood, 17. “The woman playing our fight song used to visit our school for games and plays in the past. I am glad we can keep up our connection with residents like this even during the pandemic. This is not just a service opportunity. Our student volunteers and the people who live here have formed deep friendships.” Believing that their high school student body needed a better understanding and more exposure to those with developmental learning disabilities, Easterwood and her classmate Izabel Kruse, 17, of Bloomfield Hills, established a Best Buddies chapter to volunteer with Angels' Place. Best Buddies is an international organization that provides services and friendships for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Since 1992, Southfield-based Angels’ Place provides homes and services to approximately 150 people living with developmental disabilities in 20 locations in Wayne, Macomb, and Oakland counties. The girls did not let the pandemic deter their desire for making a connection between the school and adult home communities. Starting last spring, their Best Buddies chapter worked on the outside of several Angels' Place homes, where volunteers spruced up the landscaping and helped plant a vegetable garden. Though students could not directly socialize with residents, they set up times to get to know each other and play games like BINGO over Zoom. What the students learned is that they share common interests with residents like playing games, music, and playing sports, said Kruse. Among the resident population are musicians, cooks, and even Special Olympics medalists. “Students in our school need to be better educated about adults and children with intellectual disabilities,” said Kruse, who took example from her big sister Maura, 19, who volunteers with special needs children. “Although the pandemic essentially canceled everything, it did not cancel the love that was shared through charity.” Easterwood and Kruse are now in the thick of applying to college, but they both hope to continue volunteering with those with disabilities with Best Buddy chapters when they go to university. Through the winter, they will work with their high school Best Buddy membership to set up more programming with Angels' Place residents over Zoom including playing games and arranging cooking classes. “Through Best Buddies, I learned that people may learn and interact differently from one another,” said Kruse. “But in the end, we should be able to look beyond a person’s disability and see they are humans with interests, hobbies, and lives just like us.”

Story: Stacy Gittleman

Photo: Laurie Tennent

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numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths in early spring, the state’s Pivot. If there’s one word repeated by Oakland County’s business numbers plummeted throughout the summer, attributed primarily to a owners across communities and sectors, it’s pivot. When Michigan number of executive orders from Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s office shut down on March 26, 2020 to shelter in place and attempt to keep (which have since been overturned) that limited the size of the spread of the coronavirus at bay, businesses of all types had to gatherings, business occupancy, and mandated the wearing of masks immediately rethink their operating models, especially those for at businesses. As the fall numbers spike and the state enters its whom interacting with the public – their customers – was an inherent “second wave,” the number of confirmed cases will directly impact part of business. how businesses continue to rebound. Pivoting isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Many businesses that have “The trajectory of the virus is going to have such a direct and been forced to get creative note that they will continue some of their significant impact on our economic recovery that it’s difficult to programs post-COVID-19, whenever that may be. Said Sandy Baruah, overstate that,” warned Baruah. “If we have a handle on the virus, president of the Detroit Regional Chamber, “Depending on the sector and we’re able to manage the virus and it doesn’t spike again, that you’re in, you’re either having a really strong experience, you’re regardless of what happens with the federal government, I feel pretty holding steady, or you’re scrambling for survival or may have already confident that we’ll see a nice recovery in 2021. If we can’t get a succumbed to the virus.” handle on the virus, I worry about a pretty significant economic For the local business community, it helps that Oakland County challenge as we enter late 2020 and 2021. There’s enough to worry has a strong economic foundation. As Oakland County Executive about for everyone.” Dave Coulter said, “We really are in many ways the economic engine of Michigan. We create more jobs and more GDP than any other REAL ESTATE county in the state. It’s not just important for Oakland County to do One industry that is having a positive 2020 is residential real well for itself, but for the whole state.” estate. With everyone homebound and interest rates at all time lows, Oakland County’s real GDP – gross domestic product – for 2018 the housing market is booming. The average selling price for a home was $101 billion, the highest in the state, and accounted for 21 in Oakland County is up six percent from September 2019, and percent of Michigan’s GDP for that year. inventory is down, making it a competitive seller’s market. But According to the 35th Oakland County Economic Outlook according to James Christbrook, president of the Summary, presented in September by University Greater Metropolitan Association of Realtors, of Michigan economists Dr. Gabriel M. Ehrlich buying habits have changed. and Donald Grimes, the U.S. lost 18.2 million “COVID has really changed the mindset of jobs in the second quarter of 2020; it is Pivot. If there’s one word people in so many ways, but the biggest thing in estimated that in Oakland County, 156,100 jobs repeated by Oakland regards to houses is, there was a trend prior to were lost, creating a spike in the county’s County’s business owners COVID where baby boomers and Millennials unemployment rate to more than 19 percent in across communities and wanted the same thing – to move into a April and May. As industries reopened, the sectors, it’s pivot. When multifamily condo or apartment where they county is forecasted to lose a total of 68,000 jobs were in town, close to everything. There was a in 2020. The majority of these job losses Michigan shut down to keep lack of inventory for condos, a place where you occurred in lower wage service industries that in the spread of the could lock the door, go to Florida, and not have 2019 made up 27 percent of Oakland County’s coronavirus at bay, to worry about it,” Christbrook said. “When wage and salaried employment, including retail, businesses of all types had people were stuck at home for an extended nursing and residential care, leisure and to immediately rethink their length of time, they realized, ‘that’s not what I hospitality. The anticipated unemployment rate operating models. want,’ and very quickly, there was a shift back for Oakland County in 2020 is 9.1 percent, in to the suburbs. They wanted a house big line with the U.S. unemployment rate expected enough to have some space around them, a to be 9.2 percent – up from 3.9 percent in 2019. home office because so many people are With the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, continuing to work from home. That shift has caused a lack of Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Oakland County was able inventory in a whole different product.” to provide over $70 million in aid to over 15,000 businesses. However, Christbrook points out that the luxury market is doing incredibly both Coulter and Baruah said that more federal funding is needed for well, as buyers who are spending more time at home are “upsizing” businesses to survive. “Another relief package is critical,” said instead of downsizing, finally purchasing their dream homes. Coulter. “The thing that propped up all of our efforts in Oakland According to RealComp, the number of new Oakland County County was that we had those CARE dollars. They were a lifeline to listings in September 2020 was 27,736, down 15 percent from our local businesses, libraries, non-profits. Without another round of September 2019, when there were 32,674 new homes on the market. that funding, especially since we’re seeing our numbers on the rise This lack of inventory is helping fuel an increase in the median home again, we will not have the same economic success next year without price, from $250,000 in 2019 to $264,900 in 2020. With 30-year fixedthat assistance.” rate mortgages having fallen below three percent – according to Coulter is bullish on the county’s future, as evidenced in Oakland Freddie Mac, the average mortgage rate in January 2020 was 3.62 County’s recently unveiled strategic plan, which focuses on percent, while in September it had fallen to 2.89 percent – buyers diversifying talent and economic development; it is the county’s first have more money to spend. in 20 years. Coulter said that “our goal is to make sure that, while we Madeline Dishon, president of the North Oakland County Board of have a great history of success in economic development, that we’re Realtors, said these differences are palpable. “People are coming in looking forward over the next five to 10 years. Our goal is for Oakland and paying cash at all price points,” she pointed out. “That’s not stuff County to be a global destination for world class talent, investment we’ve seen in a long time. I’m amazed at how much money people and jobs.” have. I have never seen financial statements like I’ve seen this year.” While this year’s economy has been tumultuous, the strategic plan Additionally, agents note that buyers are waiving many of the was nearly completed prior to the onset of COVID-19, and examines contingencies common when purchasing a home, including those for how changes in manufacturing, technology, and entrepreneurship will inspection and appraisal values in order to secure the sale. all continue to drive Oakland County’s economy in the years to come. When realtors were allowed to resume in-person work in May after All of this, of course, can only happen if the spread of the their stay-at-home order expired, they had already missed some of coronavirus is kept at bay. While Michigan had some of the highest

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singled out as bastions of germs and potential sites for coronavirus what was traditionally Michigan’s peak season for home buying. That spread. Here in Michigan, these businesses were closed for six has fueled a market that they anticipate to remain strong throughout months, one of the last industries to be allowed to reopen under the winter. Said Dishon, “It’s still a feeding frenzy. It has not changed Governor Whitmer’s executive orders, as well as one of the last states since we were able to get back to work. We might slow down near the in the country to allow these businesses to reopen. holidays, but the buyers won’t go away. I’d expect it to remain this Alyssa Tushman of Franklin, the owner of BURN Fitness, which way for all of next year.” has three locations in Rochester Hills, Livonia and Clawson, coThis strong market has also increased employment opportunities at founded the Michigan Fitness Club Association in the midst of the a time when jobs are scarce. Christbrook commented that he’s seen pandemic. Like many fellow associations that were founded across many who had lost their jobs become (real estate) agents during this the country, Tushman, who is MFCA’s vice chair, described the time – ”some months, it’s been 120, 130 new agents” who have attention paid to the restaurant, airline, and hotel industries, and become members of GMAR, the largest realtor association in the didn’t see her industry represented. In particular, she described the state. They are nurturing their membership and those new to the unfair “stigma” placed on gyms, when in reality she said that even business by offering expanded educational events online. before the pandemic, modern fitness clubs had invested in superior On the commercial end, with many employees still working from HVAC systems, regular cleanings, and many have high ceilings. home, the need for office space has dwindled. However, with office Importantly, “we contact trace by nature. We’re membership based, tenants typically holding long leases (a small business lease may be so every single person who comes in and out is traced and known,” three to five years, while larger companies will often be seven to 10), she said, an important feature should someone becoming infected the commercial leasing market isn’t changing overnight. with COVID-19. In addition to knowing exactly who has entered the Friedman Real Estate’s Jared Friedman said that 94 percent of facility and when, Orangetheory Fitness owner Scott Marcus noted their tenants across their portfolio have paid their rent. However, he that at his eight locations across metro Detroit, they can contact trace said, “the bad news is there’s really no one in the buildings. Of our 10 down to the exact piece of equipment an individual was on during million square feet of office space, there’s only about 27-28 percent of their visit, as each person is assigned to a spot for the duration of the the people who lease space who are in the building on a daily basis. class. Some buildings are completely empty.” While the majority of gyms and fitness For those who have had to return to the studios were counting the seconds until they office, his construction and design team has could reopen, several will stay closed for good, been hard at work reconfiguring existing office including Fuse45 (which will continue virtually), spaces to comply with social distancing While this year’s economy West Bloomfield’s Jewish Community Center requirements. has been tumultuous, the health club, the Livonia YMCA, and several “The density of the office user was everyone county strategic plan was more. IHRSA reports that 4,000 studios have next to each other, sharing desks, an open, nearly completed prior to closed their doors so far, and it is predicted that collaborative space.” To “COVID-ize” the office, the onset of COVID-19, 20 percent of fitness facilities nationwide may Friedman said, they’ve helped their tenants put close by the end of 2020. And while earlier this up plexiglass dividers, safety signs near and examines how spring there were multi-month waitlists to elevators and common areas, and reconfigure changes in manufacturing, purchase Pelotons and other in-house gym existing spaces. Friedman said they’ve put up technology, and equipment, Tushman said that overall activity is around 20,000 dividers thus far. entrepreneurship will down 48 percent. This is particularly While Friedman said that “you will see continue to drive Oakland's concerning, as Tushman pointed out that being increased vacancies over the short term, 24 to economy for years. overweight is a significant metric for those who 36 months in the office market,” he has get sick with the coronavirus, and encourages witnessed that people are missing the physical activity of any kind to maintain a connectivity and collaboration inherent in a healthy lifestyle and combat stress and anxiety shared work environment. When they do during these unknown times. reconvene, though, their office location may have changed, with As with all industries, studios got creative during their monthsurban high rises less desirable than they were just 12 months ago. long closure, bringing classes online and outdoors. Local franchises of Friedman is seeing a boom in properties in Troy, Southfield, Livonia national chains like The Barre Code, which has locations in and Farmington Hills, with parking lots instead of structures, multiple Birmingham and Royal Oak, and Orangetheory, which has locations entrances, and stairs. in Birmingham, Troy and Farmington Hills, had the benefit of being a Ingrid Tighe, executive director of the Birmingham Shopping part of a larger parent company to help guide them through both District (BSD), sees towns like Birmingham becoming even more being closed and reopening. While some studios struggled to quickly attractive to office workers as work life changes. “We are a adapt to making their workouts available online, unclear as to the downtown. We don’t have 10,000-people corporate offices. The demand, those which benefited from a larger network found it easier advantage that Birmingham offers is small to midsize office space,” to pivot to offering their classes online, as they did not have to invest that will favor the “new normal” of a mix of in-person and remote in their own digital infrastructure. Orangetheory’s Marcus noted that work. their classes encouraged people to use whatever they had available – FITNESS INDUSTRY ”a bottle of detergent, a baby, luggage” – in their free daily classes, a The 2010s saw a tremendous amount of growth for the fitness way to make workouts seem more attainable despite taking place in industry. According to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub atypical settings. Association (IHRSA), health club memberships in the United States Taking the workout outdoors also helped studios through their reached an all-time high of 64.2 million people in 2019, representing a closures, as they could host socially distanced workouts in their 28 percent increase since 2010. While gym memberships notoriously parking lots or local parks. Lindsay Irrer, co-owner of The Barre Code do not always translate to visits, those too saw record numbers in metro Detroit’s locations in Birmingham, Royal Oak, Rochester Hills, 2019, with more than 73 million people visiting a fitness facility for a and Northville, said that some of their Birmingham classes had total of 6.7 billion visits, according to the 2020 IHRSA Health Club upwards of 100 people. While the cooler temperatures make it unsafe Consumer Report. Of course, those numbers would come to a to continue these outdoor workouts, Irrer says that “moving forward, screeching halt in March 2020, as workout facilities were quickly both virtual and outdoor classes will always be a component of our

