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DOWNTOWN01.11 25

13

Coming Home: The Class of 2003 Downtown assembled eight graduates of the high school class 2003 who lived away from the local area since graduating college in 2007 but now have moved back to the area. Here's their thoughts on returning home to pursue careers.

56

35: Jay Adelson

CITY/TOWNSHIP

Schubot Jewellers; Sweet Things; Visage Spa; Complex Boutique; Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel; Real Ryder Revolution; Masri Clinic

DISTRIBUTION: Mailed­12­times­each­year­at no­charge­to­homes­in­Birmingham,­Bloomfield Township­and­Bloomfield­Hills­prior­to­the­start of­ each­ month.­ Additional­ free­ copies­ are distributed­at­high­foot-traffic­locations.

For­those­not­residing­in­the­free­mail­distribution area­ for­ Downtown­ Birmingham/Bloomfield, paid­subscriptions­are­available­for­a­$12­annual fee.­ Phone­ 248.792.6464­ and­ request­ the Distribution­ department­ or­ go­ to­ our­ website (downtownpublications.com)­ and­ click­ on “subscriptions”­in­the­top­index­and­place­your order­on-line.

4

New Zealand’s Marlborough region vintner Allan Scott's brand, after a five-year absence from the Michigan market, has returned.

SOCIAL LIGHTS

62

Bruner new city manager; leasing consultant pact extended; city, Brother Rice jointly seek land purchase; The Wine Guy gets go-ahead; Tim Horton approval; Cole Street bistro

BUSINESS MATTERS

­

Birmingham’s Toast has been dubbed hip, cozy, gourmet and boutique. Proprietor Thom Bloom (with his wife Regan) characterizes it as “cozy and accessible.”

FOCUS ON WINE

51: Linda Solomon

59

Local municipalities have been left to grapple with the issues from an ill-defined 2008 ballot proposal allowing for medical marijuana.

55

FACES

46

Marijuana debate continues

AT THE TABLE

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

23: Apryl Mueller

In Birmingham, the world one floor up above the retail visitors see at street level is a microcosm of the business domain at large.

41

CRIME LOCATOR

11

The Second Story

THE COVER Birmingham Historical Museum and Park, Allen House.

ENDNOTE

70

DOWNTOWN P­ ­ ­ U­ ­ ­ B­ ­ ­ L­ ­ ­ I­ ­ ­ C­ ­ ­ A­ ­ ­ T­ ­ ­ I­ ­ ­ O­ ­ ­ N­ ­ ­ S DOWNTOWN­BIRMINGHAM/BLOOMFIELD 124­WEST­MAPLE­ROAD­­­BIRMINGHAM­48009 P:­248.792.6464

downtownpublications.com facebook.com/downtownpublications.com

­Publisher:­David­Hohendorf Ad­Manager:­Jill­Cesarz Graphics/IT­Manager:­Chris­Grammer News­Editor:­Lisa­Brody

News­Staff/Contributors:­Hillary­Brody, Sally­Gerak,­­Eleanor­&­Ray­Heald,­ Austen­Hohendorf,­Garrett­Hohendorf, Kathleen­Meisner,­Laurie­Tennent

DOWNTOWN

Society reporter Sally Gerak provides the latest news from the society and non-profit circuit as she covers major events of the past month.

An open letter to Birmingham's city manager and our thoughts on the argument between communities and the water resources commissioner.

INCOMING: We­ welcome­ feedback­ on­ both our­publication­and­general­issues­of­concern­in the­ Birmingham/Bloomfield­ community.­ The traditional­Letters­to­the­Editor­in­Downtown­are published­ in­ our­ Incoming­ section,­ and­ can include­ traditional­ letters­ or­ electronic communication.­ Your­ opinions­ can­ be­ sent­ via e-mail­to­news@downtownpublications.com;­or mailed­ to­ Downtown­ Publications,­ 124­ West Maple­ Road,­ Birmingham­ MI,­ 48009.­ Letters must­ include­ your­ full­ name,­ address­ and daytime­phone­number­for­verification.­

01.11

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FROM THE PUBLISHER

A

ll too often we hear the story of how Michigan is suffering from what's referred to as the “brain drain”--college graduates not returning here once they leave college but seeking out a life away from their home state.

It is a phenomena we all know is taking place. You spend your years raising your child, send them off to college, either here or in another state, and once they graduate they seek their fortunes outside of Michigan. There is certainly legitimate concern for the future of Michigan if the trend continues.