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recreate a restaurant experience, not wanting to compromise the way their food tasted just because it was being wrapped to go. They decided to reopen serving one dish – lobster rolls. Diners could order single rolls, two packs, or a kit to make the rolls at home. On their very first day open, they sold 1,000 lobster rolls, with a line down Woodward to 14 Mile Road. “We were selling more in carryout in lobster rolls than we would in some normal weeks pre-pandemic,” Hussey said. They then expanded their menu slightly, creating picnic baskets with seafood and fried chicken to feed a family. One devoted staff member even delivered the meals directly to people in Birmingham’s Shain Park while wearing a lobster suit, her own personal form of PPE. As the cooler weather settles in and diners are forced indoors, Hussey sees her large space as a draw. With a normal capacity of 250, and separate areas traditionally used for private dining, HRD will be able to spread diners out naturally. Also in development are small scale catering packages, especially around the holidays, delivered straight to a host’s door. It’s “bringing the restaurant experience to you,” Hussey said of the “full service experience” where HRD staff will set it up, serve, and clean up. While Hussey said that the culmination of all of these pivots has made her business more profitable, updating restaurants for carryout and weather do not come cheaply. The Roberts Restaurant Group is in the process of winterizing the patio at Bloomfield Township’s Roadside B&G and downtown Birmingham’s Streetside Seafood. While owner Bill Roberts’ restaurants, which also include Beverly Hills Grill, Cafe ML and Bill’s, have always offered the pandemic carryout, he is in the process of implementing has been hospitality. With online ordering platforms on each of their restaurants reopening in HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY websites, a cumbersome, but necessary task to early June, albeit at half One of the industries hardest hit by the increase efficiencies. According to MRLA’s capacity, they expanded pandemic has been hospitality. With restaurants September COVID-19 Restaurant Impact Survey, reopening in early June, albeit at half capacity, 62 percent of the state’s operators say that their outdoor dining to serve restaurants expanded their outdoor dining in total operating costs are higher than they were more customers in a order to serve more customers in a distanced, prior to the pandemic. distanced, open air setting, open air setting. Many cities allowed for Roberts’ restaurants have also seen their adding tables on sidewalks restaurants to add tables on sidewalks or in traffic affected by the lack of business breakfasts or in parking spaces in parking spaces as a way to space tables and and lunches, a staple for Beverly Hills Grill and some communities. allow for social distancing. Downtown Royal Bill’s, travel to and from the airport at Beverly Oak closed off 5th Street to traffic, allowing for Hills Grill, and for Streetside Seafood, the nearby restaurants to expand their dining even more. construction on both Maple Road and at the Yet, unfortunately, Michigan’s outdoor dining former site of The Varsity Shop, which abuts the season is a brief one, and the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging restaurant. As one of metro Detroit’s most seasoned restaurateurs, Association (MRLA) said that 27 percent of the state’s restaurant Roberts has altered his restaurants’ hours to reflect these changes in operators predict they will not be in business in six months without consumer behavior, and tightened his menus to streamline both inadditional federal assistance, and three-quarters do not anticipate person dining and carryout. that their business will be back to pre-COVID levels in the next six The hospitality industry is Michigan’s second largest employer, months. As such, the MRLA launched their “Don’t Leave Michigan’s employing an average of 700,000 annually; approximately 200,000 are Hospitality Industry Out in the Cold” campaign in September to still out of work. For those who work in this high risk industry, advocate for expanded reopening measures. The MRLA is “focusing reopening their businesses safely has been an ongoing challenge. on financially helping our restaurants and hotels through According to Susan Keels, general manager of the Royal Park Hotel in winterization grants,” as well, according to Emily Daunt, vice Rochester, they initially laid off approximately 125 employees when president of communications and operations. they decided to close the hotel earlier this spring. So far, they’ve been Beth Hussey, co-owner of Hazel, Ravines & Downtown (HRD), has able to bring back about 90, strong numbers considering two out of had a double whammy against their restaurant this season. The three of Michigan’s hotels currently have occupancies of less than 50 10,000 square foot Birmingham restaurant was one of the few in the percent according to the MRLA. At the Royal Park, their corporate downtown that does not have outdoor dining, and the construction travelers, what Keels calls their “bread and butter,” is currently project that shut down Maple Road was right at their doorstep. The between 10 to 20 percent occupancy, down from 70 percent. “On the barely two-year-old restaurant was forced to get creative. After a flip side,” she said, “what we’ve been seeing is an increase in the wildly successful lobster menu in summer 2019, and a similar Florida local leisure market, those within a 300 mile drivable radius. The stone crab-themed menu in January and February 2020, HRD had weekends are between 80 to 90 percent, and we sold out a weekend decided that they would rotate menus of fresh, seasonal seafood. recently.” Yet while many restaurants immediately transitioned to serving The other main economic driver for hotels like The Royal Park are carryout in mid-March, HRD initially closed completely. When they events like conferences and weddings. Initially, noted Keels, couples did reopen for carryout in May after receiving a Paycheck Protection were postponing their celebrations by a few months. “When the Program grant, Hussey focused on how the food and packaging would pandemic started, 85 percent of brides and grooms wanted to move program because it has truly been so enjoyable.” But now that gyms are open, will people return? IHRSA, in partnership with MXM, has published their “visit-tovirus” ratio tracker data, which shows that of more than 49.4 million visits to health clubs around the country, only .002 percent have tested positive for COVID-19 between May 1 and August 6, 2020. Marcus said that across Orangetheory’s 1,200 studios, 85 to 90 percent of clients have returned within 90 days of reopening. Nancy Hodari, who owns Equilibrium Pilates in Bloomfield Township and downtown Birmingham, estimated that already, about 75 percent of her clients have returned in person, with closer to 85 percent at her Bloomfield Township location. Just like clients, staff, too, need to feel comfortable returning. Said Irrer, “The majority of our team was ready and raring to go, but just like the general population, we do have some who have underlying conditions. We have a lot of young moms and those who are expecting who may not be comfortable coming back. We pour a lot of energy into training our instructors, so to be navigating everything, and working without our complete staff, is challenging.” Some of Equilibrium’s instructors are continuing to teach virtually from their homes, while Tushman and Marcus noted they have lost staff to other industries, with Marcus stating that about 15 percent of his approximately 100 employees did not return. Irrer pointed out another new challenge to her operations. “We had our schedule pre-Covid down to a science. We knew where our busy times were. But everyone’s work and family lives are so turned upside down that the times people work outs Hardest hit by have changed, too.”

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pre-pandemic levels by the end of May, staying above or near that ever their weddings, so we moved everything into summer and fall.” She since. Meegan Holland, vice president of marketing and said that many weddings have now been moved two or three times, communications for the Michigan Retailers Association, said of this but some smaller, more intimate gatherings have occurred in their trend, “very puzzlingly, Michigan consumers have been spending more outdoor spaces, and will continue especially now that they are no than any other state in the nation. Even the experts are puzzled by longer restricted to only being allowed to host 10 people in their 10,000 that.” This “in-Michigan spending” is imperative, as in a typical year, square foot ballroom. However, many of the key elements of a wedding she said that we send about $18.5 billion to conglomerates like have had to change, from crowded dance floors to buffet sweet tables Amazon and Wayfair, a number that has increased over the past nine and passed appetizers. “The mingling has been challenging. When years and is sure to climb even higher as the pandemic continues to you’re standing up, you have to wear a mask. People have to drink drive even more shopping online. sitting down at tables, and dancing with a mask on at your table instead of the dance floor,” a feature that has been removed To stay competitive with online shopping, Bauman says that about completely. She anticipates a soft first quarter of 2021 for these types of two years ago, the BBCC encouraged retailers to boost their online events as clients hold out hopes for a return to some normalcy by later presence and shopping platforms. “The good news is that I don’t think in the year. too many of the bricks and mortar retailers were having to start from Thanks to an investment in technology and connectivity that had scratch.” What many did add was curbside shopping, with downtown been put in place prior to the pandemic, the Royal Park has been able Birmingham adding five minute “buy and fly” parking spaces so that to host some small business gatherings, including a tech company that shoppers can either quickly park and pick up a purchase made over the had attendees in-person at the hotel, as well as streaming from London phone or online, or have it delivered straight to their car by the and China. They have also sold some day packages for those who need merchant, which has taken some of the bite out of the loss of business to get away from the distractions of their work from home setting, a due to the state lockdown and a Maple Road construction project that trend Daunt at the MRLA has seen statewide, and have seen the is finally nearing completion. return of a handful of business travelers. “Travel as we know it and the The Royal Oak Downtown Development Authority even allocated pattern of our guests has completely shifted,” said Keels, saying that funding for “Downtown Dollars,” providing $20 gift cards totaling some business travelers who would previously stay for one to two days $500,000 for people to spend at over 70 retailers and restaurants. are now staying for an entire week or even two as Tighe of Birmingham’s BSD points out that they consolidate their travel. some retailers are doing very well, like The hotel has added lots of socially distanced Lululemon, Moosejaw, and Gazelle Sports, programming to cater to the local market and reflecting the more casual and comfortable at As for the retail segment of make up for the lack of traditional customers, home lifestyle adapted over the past seven the business community in including a “vertical” summer concert series months. Jewelry, menswear, and luxury designer the county, retail has also where some of the audience watched from clothes stores have seen a steep decline in been hit hard by COVID-19. balcony suites, plein air painting in partnership business, with some now only open only by Grocers and home with the Paint Creek Center for the Arts, and appointment, and five stores have closed since dining at fire pits, cabanas, and outdoor snow improvement stores saw the pandemic began. Those spaces, however, are globes. business increase this quickly being replaced, with the recent opening Keels reflected on the pivots the hotel has spring and summer; locally of stores like Johnny Was, and ongoing talks with made. “It’s the high touch that we’re all about in some national chains who are finding an outdoor owned mom and pop the luxury market. How do we continue to give downtown “more appealing” than a mall, she boutiques had to reassess the guest a great experience while keeping them said. their business models. safe? Piece of mind is now the new luxury.” Said Holland, “I’m hearing people say, ‘I The local area’s other luxury hotel, The don’t want to look at my downtown and see Townsend Hotel in Birmingham, declined to be empty storefronts, so I have to shop at these interviewed. stores.’ That’s huge. That could truly save your favorite store if you just make sure to go there instead of shopping RETAIL online for the convenience or to save a few pennies.” As for the retail segment of the business community in the county, Holiday shopping is always a huge economic driver for retail, with retail has also been hit hard by COVID-19. While grocers and home many stores saying it can account for one-third of their annual revenue. improvement stores saw their businesses increase this spring and While many stores were hurt by the lack of back-to-school shopping, summer, locally owned mom and pop boutiques have had to reassess their second busiest season, stores throughout the region are starting their business models. the holiday season early. They’re adding inventory earlier, a proactive Noted Joe Bauman, president of the Birmingham Bloomfield approach in case the supply chain is impacted as cooler weather sets Chamber of Commerce (BBCC), “It’s the ripple effect of working from in and coronavirus cases rise. Shipping delays are expected to home. There’s a whole economy that is supported by having a continue, affecting both the speed at which goods make it into stores, workforce in offices. It’s the barber shops, the drugstores, the as well as a customer’s home. restaurants, the dry cleaners, who are all really struggling because of Holiday programming and festive decor and lights will also enhance that.” the shopping experience in Birmingham and Rochester, enticing Additionally, for local downtowns like Birmingham, Rochester, and shoppers into stores with programs like Birmingham’s The Great Royal Oak, events are key drivers to bring people into stores and Decorate, where shop owners compete in a tree decorating contest, restaurants. The majority of them, like the Village Fair that traditionally with funds supporting local foster children. Regular “prime” shopping brings 20,000 people to downtown Birmingham over a four-day period days will roll out in downtown Rochester, including “Plaid Friday,” every June, was cancelled, eliminating the foot traffic that supports which replaces Black Friday, and the Kris Kringle Market. businesses in walkable communities. “Brick and mortars of locally owned, independent retail operations According to the Economic Outlook Summary from the University of are all about the customer relationship and the customer experience,” Michigan, consumer spending fell by over 40 percent in Oakland shared Bauman. “Whatever environment we’re in, people are still County in late March/early April as compared to its January average. going to crave that and want that. It makes a place like downtown By mid-April, around the time of the passage of the CARES Act, a rebound began. Across Michigan, consumer spending recovered to its Birmingham, downtown Franklin, unique experiences.”

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Lee Reitelman s climate change wreaks havoc worldwide and consumers become more conscious and educated about the food they put in their bodies, the products they apply to their skin, and the waste generated from everyday goods, there is one regularly used product that is likely an afterthought. Toilet paper. Unless there isn’t any available, it’s unlikely that this ubiquitous product is given much consideration. But for Birmingham native and Brooklyn resident Lee Reitelman, the environmental impacts of a single roll of toilet paper – which takes 37 gallons of water to produce – led him, his wife Deeva Green, and two others to co-found PlantPaper, a toxin-free toilet paper company made not from trees (27,000 of which are flushed down the toilet every day), but from quickly regenerative bamboo. Reitelman describes that “no one knew what was going into their toilet paper. We saw an opportunity to potentially spearhead what could be a big and important shift in the ways consumers relate to a product they use multiple times a day. It’s democratic. Everyone needs toilet paper. We could make a really great alternative, and we could help be responsible for shifting the paradigm. We didn’t want to make a tradeoff but a trade up.” Reitelman knows that changing ingrained attitudes and purchasing habits takes time, especially for as mundane an item as toilet paper. He says he’s always been “interested in the way that good design and good storytelling can help shift attitudes. As someone who’s always been excited about putting new information in front of people, giving them the opportunity to

make different choices is what excites me about PlantPaper.” PlantPaper is also easy to purchase. While available in approximately 50 stores so far, its subscription-based model has proven to be extremely popular so far. “You set it and forget it. You never have to schlep it from the grocery store or down the street. There’s a huge convenience factor,” he pointed out. Reitelman, who welcomed a baby boy this summer, notes that, “for a long time now, I’ve wanted to use my energies in a way that would bring some sort of meaningful benefit to our society.” He and Green briefly had a restaurant and catering business that only used raw materials available within walking distance from the restaurant, among other ventures. First and foremost, Reitelman is an educator, and it is this ethos that permeates everything he does. “As we are becoming parents, you begin to take some of these decisions more seriously than if you were just buying for yourself. From a health perspective, I don’t want bleach or glues on my baby’s body. At the same time, I don’t want to buy something that’s going to turn this planet into a garbage dump. It feels really good to be working on something that’s in line with our vision of what we want the world – or don’t want the world – to become.” Story: Hillary Brody Anchill

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MUNICIPAL City to pursue pact with ex-city manager By Lisa Brody

With a supermajority of 6-1, Birmingham City Commissioners voted to have their labor attorneys begin discussions with former city manager Tom Markus regarding terms of possible employment, as well as acting as a go between with the commission on their terms, at their meeting on Monday, October 26, following the recent resignation of current city manger Joe Valentine, effective at the end of December. Markus proposed returning to the city for a five-year stint in light of current city manager's Joe Valentine's resignation. Mayor Pierre Boutros received an email from Markus on Thursday, October 8. The city commission held a lengthy discussion with Markus on Friday, October 23, during which Markus indicated his interest and allayed concerns about his age, length of service, and how he would approach the job if he were offered the position. Markus was city manager from May 1989 until November 2010, when he left to take the city manager position in Iowa City, Iowa. According to his resume, he left Iowa City in May 2016 to become city manager of Lawrence, Kansas. He was in that position until June 2019. “I merely resigned to be closer to our grandchildren,” Markus explained. During the Friday, October 23, interview, Markus said he was not afraid of being part of an executive search, but doubted he would be around for it, as he is currently a candidate for another position. Markus, who is 69, said, “I'm a healthy adult.” He said he had offered to work for Birmingham for five years as a sign of stability, but he was not requiring a five-year contract. He would be flexible about whatever the commission deemed appropriate, although he indicated he would like to be there for two to three years. “There is an expense and a disruption to life” in a move, he said. Markus has a son and grandchildren in Birmingham, and he has come back to the city frequently. He said he has walked every street of the city in the last year, talked to staff, knows the issues, and reads the newspapers. “You're every bit the premier community in Michigan and country.” To questions from commissioners as to what he learned in his positions since he left Birmingham, he noted downtownpublications.com

S&P Global gives township AAA rating loomfield Township received good news from S&P Global ratings on Friday, October 2, when officials learned the ratings company had assigned its AAA rating on township bonds, debt, and said its outlook on all ratings “is stable.” “S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'AAA' rating to Bloomfield Charter Township, Mich.'s series 2020 general obligation (GO) $1.9 million limited-tax special assessment bonds, and to the township's series 2020A $1.9 million and 2020B $2.2 million limited-tax GO bonds. At the same time, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'AAA' rating on the township's existing GO debt. The outlook on all ratings is stable,” the report stated. The AAA rating reflects S&P's opinion that the township has a strong economy, strong management with good financial policies and practices, adequate budget performance with very strong budget flexibility, very strong liquidity, strong institutional framework, but weak debt and contingent liability profile. The report noted that the coronavirus pandemic has caused the national economy to experience recessionary pressure and the recovery will be slow, however, “Bloomfield Charter Township is benefiting from economic development and population growth that support its sustained budgetary balance and a very strong reserve and liquidity position. We expect these factors should help the township navigate potential challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic and recessionary pressures. “Relative to other 'AAA' municipalities, Bloomfield Charter Township has an extremely strong economic base, as evidenced by very strong income and market value. It also has very high fixed costs for debt service, pension, and other postemployment benefits (OPEBs). To address the high pension and OPEB costs, management has proactively developed a plan to maintain its high pension funded ratio, improve its OPEB funding, and continue to post balanced financial operations. The township has a strong history of adjusting its budget when necessary, and as a result, we expect it to maintain its reserves and cash on hand at levels we consider very strong.”

both communities were university cities. “Social justice plays more of a role. They instituted social justice reforms, community police review boards, and had interactions with neighborhood associations,” he said. He emphasized he would not feel constrained by prior policies. “My mantra is, attack the issue, not the person,” Markus said. “That book of ordinances – it's constantly changing. You have to adapt. Society is constantly changing. I don't covet authorship or feel I have to defend the status quo.” To questions regarding the 2016 Plan and what some see as the overabundance of office space and strain on the city's parking system, Markus responded, “It's an indication of trouble and success. Economies of any given time change how any office or retail space is used. As for office space, there's always opportunities to shuttle people into town. It's used across the country. We're also going away from single occupancy vehicles. I'm not necessarily in support of building more parking decks.” Markus said he would be willing,

and eager, to assist in finding an assistant city manager and mentor that individual. “I'm a big succession planner. There are some other vacancies in the city, so it may be a good idea to go with someone who knows the city,” he said. “Your experience speaks volumes,” Boutros said. On Monday, October 26, only commissioner Brad Host voted against beginning negotiations with Markus. Boutros said the city's labor attorneys would begin discussions immediately with both Markus and the commission.

RFP to be done for city manager search While the city commission continues in discussions with former city manager Tom Markus, they unanimously agreed to have city staff develop a request for proposal (RFP) for an executive recruitment firm to begin the recruitment process for a new city manager at its meeting on Monday, October 26.

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At their meeting on October 19, the city commission agreed to both engage a professional recruitment firm and to interview Markus, following the unexpected resignation of current city manager Joe Valentine, effective December 31, 2020, after almost 24 years with the city of Birmingham. Valentine provided the commission with a list of five municipal recruitment firms for them to consider. Commissioner Stuart Sherman noted that one of the firms, The Mercer Group, the city and commission had worked with previously, and he was not pleased with their performance. Commissioners Rackeline Hoff and Mark Nickita concurred. “I don't understand why we don't have an RFP for a recruitment search firm,” Sherman said. “If we're going to do a search, we have to interview companies. Then we can interview the top two or three firms. This is too important to just throw darts.”

Study on parking system postponed Birmingham City Commissioners took no action on a review of the organizational structure of Birmingham's parking system at their meeting on Monday, October 26, noting the timing of the project was wrong with city management undergoing change. The proposal to solicit a proposal to have the organizational structure of Birmingham's parking structure reviewed by city contractor Nelson Nygaard was requested by commissioners Clinton Baller and Brad Host, and unanimously supported by the commission. Nelson Nygaard subcontractor Mission North presented the commission with a proposal to expand and evaluate the city's management models for the city's parking system, for a cost of $17,980. Baller said, “I think this is important to do. I don't know if the timing is right because of the upheaval with the city manager position. Perhaps a new manager would have experience with this and we wouldn't need this study.” “I concur,” said commissioner Mark Nickita, noting comments by commissioner Rackeline Hoff that the coronavirus pandemic had led to far less demand on the parking system, and the city did not yet know what the city's new needs may be. “I think putting this on hold for some time would be a good idea.” 69

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Gunther leaves city to care for child Birmingham Assistant City Manager Tiffany Gunter has left her position, city manager Joe Valentine confirmed, citing her need to be home with a school age child. Valentine explained that she is a single parent, and had exhausted all of the leave time provided by the city, and with little or no family available nearby and with her child attending school virtually, “she decided to step back this semester and reassess her situation,” resulting in her resignation. Valentine has not filled the position. Gunter joined the city in January 2018. Prior to coming to Birmingham as assistant city manager, she was interim CEO of the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan (RTA), and she served the agency in a number of leadership roles, including preparing budgets, acting as its public spokesperson, CFO, IT director, project manager, and grant writer. Prior to her

work at RTA, Gunter served in 2014 as executive dean at Wayne County Community Collect District (WCCCD), and as deputy project manager of transportation from 2004 to 2014 for the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG). She also worked for Daimler-Chrysler and at Kmart Corp.

Revote on bond due to court decision Bloomfield Township trustees scrambled to revote with a quorum present and approve the reissue of two general obligation bonds on Wednesday, October 7, due to a Michigan Supreme Court ruling which stated the governor lacked authority to issue or renew executive orders since April 30, which could have called into question virtual meeting votes. Township bond counsel Laura Basset, with Dickinson Wright PLLC, said that there were uncertainties with the Open Meetings Act relative

to the issuance of bonds. “We have asked to make sure there is no question,” she said, regarding the revote, which took place a half-hour before the first bond was set to begin pricing. Trustees originally unanimously approved two resolutions on September 14, allowing for two series of general obligation limited tax bonds, which had been issued when interest rates were higher, to be refunded and reissued at a substantially lower rate. The previous bonds had been issued in 2011. When the bonds were originally issued in 2011, the bonds had an interest rate that ranged from 4 percent to 4.5 percent, while the 2013 bonds had interest rates ranging from two to three percent, going out to 2030 and 2032, respectively. At the September 14 meeting, Lou Orcutt of Huntington Capital Markets said that those bonds in today’s market would have an interest rate just shy of 1.4 percent, and felt confident rates would stay where

they currently are, putting the township well within the range to pursue a refunding of this size. “I think you’d be pressed to find lower interest rates,” he said. “It’s producing some great savings. It’s well within all the perimeters.” At the October 7 meeting, treasurer Brian Kepes said, “We have an opportunity to save an extra $100,000 over what we approved before.” The board voted 7-0 on both bond issuances, with supervisor Leo Savoie, Kepes, clerk Jan Roncelli and trustee Neal Barnett voting in person to achieve a quorum.

Six bistro applications sent to planning panel By Lisa Brody

Five new bistro applications and one for an existing restaurant, the Whistle Stop Diner, received preliminary approval by the Birmingham City Commission on

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Vicari group takes over Triple Nickle By Lisa Brody

Monday, October 26, meaning they can all be moved on to the city's planning board for full review before returning to the city commission for final approval. October 1 is the deadline each year for bistro applications for the following year, planning director Jana Ecker explained. Commissioners had initial review screenings for 2021 bistro liquor licenses, of which up to two new licenses per year can be given out, and up to two can be given to an establishment which has been operating in the city for at least five years. The new bistro license applications were for Bloom Birmingham, 239 N. Old Woodward, in the former Pita Cafe location; Rustico Kitchen & Cocktails, 135 N. Old Woodward, next to Starbucks; Sushi Japan, 176 S. Old Woodward, in the former Mediterranean Street Food spot; TINO's, 344 Hamilton, in the 7 Greens location; and Vinewood Kitchen & Cocktails, 724 N. Old Woodward. Whistle Stop Diner, 501 S. Eton, requested a bistro license for an existing business. Bloom Birmingham would feature plant-based cuisine by Matthew Kenney, who said he went to culinary school instead of law school. “About 18 years ago, I decided to focus solely on plantbased food because I decided it was good for food, for the environment,” the L.A.-based Kenney told the commission. “At this moment, we are a global lifestyle brand, with about 45 restaurants, a media division. Our restaurants are in Saks Chicago, the Four Seasons, we have partnerships around the world. We really love to spread the word all about how food and wine can be engaged without compromise.” Kenney, who does not have a financial interest in Bloom, would act as a consultant, while Detroitbased chefs Nina Paletta and Meghan Shaw of the Detroit-based food operation Street Beet, would operate the establishment, which would have a contemporary design. Rustico Kitchen & Cocktails, in the former Centigrade location, and Vinewood Kitchen & Cocktails, under the Kohler store, have identical concepts, both proposed by owner/operator Christ Backos.

“We have created one concept with two potential locations,” he said. He said he grew up in a family restaurant business in Clinton Township, currently owns Eddie's Mediterranean Room in Clinton Township, as well as three Leo's Coney Islands in Macomb County, the Detroit Food Company catering company and The Fresh Food Kitchen meal prep and delivery service. He said he is very familiar with Birmingham. Both proposals are for a modern, upscale American bistro in a modern rustic environment. “It's very family-friendly, where kids and parents can be in a fun environment. I will be handling the day-to-day operations, hospitality, everything. I'm collaborating with Sarah Nahas Hormi from the Food Network show, Chopped, who is a graduate of New York Culinary School on new twists on American classics. We can really stand out from other concepts in Birmingham.” Commissioner Clinton Baller was intrigued that the location beneath Kohler, which opens to the parking lot in the rear, would have views of the ravine and river, and hoped he would explore that. Other commissioners were concerned about where there could be outdoor dining and that dumpsters for the building were there. By moving forward the concepts, Backos has the opportunity to work out the details. Attorney Kelly Allen introduced her client Ximing “Charlie” Yu, who with his family emigrated to the United States from China in 2008. Yu is planning to open Sushi Japan in the next couple of weeks, Allen said, after spending about $300,000 on renovating the location. She said it will be an Asian restaurant featuring primarily Chinese food. “He has been paying rent and he is opening with or without a liquor license,” she said. Yu said a liquor license would make the restaurant financially more sound. Yu is currently a sushi chef at Kona Grill, and considers himself a noodle expert, with an emphasis on ramen and other noodles on the menu. “This is a small business, a family business. He will be there 24/7. He

he Joe Vicari Restaurant Group, owner of the Andiamo restaurants and Joe Muer Seafood in Detroit and Bloomfield Hills, has purchased the Triple Nickle restaurant in downtown Birmingham, which they will rename The Birmingham Pub, offering homemade comfort food. The restaurant group also purchased The Hill Seafood & Chop House in Grosse Pointe Farms and Buc'eez Pub in Macomb Township. “We're very excited. We are thrilled to be adding these restaurants to our growing restaurant group,” said Joe Vicari, president of Joe Vicari Restaurant Group. Triple Nickel, located at the 555 Building on S. Old Woodward, closed in March with the COVID-19 shutdowns and did not reopen. Vicari said they are going to try to do a smaller menu than what the previous establishment had done. “Birmingham customers are knowledgable about food and know what they want,” he acknowledged. “While we haven't finalized the menu, we are going to do more of a comfort food menu, with homemade meat loaf, homemade chicken pot pie in the winter. Everyone has a burger, and we'll have a burger. We'll have about four or five salads on the menu, a couple of sandwiches, a pasta course, fish, chicken a beef. It will all be at a moderate price point.” Vicari said The Birmingham Pub will be designed to be a very family-friendly, come as you are dining spot. He is bringing in all new staff, several from his stable of other establishments. The head chef will be Mike Cott, who has been with the group for 10 years, Vicari said, first at Andiamo Warren, and for the last three years at their Hall Road location. Blendi Suvaria, who has been with Vicari for 14 years, will be the general manager. “He understands running a restaurant,” Vicari said. “But I'm talking to him about Birmingham. They're a little more discerning.” The restaurant is currently being redecorated by David Savage of Savage Design, as Vicari is looking to have it “lightened up.” New light fixtures are being added, along with fresh paint, wallpaper, carpet, changing around tables and booths. The upstairs private dining area is being redone, as well. “We're spending about $200,000 in remodeling,” Vicari said. Depending upon permits and approvals from the city of Birmingham, as well as staffing, Vicari is hoping to open The Birmingham Pub by the end of November. At The Hill Seafood & Chop House, located at 123 Kercheval Avenue, Vicari noted Grosse Pointe Farms has limited dining options. “There's mostly bar food,” he commented. He has brought in chef Bryan Hartway, who had been head chef at Joe Muer Seafood Bloomfield Hills, and they are adding about 30 percent new items to the menu. “We'll keep that until the end of the year, and then close it in January, and reopen it in February with a new name and menu,” he said. Buc’eez Pub soon will be reopened as Barley Corn Public House. The restaurant is currently closed for renovations and is anticipated to open in late November. “It's been a place that's been bar first, food later. It should be more successful now,” Vicari said. A new menu is planned for the restaurant, and will feature a wide variety of well-known bar foods along with gourmet entrees, along with a wide array of drinks served from a backlit bar. Barley Corn Public House is located at 50985 Hayes Road in Macomb Township. The Joe Vicari Restaurant Group has had a busy year; they are also in the midst of building a new downtown Detroit restaurant, The Statler Bistro, a French and American eatery on the ground floor of City Club Apartments along Park Avenue, between Washington Boulevard and Bagley Street, and fronting Grand Circus Park.

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believes it will be a destination around the county. It will be different from the other Asian restaurants in the city,” Allen said. Yu said the renovations are creating an open kitchen, and there will be 50 seats in the restaurant, with six seats at a sushi bar, and eight seats outside. It will be open daily, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday, and feature a Chinese brunch. Kelly Schaefer, who has owned 7 Greens on Hamilton Row for the last four years, said she is hoping to transform the spot into Tino's, “a casual neighborhood meeting spot and taqueria. Latin food has been one of my favorites. I love the spices, fresh ingredients, the culture.” She said 7 Greens, which also has locations in Detroit and Chicago, has struggled in Birmingham as a fast casual. “We've wanted to turn it into something fun, with pizazz, family friendly,” she said. “It will have a great bar, 58 seats, an outdoor dining

platform. I think Hamilton could totally use the addition.” The Whistle Stop Diner has been in operation since 1965, with owners Elda and Valter Xhomaqi buying it in 2012 after beginning work there in 1999, Elda as a waitress and Valter as a cook. After buying another diner on Woodward in Pleasant Ridge, which they also named Whistle Stop Diner, they discovered customers enjoy a drink with brunch and lunch. Their attorney, Patrick Howe, explained they want to convert the diner to bistro and undertake a major renovation. Elda explained they will open all the walls, place the kitchen in the center, add eight counter stools, and put up an outdoor dining platform with 26 seats on the grass behind the diner. The menu will stay the same. It will continue to be open daily, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. All of the bistro applications can now proceed to the planning board for final site plan and special land use permits. Once they receive full reviews and recommendations for

approval, they return to the city commission for final approval.

Custodial contract extension approved The Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees unanimously approved an extension of the township's custodial services contract with American Quality Cleaning (AQC) for five more years for the township's facilities at their meeting on Tuesday, September 29. Multiple board members expressed their satisfaction with AQC, with both township supervisor Leo Savioe and treasurer Brian Kepes calling their service outstanding. The contract extension covers December 1, 2020 through December 1, 2025. AQC’s price structure in the new contract remains the same. There has been no price increase since AQC became the township’s custodial contractor in 2005, when it was last bid out. Bloomfield Township’s

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fleet/facilities manager Lance Scram noted that during the past 15 years, AQC has met and exceeded the township’s expectation, especially during the coronavirus. Many of AQC’s employees have been servicing the township for at least the past eight years and that continuity was also noted as an extremely vital aspect of their work by trustees. Bloomfield Township Clerk Jan Roncelli said “That you know your office is cleaned by the same people and that the AQC owner is often on site, something that’s not seen often.” Each township building manager was consulted before Scram met with trustees and agreed that AQC’s work has been exceptional over the years. Scram also said that when comparing to other local municipalities to look at competitive prices, AQC’s proposed rates were not only lower than the average charges recommended for an urban

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Official confirmed as driver in crash By Lisa Brody

Bloomfield Township Clerk Jan Roncelli, 71, was involved in a fatal pedestrian accident on Maple west of Coolidge in Birmingham at approximately 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, September 22, according to Bloomfield Township officials. On September 22 Birmingham police dispatch reported they received a 911 call from the driver, a female from Bloomfield Hills, who stated she hit a person while driving westbound on Maple. The driver told officers she passed through the intersection of Maple and Coolidge on a green light when she struck the pedestrian. Officers located a 30-year-old male from Birmingham who was laying in the roadway and had succumbed to his injuries.

Roncelli reported she was coming home from working at a family business. Roncelli, who has been the township clerk since 2004 and is retiring in November, was driving a township-issued SUV at the time of the accident. According to Bloomfield Township Supervisor Leo Savoie, department heads issued township vehicles are permitted to drive township vehicles for non-township use as part of their compensation package. Township officials, at their evening meeting Monday, October 12, had issued a statement acknowledging that a township employee had been involved in a fatal vehicle accident in September but did not name the employee. Township attorney Derk Bekerleg stated the township had no further comment, citing attorney/client privilege. Based on tips over from township residents, Downtown newsmagazine filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for Birmingham police accident reports and records, along with breathalyzer and toxicology

reports. While a redacted report was issued in response, breathalyzer and toxicology reports were not available for either Roncelli or the victim. However, Savoie said that preliminary reports indicate there were no drugs or alcohol issues involving the driver, Roncelli.

Daxton Hotel set for February opening Birmingham resident Mark Mitchell's Daxton Hotel is almost ready to remove the construction fence and introduce his vision of luxury hospitality to visitors, with an opening date of February 2021 marked on the calendar. “We are excited to show travelers the very best of Michigan and beyond in a market worthy of a world-class hotel,” said Mitchell. “Daxton will set a hospitality standard far beyond the Midwest and it is an absolute privilege to deliver a project that will be an important aspect of Birmingham’s fabric for generations to come.” Daxton Hotel is the first hotel by

local entrepreneur Mark Mitchell and the latest hotel to launch by Aparium Hotel Group, which will be the poshest property in its award-winning portfolio to date. The 151-room Daxton will bring a modern vision of Birmingham luxury, incorporating some of the finest art, wellness, dining, and retail that hospitality can offer, according to hotel officials. It is located at 298 S. Old Woodward at Brown Street. Daxton Hotel’s vision stems from Mitchell, a lifelong metro Detroit area resident, who pledged to create a hotel product in his local community that will set a new cultural standard for hospitality. Mitchell wanted to integrate his family story into the building with the property being named after his son Daxton. Renowned chef Garrison Price will serve as executive chef of the hotel’s flagship restaurant, Madam. Madam will feature enlightened American fare, with an ever-evolving menu focusing on seasonality and the freshness emblematic of California cuisine. The venue, which can seat up to 71, will have lush greenery hanging from high ceilings, complementing three tones of wood floors. Chef Garrison has over 20

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years of culinary experience, having served as Executive Chef for three years at Manhattan’s iconic il Buco Alimentari e Vineria and served as Culinary Director for Jean-Georges Vongerichten, overseeing 17 of his acclaimed restaurants around the globe. Daxton Hotel will feature a minimalist-luxe design with close to 400 pieces of cutting-edge art curated by world-renowned Saatchi Art. Vibrant colors flood spaces, featuring a chartreuse lobby, deep-burgundy guest rooms, and lavender parlors. Daxton brings a blend of provocative and edgy style, offering artistic freedom expression throughout. Each guest room will include at least two custom pieces of artwork from 160 artists representing 32 countries. The artwork crosses multiple mediums including painting, photography, collage, drawing, and sculpture of some of the best international, national, and regional artists, while local acclaimed muralist Ouizi (Louise Jones) will be creating mesmerizing design scrim headboard backdrops for the guest rooms. Daxton will have their very own

personal trainer on staff in conjunction with Michigan’s Lean Body Studio. A variety of private training sessions, weekly workout classes, and interactive events such as “Brunch and Burn” bringing together guests who share the same love of fitness will be offered. The property will also have its own running club through the Pierce Street-based Gazelle Sports, a specialty running boutique with a deep community connection.

City considers historic grant applications Birmingham City Commissioners unanimously approved applying for an $8,000 grant to conduct a reconnaissance level survey of the city's Little San Francisco neighborhood at their meeting on Monday, October 19, but requested more information before approving a grant application to update historic design guidelines. Birmingham Planner Nicholas Dupuis explained that the grant applications, made to the Michigan Historic Preservation Office, are to “inspire decades of responsible,

effective, and defensible historic preservation efforts that aim to preserve a unique character and disposition that is important to the city, its residents, and the environment.” Commissioners approved the application for a fiscal year 2021 certified local government grant program for $8,000, which would not require any reimbursement or matching funds by the city, for the city's Little San Francisco neighborhood, located east of N. Old Woodward, south of Oak, north of Oakland, and west of Woodward, adjacent to the retail area. According to the application, “At present, the houses in the area are generally preserved from their 1910’s and 1920’s vintage, or have been rebuilt within the last 20 years. Based on the city’s current records, there are 38 homes in the neighborhood that are over 100 years old with 19 more aging into that category by 2024. This makes up a significant portion of the roughly 80 homes present in the neighborhood today.” The application seeks a reconnaissance level survey of the

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neighborhood in order to to inventory, research, prepare reports and provide designation recommendations. A second grant application request, for $15,000 to develop updated historic design guidelines with an emphasis on new and emerging materials, was returned for Dupuis to get more information and return to the commission. In particular, commissioners wanted to know if a historic district is determined, could a property owner opt out, or if restrictions would be imposed on them. “I've done dozen of projects involving historic preservations. I know very well the concerns of residents and homeowners of historic designations that could restrict what they could do with their property,” said commissioner Mark Nickita. “I personally feel they should be wellinformed of what we're considering, both in terms of the value and importance to the city but also what that means to them. It's putting the cart before the horse. Clarity on that is very important before we move forward.”

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FACES Erica Coulston t all started with a parking ticket last summer. The ticket was only for $10, but for Erica Coulston that was the last straw. “In 2016, the city of Birmingham converted their free metered wheelchair accessible spots to paid metered spots, and in doing that, they also added quite a few wheelchairaccessible spots,” Coulston said. “I commend them for doing this. They did this to try and solve a problem of not enough wheelchair-accessible spots and people being in them for too long. So they were trying to solve that problem. “However in doing that, quite a few of the wheelchairaccessible spots that they added, as well as the crosswalks and curb cuts associated with them, didn't meet American Disability Act (ADA) standards. They also were either unusable or unsafe.” Take for example the spot Coulston, who has lived in Bloomfield Hills for 15 years but frequents Birmingham, had parked in. Because of where the handicap parking spot was, she had to back in so she had access to her wheelchair ramp, which comes out the passenger side. This parking spot also had the issue of her ramp being in the way of the outbound driveway of the police station to get to the sidewalk. Coulston has a spinal cord injury from a car accident in 2001 that left her paralyzed from the chest down and therefore, uses a wheelchair to get around. In 2007, she and her family started Walk the Line, a Southfield exercise based neurological recovery program that specializes in brain and spinal cord injuries. So, she parked the only way she could, put her handicapped placard that had a free parking sticker on it, and went to her appointment. Then she came back and discovered said ticket because she had backed in to an angled parking spot. "I was a little mad and it's like a $10 ticket, but I fought the ticket because I had to do this,” she said. “I find the parking ticket. I go in front of the magistrate, tell her the problem and she's like, you know, you should really meet with the police chief.” After telling a friend who works with Michigan Paralyzed Veterans Association, which does advocacy work for accessibility and community access, she was introduced to a lawyer who specializes in ADA compliance. The duo surveyed the city and took notes of where the problem areas were, which they then brought to the city and police chief. From there, the city agreed it was problematic and a consent decree, which is a legal agreement between the city and Coulston, was created and signed in May. Over the next five years 78 parking spots, 158 crosswalks, and 295 curb cuts have to be fixed due to the consent decree. “You don't often times get to have a situation where what you do actually has a change that you can see. That's really rewarding to have that happen, especially in a place that you go to all the time,” Coulston said. “It will make it easier and safer for me, but these are improvements that will benefit the community.” Coulston’s work with the city isn’t done yet. Up next is tackling access to stores, restaurants, and businesses to be more wheelchair accessible. “I don't know what that looks like, but I do think that's an important next step. That benefits people with strollers and all kinds of other devices,” she said. “My dad's in his seventies, and he's going to eventually be using a scooter or a walker...that baby boomer population is not gonna take kindly to not being able to access things.”

Story: Dana Casadei

Photo: Laurie Tennent

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APPOINTMENTS WITH SANTA • WEEKENDS On weekends throughout the holiday season, children are invited to make an appointment with Santa at the Santa House in picturesque Shain Park. Select weekends will feature live reindeer and complimentary goodies and treats. Appointments are required for socially distanced visits with Santa, however the other festivities are first come, first serve. Visit AllinBirmingham.com mid-November to schedule an appointment.

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SCAVENGER HUNT • WEEKENDS 11/28 thru 12/20 On select weekends throughout the season, families are invited to participate in a scavenger hunt throughout downtown Birmingham. Participants will use their mobile device to independently complete and compete in the scavenger hunt. A winning participant from each Saturday and Sunday, November 28th through December 20th, will be eligible to win a $500 gift card from the Birmingham Shopping District to be used at participating retailers and restaurants downtown!

Donations can be made by scanning QR code above or go to our website. All donors will be acknowledged by name (unless you prefer to remain anonymous) on a Supporters Page on our website for the next year and every six months in a printed edition of Downtown newsmagazine. Support on all levels is essential to our long-term success and growth.

THE GREAT DECORATE • 11/27 – 12/24 Starting November 27th, visitors can view beautifully decorated trees in restaurants and retail locations throughout downtown Birmingham and vote for their favorite tree by donating online. 100% of donations go to help local foster teens through the Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange. Information: visit thegreatdecorate.com.

Enjoy free parking in all of our structures and free 2-hour valet throughout the season Visit AllinBirmingham.com mid-November for information All activities are in accordance with Oakland County COVID-19 health & safety guidelines.

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11.20

BUSINESS MATTERS New men’s store opening Downtown Birmingham is looking forward to welcoming Craig Ryan Fine Menswear to the former Woolly & Co. location at 147 Pierce Street. Owner Craig Ryan Kurzeja, who opened his first store in 2004, has three other Craig Ryan stores – in Grand Blanc, Petoskey and Harbor Springs. “We’re primarily for men aged 35 to 65, but with that said, some of my best customers are in their 30s or in their 70s,” Kurzeja said. Over the years, he said the specific menswear they offer has changed, but not their goal of trying to offer the best for everyone. “We have lots of everything, from jeans to suits, socks to underwear,” he said. “I never believe in opening a store without enough stuff.” Recent adaptations in the way people are dressing, especially with work from home outfits, “we’ve gone with the times,” he said. “But you can’t not have suits and sport coats. We have business casual to going out on a Saturday night.” A few of the lines the store will feature include Peter Millar, Johnny O, Samuelson, Jack Victor, Paul & Shark, Stenstroms, and more. Kurzeja said Keith Saltsman, with years of experience, will be the store manager. Craig Ryan Fine Menswear is aiming to be open before Thanksgiving.

Longtime store closing Long time fine menswear store Claymore Shop, 908 S. Adams Road in Birmingham, is hanging up its last blue blazer at Christmas. Owner JJ Benkert confirmed the closure, noting, “It’s very bittersweet. The lease is over, and with what’s going on now, we don’t what the next six months will bring. We’re closing the doors, but that doesn’t mean they can’t open again.” Benkert, whose late husband Bob Benkert opened the store 55 years ago at the age of 26, said the store still sells a lot of suits and sport coats. “People still want to look nice, and will again after COVID,” she said. She said she has loved being part of the shop for the last five years, with partner Al Skiba, since Bob passed away. “It’s all about relationships. Our employees are amazing, and all the wonderful customers. That’s what it’s all about for us small businesses in Birmingham.” She invites everyone to enjoy the special savings as they say goodbye, as downtownpublications.com

well as to check out the antiques Bob accumulated over the years.

Best Buy closure The Best Buy store in Bloomfield Township, 2169 S. Telegraph, by Costco, closed its doors for the final time on Saturday, October 31. Buyers looking for deals on TVs, electronics, printers, computers and other items the electronics store traditionally sell are urged to head to its store in Southfield, 28400 Telegraph, at 12 Mile Road. Sales personnel at the Bloomfield store said before the closure it was due to COVID and an increase in online sales.

Denim consolidation Ariana Carps, owner of Rear Ends, 6606 Telegraph Road at Maple in Bloomfield Township, announced her parents, Mark and Elaine Blumenfeld, who opened the original Rear Ends store in West Bloomfield on The Boardwalk on Orchard Lake 42 years ago offering denim and clothing to wear with it, are ready to step back – sort of – so they will be closing their West Bloomfield store at the end of December, and consolidating at the Bloomfield store. “What pushed the closing was in June, when the merchandisers were contacting me with cancellations, I sat down with my parents and said ‘We don’t have enough new merchandise to fill both of our stores – but we do have enough to make one store look really great,’” Carps said, noting it is “the way the supply chain hit our market.” Mark and Elaine were ready to become semi-retired, though Carps laughed, “because they like to talk about retiring and then about how many hours they’ll be working.” She said West Bloomfield customers have already been traveling to the Bloomfield store, so she’s excited for the next step. “We will still find people the best fit, quality of service and the Rear Ends experience,” she pointed out. In the mean time, the West Bloomfield store is having a blow out pre-move purge sale, with everything $100 or less until its gone.

COVID closures Birmingham continues to tough out closings due to COVID-19, along with the long road reconstruction project of Maple Road. Women’s clothing store Birch Roots

Birmingham, 141 W. Maple Road in downtown, has not reopened. Down the street, Kybun Joya, 286 W. Maple Road, selling innovative comfort shoe lines kybun and Joya from Switzerland, has closed for good after spring’s mandatory shutdown. Across Woodward, Batteries Plus, 34164 Woodward Avenue near Papa Joe’s Market, has closed down following health issues with the owner. Batteries Plus offered batteries, light bulbs, key fob replacements, chargers and other items to help with electronic needs. There are other Batteries Plus franchises in Auburn Hills, Farmington Hills and Plymouth. The Qdoba Mexican Eats by Kroger at 42967 Woodward Avenue at Maple has closed.

Yoga moves A long time favorite Bloomfield Township yoga studio, Karma Yoga, which closed during the COVID-19 closures at Maple and Lahser by Plum Market, has reopened in a new home at 31700 Telegraph Road, Suite 120, in Bingham Farms. Karma Yoga continues to be owned by Katherine Austin Wooley, who teaches many of the karma, gentle & strong, yin, yoga nidra, anusara, karma kundalini and other classes.

New strength studio Osteostrong, a national studio for women to build the health of their skeletal system, opened in Bloomfield Township in the Kingswood Plaza Shopping Center, 43207 Woodward Avenue at Square Lake Road. “Our unique system for developing skeletal strength has been scientifically proven to increase bone density, muscular strength, balance, and posture while reducing or eliminating joint and back pain,” a spokesperson said. Osteostrong alleges it only takes one session per week for 10 minutes to work. “The OsteoStrong program allows members to track progress and help implement a specialized workout plan. Through tracking progress, OsteoStrong is able to see how balance have improved over time,” they state on their Facebook page.

124 WesT Maple ROaD BiRMiNghaM 48009

Business Matters for the Birmingham Bloomfield area are reported by Lisa Brody. Send items for consideration to LisaBrody@downtownpublications.com. Items should be received three weeks prior to publication.

DOWNTOWN

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THE COMMUNITY HOUSE “Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” – John F. Kennedy Unthinkable. Unprecedented. Uncharted. These are the words most often used to describe the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) worldwide pandemic. Society has been shaken to its core. Businesses have been shaken to their core. The Community House has been shaken to its core. The world will never be the same. While the pandemic took the vast majority of the business world by surprise, epidemiologists and other experts had long warned it was only a matter of time before such a disaster struck. And though the crisis seems to have been with us for a long time, the reality is the pandemic is still in its early days. It is likely to bring even more changes in the months ahead that seem unthinkable now. Community and business leaders expect farreaching changes but, critically, believe there’s an opportunity to enable a better working world across five dimensions: better health, better connectivity, better relationships, better ingenuity and better accountability. At The Community House we couldn’t agree more. Bill Seklar As the world continues to battle COVID-19, leading experts to observe “that the pandemic has put human welfare and sustainability front and center.” Consumers see a new role of companies, non-profits and otherwise – for good – and will value companies demonstrating a longterm value agenda in culture, purpose, and ethics. History tells us that The Community House was conceived in the transition period between a world war and the start of Birmingham’s surge in population during dramatically changing social and economics situations. Sound familiar. Ninety-eight years later, we have come full circle. According to The Heart of Birmingham – The Community House Story, “there is a tendency, when one writes or speaks about The Community House, to think of an architecturally beautiful building, of organizations, meetings and dinners, and indeed, a history of the House focusing on the bricks and mortar, programs, and fund drives, on the minutia of day to day operations…and that would be valid.” But COVID-19 requires us to move beyond that. Authors Betty and Frank Angelo reminded us that we must also recognize and value the intangibles of this great institution, and its nearly century-old commitment of people fulfilling “the felt needs of the Greater Birmingham community” and beyond. Perhaps, our rich DNA and the extraordinary legacy and vision our founders left us – have uniquely prepared us for these moments in history. Not long ago, in preparation of marking our centennial milestone in 2023, The Community House began a period of reflection. We traveled back to our humble beginnings, and to our founders, we studied their words, we revisited their vision, we recalled their passion and steadfast commitment to society, to our community, to families (particularly our children). We discovered that so many of society’s changing social and economic situations – we faced in 1923 – still apply, still challenge us today.

With renewed vigor and reverence and respect for the past, we began to take steps to better align “The Community House of today” with our founders (St. James Women’s Guild’s) original vision of yesterday. Refreshing or replacing programs and services offered by The Community House took on added importance. Offering new programs and services for those simply seeking knowledge, and more importantly, programs and services for those longing to connect or needing help navigating through today’s societal changes and challenges; loneliness, tech disconnect, loss of togetherness, cultural disparity, youth engagement, etc., became priority. By filling critical gaps and voids in the community and connecting and celebrating others in a safe, non-threatening and creative environment for the betterment of others is who our founders called us to be. Charitable, kind, steadfast. For the betterment of others. As a result of COVID, we have now been called to an even higher service – tending to and caring for more children and their families in our community. At the start of my administration, The Community House and its award-winning Early Childhood, Infant and Toddler centers were servicing 35 families/children. At that time, over 125 families remained on our waiting list. Pre-COVID, with improved space and resource allocation, coupled with the demand for our children’s programs and services at an all-time high – we were able to grow our children’s centers to an unprecedented 95 families/children. While some families came off our waiting list, other families immediately replaced them. Then in March 2020, the worldwide pandemic hit. Essential and critical workers were called to action. Schools and early childhood centers closed. Families became overwhelmed. While our early childhood centers were also temporarily closed, our waiting list exploded. With so much gathering space unused at The Community House, and the future uncertain, The Community House developed plans to reopen the Early Childhood Centers as soon as local and state officials gave us the approval – and we would reallocate new space at The Community House for early childhood use and to assist parents, essential workers and families in crisis. While future meeting space would be impacted by this change, our children and their young families needed us – now more than ever – we could not and would not disappoint. These are the intangibles Betty and Frank alluded to. In response, on November 1, 2020, The Community House and its Early Childhood Centers has been granted approval by the state and will open additional classroom space for an unprecedented 107 children/families. Remarkably, our waiting list is back up to 125. You can choose to change with the times, meet new opportunities head on and grow your organization. Or you can fight the changes, refuse to adapt, and watch your business and the critical services you provide perish. William D. Seklar is President & CEO of The Community House and The Community House Foundation in Birmingham.

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PLACES TO EAT The Places To Eat for Downtown is a quick reference source to establishments offering a place for dining, either breakfast, lunch or dinner. The listings include nearly all dining establishments with seating in the Birmingham/Bloomfield area, and then some select restaurants outside the immediate area served by Downtown.

Birmingham/Bloomfield 220: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday- Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 220 E. Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.2220.

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The Birmingham/Bloomfield area is filled with discriminating diners and an array of dining establishments. Make sure the message for your restaurant reaches the right market in the right publication—Downtown. Contact Mark Grablowski for advertising rate information. O: 248.792.6464 Ext. 601 MarkGrablowski@downtownpublications.com

5th Tavern: American. Lunch & Dinner daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2262 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48302. 248.481.9607. Adachi: Asian. Lunch & Dinner daily. Liquor. Reservations. 325 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham 48009. 248.540.5900. Andiamo: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 6676 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48301. 248.865.9300. Bangkok Thai Bistro: Thai. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 42805 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Township, 48304. 248.499.6867. Beau's: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 4108 W. Maple, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.626.2630. Bella Piatti: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 167 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.494.7110. Beverly Hills Grill: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. Liquor. No reservations. 31471 Southfield Road, Beverly Hills, 48025. 248.642.2355. Beyond Juice: Contemporary. Breakfast & Lunch daily; Dinner, MondaySaturday. No reservations. 270 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.7078. Big Rock Chophouse: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 245 South Eton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.7774. Bill's: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, Daily. Reservations, lunch only. Liquor. 39556 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.646.9000. Birmingham Sushi Cafe: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 377 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.8880. Bistro Joe’s Kitchen: Global. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Sunday brunch. Liquor. Reservations. 34244 Woodward Ave., Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.0984. Bloomfield Deli: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 71 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.645.6879. Brooklyn Pizza: Pizza. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Liquor. No reservations. 111 Henrietta Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6690. Café ML: New American. Dinner, daily. Liquor. Call ahead. 3607 W. Maple Road, Bloomfield Township. 248.642.4000. Casa Pernoi: Italian. Dinner, TuesdaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 310 E. DOWNTOWN

Maple Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.940.0000. Churchill's Bistro & Cigar Bar: Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 116 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.4555. Cityscape Deli: Deli. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. No reservations. Beer. 877 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.540.7220. Commonwealth: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 300 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.792.9766. Dick O’Dow’s: Irish. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 160 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.642.1135. Eddie Merlot's: Steak & seafood. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 37000 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.712.4095. Einstein Bros. Bagels: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 4089 West Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.258.9939. Elie’s Mediterranean Cuisine: Mediterranean. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. No reservations. Liquor. 263 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.2420. Embers Deli & Restaurant: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. Dinner, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 3598 West Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.645.1033. Flemings Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar: American. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 323 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.723.0134. Forest: European. Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 735 Forest Avenue, Birmingham 48009. 248.258.9400. Greek Island Coney Restaurant: Greek. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 221 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.1222. Griffin Claw Brewing Company: American. Dinner, Tuesday-Friday, Lunch & Dinner, Saturday and Sunday. No Reservations. Liquor. 575 S. Eton Street, Birmingham. 248.712.4050. Honey Tree Grille: Greek/American. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, daily. No reservations. 3633 W. Maple Rd, Bloomfield, MI 48301. 248.203.9111. Hunter House Hamburgers: American. Breakfast, Monday-Saturday; Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 35075 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.7121. Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse: American. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 201 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.4369. IHOP: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2187 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301. 248.333.7522. Joe Muer Seafood: Seafood. Lunch & Dinner daily; Sunday brunch. Reservations. Liquor. 39475 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.792.9609. Kaku Sushi and Poke': Asian. Lunch & 11.20

Dinner. Tuesday-Sunday. No reservations. No Liquor. 869 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Township, 48302. 248.480.4785, and 126 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.885.8631. Kerby’s Koney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2160 N. Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.333.1166. La Marsa: Mediterranean. Lunch & Dinner daily. Reservations. 43259 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.858.5800. La Strada Italian Kitchen & Bar: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 243 E. Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.480.0492. Leo’s Coney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 154 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.9707. Also 6527 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.646.8568. Little Daddy’s Parthenon: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 39500 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.647.3400. Luxe Bar & Grill: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily; Late Night, 9 p.m.closing. No reservations. Liquor. 525 N. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham, 48009. 248.792.6051. Mandaloun Bistro: Lebanese. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, Daily. Reservations. Liquor. 30100 Telegraph Rd., Suite 130, Bingham Farms, 48025. 248.723.7960. Market North End: Mediterranean. Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. No reservations. Liquor. 474 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.712.4953. MEX Mexican Bistro & Tequila Bar: Mexican. Lunch, Monday-Friday, Dinner, daily. Liquor. 6675 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48301. 248.723.0800. Nippon Sushi Bar: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2079 S. Telegraph, Bloomfield Township, 48302. 248.481.9581. Olga’s Kitchen: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2075 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.451.0500. Original Pancake House: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 33703 South Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.642.5775. Phoenicia: Middle Eastern. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 588 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.3122. Qdoba: Mexican. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 795 East Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.988.8941. Also 42967 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Township, 48304. 248.874.1876 Roadside B & G: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 1727 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.858.7270. downtownpublications.com

Salvatore Scallopini: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 505 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.8977. Social Kitchen & Bar: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations, parties of 5 or more. Liquor. 225 E. Maple Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.4200. Stacked Deli: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, Monday-Saturday. Delivery available. No reservations. 233 North Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.5300. Stateside Deli & Restaurant Deli. Breakfast, Lunch, Sunday-Monday. Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. No reservations. 653 S. Adams Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.550.0455. Steve’s Deli: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6646 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield, 48301. 248.932.0800. Streetside Seafood: Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations, Lunch only. Liquor. 273 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.645.9123. Sushi Hana: Japanese. Lunch, MondayFriday; Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 42656 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.333.3887. Sy Thai Cafe: Thai. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 315 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.9830. Tallulah Wine Bar and Bistro: American. Dinner. Monday-Saturday. Sunday brunch. Reservations. Liquor. 55 S. Bates Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.731.7066. The Franklin Grill: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 32760 Franklin Rd, Franklin, 48025. 248.865.6600. The Gallery Restaurant: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & wine. 6683 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.851.0313. The Moose Preserve Bar & Grill: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2395 S. Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.858.7688. The Morrie: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 260 N. Old Woodward, Birmingham 48009. 248.940.3260. The Rugby Grille: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 100 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.642.5999. Toast: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; Reservations. Liquor. 203 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6278. Tomatoes Apizza: Pizza. Lunch & Dinner daily. Carryout. 34200 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham 48009. 248.258.0500. Touch of India: Indian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 297 E. Maple Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.7881. Townhouse: American. Brunch, Saturday, Sunday. Lunch & Dinner,

daily. No reservations. Liquor. 180 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.792.5241. Vinotecca: European. Dinner, TuesdaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 210 S. Old Woodard, Birmingham, 48009. 248.203.6600. Whistle Stop Diner: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; No reservations. 501 S. Eton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.566.3566. Zao Jun: Asian. Lunch Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 6608 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48301. 248.949.9999.

Royal Oak/Ferndale Ale Mary's: American. Weekend Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 316 South Main St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.268.1917. Anita’s Kitchen: Middle Eastern. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 22651 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, 48220. 248.548.0680. Assaggi Bistro: Italian. Lunch, TuesdayFriday. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 330 W. Nine Mile Rd., Ferndale, 48220. 248.584.3499. Bigalora: Italian. Weekend Brunch. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. No Reservations. Liquor. 711 S. Main Street, Royal Oak, 48067. The Blue Nile: Ethiopian. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 545 W. Nine Mile Rd., Ferndale, 48220. 248.547.6699. Cafe Muse: French. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 418 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.544.4749. Cork Wine Pub: American. Sunday Brunch. Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 23810 Woodward Ave., Pleasant Ridge, 48069. 248.544.2675. Due Venti: Italian. Sunday Brunch. Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 220 S. Main St., Clawson, 48017. 248.288.0220. The Fly Trap: Diner. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. Dinner, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 22950 Woodward Ave., 48220. 248.399.5150. Howe’s Bayou: Cajun. Lunch, MondaySaturday. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 22949 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, 48220. 248.691.7145. Inyo Restaurant Lounge: Asian Fusion. Weekend Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 22871 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, 48220. 248.543.9500. KouZina: Greek. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 121 N. Main St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.629.6500. Kruse & Muer on Woodward: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 28028 Woodward Ave., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.965.2101. Lily’s Seafood: Seafood. Weekend Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 410 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.591.5459. Lockhart’s BBQ: Barbeque. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-

DOWNTOWN

Saturday. No reservations. Liquor. 202 E. Third St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.584.4227. Oak City Grille: American. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 212 W. 6th St, Royal Oak, 48067. 248.556.0947. One-Eyed Betty: American. Weekend Breakfast. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 175 W. Troy St., Ferndale, 48220. 248.808.6633. Public House: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 241 W. Nine Mile Rd., Ferndale, 48220. 248.850.7420. Redcoat Tavern: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 31542 Woodward Ave., Royal Oak, 48073. 248.549.0300. Ronin: Japanese. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 326 W. 4th St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.546.0888. Royal Oak Brewery: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 215 E. 4th St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.544.1141. Strada: Italian. Dinner, Wednesday Sunday. Liquor. No reservations. 376 N. Main Street. Royal Oak, 48067. 248.607.3127. The Morrie: American. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 511 S. Main St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.216.1112. Toast, A Breakfast and Lunch Joint: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 23144 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, 48220. 248.398.0444. Tom’s Oyster Bar: Seafood. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 318 S. Main St., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.541.1186. Trattoria Da Luigi: Italian. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 415 S, Washington Ave., Royal Oak, 48067. 248.542.4444. Twisted Tavern: American. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 22901 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, 48220. 248.545,6750. Vinsetta Garage: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 27799 Woodward Ave., Berkley, 48072. 248.548.7711.

Troy/Rochester Capital Grille: Steak & Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Saturday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 2800 West Big Beaver Rd., Somerset Collection, Troy, 48084. 248.649.5300. Cafe Sushi: Pan-Asian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 1933 W. Maple Rd, Troy, 48084. 248.280.1831. CK Diggs: American & Italian. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 2010 W. Auburn Road, Rochester Hills, 48309. 248.853.6600. O’Connor’s Irish Public House: Irish. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 324 S. Main St., Rochester, 48307. 248.608.2537. Kona Grille: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 30 E. Big Beaver Rd., Troy, 48083. 248.619.9060. Kruse & Muer on Main: American. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 327 S. Main St., 87

Rochester, 48307. 248.652.9400. Loccino Italian Grill and Bar: Italian. Lunch, Monday-Friday, Dinner, daily. Liquor. Reservations. 5600 Crooks Road, Troy, 48098. 248.813.0700. The Meeting House: American. Weekend Brunch. Dinner, TuesdaySunday. No reservations. Liquor. 301 S. Main St, Rochester, 48307. 248.759.4825. Miguel’s Cantina: Mexican. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 870 S. Rochester Rd, Rochester Hills, 48307. 248.453.5371. Mon Jin Lau: Asian. Lunch, MondayFriday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 1515 E. Maple Rd, Troy, 48083. 248.689.2332. Morton’s, The Steakhouse: Steak & Seafood. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 888 W. Big Beaver Rd, Troy, 48084. 248.404.9845. NM Café: American. Lunch, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 2705 W. Big Beaver Rd, Troy, 48084. 248.816.3424. Oceania Inn: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. The Village of Rochester Hills, 3176 Walton Blvd, Rochester Hills, 48309. 248.375.9200. Ocean Prime: Steak & Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 2915 Coolidge Hwy., Troy, 48084. 248.458.0500. Orchid Café: Thai. Lunch, MondayFriday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. 3303 Rochester Rd., Troy, 48085. 248.524.1944. P.F. Chang’s China Bistro: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. Somerset Collection, 2801 W. Big Beaver Rd., Troy, 48084. 248.816.8000. Recipes: American/Brunch. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 134 W. University Drive, Rochester, 48037. 248.659.8267. Also 2919 Crooks Road, Troy, 48084. 248.614.5390. Rochester Chop House: Steak & Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 306 S. Main St., Rochester, 48307. 248.651.2266. Ruth’s Chris Steak House: Steak & Seafood. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 755 W. Big Beaver Rd., Troy, 48084. 248.269.8424. Silver Spoon: Italian. Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 6830 N. Rochester Rd., Rochester, 48306. 248.652.4500. Too Ra Loo: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 139 S. Main St., Rochester, 48307. 248.453.5291.

West Bloomfield/Southfield Bacco: Italian. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 29410 Northwestern Highway, Southfield, 48034. 248.356.6600. Beans and Cornbread: Southern. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 29508 Northwestern Highway, Southfield, 48034. 248.208.1680. Bigalora: Italian. Weekend Brunch. Lunch, 88

Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. No Reservations. Liquor. 29110 Franklin Road, Southfield, 48034. The Fiddler: Russian. Sunday Brunch. Dinner, Thursday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 6676 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.851.8782. Mene Sushi: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 6239 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.538.7081. Meriwether’s: Seafood. Lunch, MondaySaturday. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 25485 Telegraph Rd, Southfield, 48034. 248.358.1310. Nonna Maria’s: Italian. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 2080 Walnut Lake Road, West Bloomfield, 48323. 248.851.2500. Pickles & Rye: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6724 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.737.3890. Prime29 Steakhouse: Steak & Seafood. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 6545 Orchard Lake Rd., West Bloomfield, 48322. 248.737.7463. Redcoat Tavern: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. No reservations. Liquor. 6745 Orchard Lake Rd., West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.865.0500. Shangri-La: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. Orchard Mall Shopping Center, 6407 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.626.8585. Sposita’s Ristorante: Italian. Friday Lunch. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 33210 W. Fourteen Mile Rd., West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248. 538.8954. Stage Deli: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 6873 Orchard Lake Rd., West Bloomfield Township, 48322. 248.855.6622. Yotsuba: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 7365 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield, 48322. 248.737.8282.

West Oakland Gravity Bar & Grill: Mediterranean. Monday – Friday, Lunch & Dinner, Saturday, Dinner. Reservations. Liquor. 340 N. Main Street, Milford, 48381. 248.684.4223. It's A Matter of Taste: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 2323 Union Lake Road, Commerce, 48390. 248.360.4150. Volare Ristorante: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 48992 Pontiac Trail, Wixom, 48393. 248.960.7771.

North Oakland Clarkston Union: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 54 S. Main St., Clarkston, 48346. 248.620.6100. Holly Hotel: American. Afternoon Tea, Monday – Saturday, Brunch, Sunday, Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 110 Battle Alley, Holly, 48442. 248.634.5208.

Kruse's Deer Lake Inn: Seafood. Lunch & dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 7504 Dixie Highway, Clarkston, 48346. 248.795.2077. The Fed: American. Lunch and Dinner daily, Brunch, Saturday and Sunday. Liquor. 15 S. Main Street, Clarkston, 48346. 248.297.5833 Via Bologna: Italian. Dinner daily. No reservations. Liquor. 7071 Dixie Highway, Clarkston. 48346. 248.620.8500. Union Woodshop: BBQ. Dinner, Monday – Friday, Lunch & Dinner, Saturday – Sunday. No reservations. Liquor. 18 S. Main St., Clarkston, 48346. 248.625.5660

Detroit Bucharest Grill: Middle Eastern. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2684 E. Jefferson, Detroit, 48207. 313.965.3111. Cliff Bell’s: American. Sunday Brunch. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 2030 Park Ave., Detroit, 48226. 313.961.2543. Cuisine: French. Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 670 Lothrop Rd., Detroit, 48202. 313.872.5110. The Detroit Seafood Market: Seafood. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 1435 Randolph St., Detroit, 48226. 313.962.4180. El Barzon: Mexican. Lunch, TuesdayFriday. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 3710 Junction St., Detroit, 48210. 313.894.2070. Fishbone’s Rhythm Kitchen Café: Cajun. Breakfast, daily. Sunday Brunch. Lunch, Monday-Saturday. Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 400 Monroe Street, Detroit, 48226. 313.965.4600. Giovanni’s Ristorante: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 330 S. Oakwood Blvd., Detroit, 48217. 313.841.0122. Green Dot Stables: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2200 W. Lafayette, Detroit, 48216. 313.962.5588. Jefferson House: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 2 Washington Blvd., Detroit, 48226. 313.782.4318. Joe Muer Seafood: Seafood. Lunch, Monday- Friday, Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 400 Renaissance Center, Detroit, 48243. 313.567.6837. Johnny Noodle King: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2601 W. Fort St., Detroit, 48216. 313.309.7946. Mario’s: Italian. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 4222 2nd Ave., Detroit, 48201. 313.832.1616. Midtown Shangri-la: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 4710 Cass Ave., Detroit, 48201. 313.974.7669. Motor City Brewing Works: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 470 W. Canfield St., Detroit, 48201. 313.832.2700. 1917 American Bistro: American. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 19416 Livernois Ave., Detroit, 48221. 313.863.1917. Prism: Steak & Seafood. Dinner, Tuesday-

DOWNTOWN

Saturday. Reservations. Liquor. 555 E. Lafayette St, Detroit, 48226. 313.309.2499. Red Smoke Barbeque: Barbeque. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. Trappers Alley Shopping Center, 573 Monroe Ave., Detroit, 48226. 313.962.2100. Selden Standard: American. Weekend Brunch. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, daily. Liquor. Reservations. 3921 Second Ave., Detroit, 48201. 313.438.5055. SheWolf Pastifico & Bar: Italian. Dinner, Tuesday through Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 438 Selden St, Detroit 48201. 313.315.3992. Sinbad’s: Seafood. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 100 St Clair St., Detroit, 48214. 313.822.8000. Slows Bar BQ: Barbeque. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2138 Michigan Ave, Detroit, 48216. 313.962.9828. St. CeCe’s Pub: American. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. No reservations. Liquor. 1426 Bagley Ave., Detroit, 48216. 313.962.2121. Tap at MGM Grand: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 1777 Third Street, Detroit, 48226. 313.465.1234. Taqueria Nuestra Familia: Mexican. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 7620 Vernor Hwy., Detroit, 48209. 313.842.5668. The Block: American. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 3919 Woodward Ave, Detroit, 48201. 313.832.0892. Tom’s Oyster Bar: Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday. Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 519 East Jefferson Ave., Detroit, 48226. 313.964.4010. Traffic Jam & Snug: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 511 W. Canfield, Detroit, 48201. 313.831.9470. 24grille: American. Sunday Brunch. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit, 1114 Washington Blvd, Detroit, 48226. 313.964.3821. Union Street: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 4145 Woodward Ave, Detroit, 48201. 313.831.3965. Vince’s: Italian. Lunch, Tuesday-Friday. Dinner, Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations. Liquor. 1341 Springwells St., Detroit, 48209. 313.842.4857. Vivio’s Food & Spirits: American. Saturday Breakfast. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 2460 Market St., Detroit, 48207. 313.393.1711. The Whitney: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & High Tea, Monday-Friday. Sunday Brunch. Dinner, daily. Liquor. Reservations. 4421 Woodward Ave, Detroit, 48201. 313.832.5700. Wright & Co.: American. Dinner, MondaySaturday. No reservations. Liquor. 1500 Woodward Ave Second Floor, Detroit, 48226. 313.962.7711. 11.20

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ENDNOTE

Let coronavirus plan get wide public input e will be watching with interest in coming weeks to see how state lawmakers proceed on a state House Republican proposal to respond and hopefully manage the COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan. House GOP members unveiled what is being called Michigan's Comeback Roadmap on October 20, claiming that the package of bills will be a “more precise” and “data driven” response than the series of executive orders issued since early this spring by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Michigan. Whitmer initially issued her executive orders under a state law that allowed the elected executive in times of crisis to make basic decisions but then Republican legislators demanded to be part of the decision process outlined in the act under which the governor was operating. Whitmer then shifted her executive orders to an earlier state law that basically granted her the same powers, although the state Supreme Court eventually ruled that her tactics didn't pass constitutional review. Hence, state lawmakers are now developing their own response program to the pandemic that has engulfed state residents since March of this year. Here's how Whitmer has been operating for the past seven months. The state was divided into specific zones which were then monitored for COVID-19 infection rates and hospital capacity numbers, etc. All of Michigan originally was in place in a state of lockdown, with schools and businesses closed, eventually to be incrementally reopened over time as the situation improved on a zone-specific basis. Social distancing, crowd limitations and mandatory mask requirements were the basic defense against the virus. Once the court ruled that the governor lacked

the authority to continue with her executive orders, individual county health authorities, including Oakland, issued orders basically replacing the identical state orders the courts had negated. Within days state health officials took over and issued statewide orders to accomplish the same. No doubt Whitmer should be credited with bringing the virus infection rate under control in Michigan, but there was legitimate concern that whatever data state officials were using to make decisions was known only to the inner circle of the governor's administration. At no point was anyone able to truly know what the exact data goals the state was trying to achieve. So state House Republicans have stepped forward with their own proposal which will allow each county (83 of them) to set their own rules relative to the coronavirus, guided by a list of benchmarks that must be achieved before anyone can loosen up the regulations. In short, the benchmarks, adherence to which will be issued to the public on a daily basis, include less than 55 confirmed cases per one million residents in a 14-day period; a test positivity rating of less than five percent over a 14day period; a two-week supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) at local hospitals; ability to test at least 15 people per 10,000 residents everyday, with test results available within three days; and hospital capacity to manage a 20 percent surge in patient admissions. Failure to meet these benchmarks would then allow the state to take control. On the face of it, the proposal sounds like it checks all the boxes when it comes to keeping the pandemic under control, but we have our concerns.

For starters, we want to hear more from the medical and scientific community about the soundness of approaching the pandemic response on a county-by-county basis, particularly when you get to the more populous areas of the state, like southeast Michigan, where daily travel habits more than likely involve possibly infected residents moving across broad areas and into adjacent counties where coronavirus regulations may differ. In short, what works in the less populated hinterlands of northern or western Michigan may not work in this area. We also think that the five percent positivity testing rate is not stringent enough. We didn't think it was tough enough on the school reopening plan, by the way. Many in the medical and scientific community months ago suggested that three percent or less should be the goal. Even virus hotspots like New York City were able to drive down its sky-high positive test results to 1.5-2 percent before business and social activity were allowed to resume. Lastly, we would like to hear what the wider medical community says about the hospital PPE and surge admission capabilities outlined in this proposal. We have already witnessed overwhelmed hospitals without sufficient PPE and don't want to see that again. While we like the fact that Michigan would finally have some publicly posted goals and daily performance transparency, the House proposal may need some fine tuning which can only come from public discussion and hearings on the proposal. With the second wave of COVID-19 already upon us, we cannot afford a less than perfect approach in the months ahead.

Bringing Markus back good move for city he city of Birmingham is undergoing a period of stress and uncertainty, as city manager Joe Valentine has tendered his resignation after admirably serving the city for 24 years – his entire professional career. Just previously, the assistant city manager left due to personal considerations, leaving a hole in succession planning. Whether greater pressure, perceived or real, from a changing city commission in addition to the COVID pandemic played into Valentine's decisions, the reality is city government is at a crossroads, and the city commission made a wise decision to interview and enter into contract negotiations with former city manager Tom Markus, who capably served Birmingham for almost 22 years before moving on. Upon hearing of Valentine's resignation, Markus, who mentored Valentine as his assistant

city manager, reached out to mayor Pierre Boutros and expressed his interest in returning to the position of Birmingham City Manager for a period of five years. In an interview with the full commission, he clarified he would be willing to come for three to five years, has a son and grandchildren in the area and returns frequently, and has followed the city since he left to be a city manager in Iowa City, Iowa and Lawrence, Kansas. Markus assuaged concerns that he would move the city backwards – if anything, he illustrated his expanded knowledge in areas such as social justice and police reforms, issues confronting communities like Birmingham – and acknowledged that the past was just that, and zoning ordinances need to constantly adapt and change. He also was not only open, but enthusiastic, to participating in a search for a

younger assistant city manager who he could train and mentor – who would then take over as city manager from him one day. A small but extremely vocal group of residents has consistently articulated their opposition to Markus, stating it would be a step back for the city. We disagree. Markus has always been a strong manager, and definitely no pushover who can be manipulated by those with special interests – in or outside City Hall. It's one of the things most admired about him. He is a leader in the truest sense. Markus will put the priorities of the city first and foremost, provide a sense of stability to a rudderless staff, which has several key openings, and be open and transparent with all. We believe he can help the city, staff and commission come together to be the best Birmingham, for residents, businesses and visitors.

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MELINDA ALLEN MEREDITH GANNES ALVES THERESE ABDOO LYNN BAKER GAYLE BARKER PAUL BARNARD MARK BESS PATTY BLAIR JOAN HARDY BROWN MARK BROWN MARTY BROWN RON CLEM KATHY CANTOR COHN MEREDITH COLBURN JEAN COLBY KEVIN CONWAY MIKE CORRIDORE SANDY DEMETRIOU LINDA DEUTSCH KYLE DESMOND SEROUR DIGIOVANNI CHRISTINE DRINKWATER GINNY FISHER FRANK FLYNN JULIE FLYNN MADELINE FOX DEBY GANNES HOLLY GEYER TATE GILPIN TIFFANY GLIME LORI GOLDMAN PAM GRAY ESTER GREIG GAIL GROUT ANNA GULOYAN KRISTI HAMED KIM MINASIAN HAWES MARGIE HESSEN SUSAN HILL LIZ HSU BRIAN HUNTER SAL IMPASTATO JEFF JACOB CAROLINE JOHNSON CINDY OBRON KAHN SAM KAPLUNOV ERICA KOHLER LUCY KOLLIN ANN LAMBERT JILL LASKEY GILLIAN LAZAR VIOLETA LEKAJ WENDY LEONARD CHRISTINE LYNN ASHLEY MANN VICKIE MCASKIN JASON MCKEVITT JENNIFER MCNAIRNIE DENESE MERRITT BARB MILLER MATT MILLS TRACY MONDALEK KELLY MOODY PATTY MOORE PATTY MORAN JOHN NEWMAN ELLEN NEWVILLE GARY NEWVILLE KATE Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;CONNELL AMY ORDONA MONA PARLOVE SHONDELL PATTERSON DOROTHY PERROTTA MICHAEL PERROTTA KELLY PINE JENNIFER RAAB NANCI RANDS ANNA REA CHERYL RIBACK RON RIBACK ELAINA RYDER HEATHER SALESIN JENNIFER SCHILP LYNDA SCHRENK JOYCE SHERMAN DANA SHAGENA ALEXIS SHARRON SUE SIMON JULIE SOSIN ROBERT SMITH CHAD SPELLER ERIN SPELLER PAM STOLER DAN TEAHAN RYAN TEAHAN EVAN TREHARNE ADAM WAECHTER JESSICA WEISMAN DIANA WOLAK SCHMIDT DENNIS WOLF D RYAN WOLF J BRADLEY WOLF JULIA WOLF DEE WRIGHT CALEB ZANDSTRA AMY SUZANNE ZIMMER DENISE ZUCKERMAN

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