Personally I went through this with my oldest son, Garrett, age 25, now living in Manhattan and working for MTV. In his case, he wanted to take a couple of years off before heading to film school to get a graduate degree and our recommendation to him was to not return to Michigan to look for work. Part of our reasoning was that the film industry was stronger on the East and West coasts, and then couple that with the general state of economic problems facing Michigan. A hard decision and recommendation for a parent to make, but the right one in his case.

News editor Lisa Brody has also faced a similar decision with her daughter Hillary, who also works in Manhattan, at a auction house.

So it was with some interest months ago that I listened to a possible story idea from Anne Carney Strickland, a 2003 graduate of Cranbrook and 2007 graduate of Michigan State University. Anne's pitch was that not enough attention was being paid to the 20-somethings who left for college, worked outside of Michigan but made the decision to return back home.

The idea intrigued us at Downtown. We decided to step up the game somewhat and assemble at our offices over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend a group of 2003 high school graduates from public and private schools in the Birmingham-Bloomfield area who had left but have now returned home. Our thought was to be able to raise some questions readers would like answered from a group that had come back. We asked Hillary Brody, a 2004 graduate, to handle the moderator duties when she returned home at the holiday and the written piece for this issue.

Garrett Hohendorf, also a member of the 2003 high school class, shot the video of the session and handled the editing. His efforts are posted on our website (downtownpublications.com) for those who want to see the session in its entirety.

Definitely a bright group of 20-somethings who work in a variety of industries in Michigan. Their perspective on what went into the decision-making process is interesting, as are their observations on the state of things in southeast Michigan now that they spent time away in other states and countries and decided to return.

We hope readers enjoy the “Coming Home” feature on page 13 as much as we enjoyed putting this together. **** As a quick closing note this month, we have made a philosophical decision to begin requiring that visitors to our website register if they want to leave comments on either stories or general issues of concern in the community. In the early days of the Internet, most commentary left on an anonymous basis was simply part of the Wild Wild West mentality that was so pervasive on the web.

Unfortunately, in recent years there has been a growing concern about what many refer to as Internet “trolls” who spend their time leaving anonymous comments, many times degrading and sometimes abusive, on websites. So we have decided to join the growing movement of legitimate news operations requiring someone to register as part of our web community if they want to leave commentary on our site. We hope this helps restore some civility to the Internet.

As always, we welcome your feedback.

David Hohendorf Publisher DavidHohendorf@downtownpublications.com

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INCOMING decide what the board wants, then try to sell it -- again.

Hopefully, with a true dialogue, the dreams of the board will converge with the hopes of the community.

J. S. Roach, Bloomfield Hills

Appreciate coverage As a long-time resident of Bloomfield Township, I wish to extend my compliments and appreciation to Downtown Publications for its excellent coverage of recent activities by the Bloomfield Hills Schools board and administration. We constituents of the school district will be very grateful for your continued coverage of such topics which impact our community.

Howard Witt, Bloomfield Township

District not responsive You mentioned in your December 2010 “End Note” that Bloomfield Hills School District voters sent “a decisive message to the school board that leaders in the community and residents did not agree with both the proposal, and the direction the board is setting for the district.”

That same message has been sent, at least, four times.

You mention there was “barely a ripple” in June when the board announced the decision to consolidate the two high schools into one. There was barely a ripple on the surface, but the passions run deep. A major part of the dissatisfaction with the district is the unwillingness to listen to the wishes of anyone outside their “circle.” Some reasons the district got that “strong thumping” you mentioned is residents finally had a way to express their frustration with the proposal to close one high school, the extravagance of the specific proposal, and the financing plan.

The decision to close one high school, like the decision to close two elementary schools, was never debated nor embraced by the public. It was a dictate from the district. With the elementary school closings, the board had funds in Our thanks to the hundreds who entered into the random drawing by Downtown Publications to help kick off the launch in early 2011 of the Downtown Deals e-newsletter.

And a special thanks to the local businesses who helped add to the excitement with merchandise that included jewelry from Astrein's Creative Jewelers, dining gift cards from Big Rock Chophouse, jeans from Caruso Caruso and designer sunglasses from Shades Optical.

SPEAK OUT

Sally Gerak's photos

We welcome your opinion on issues facing the Birmingham/Bloomfield communities.

Opinions can be sent via e-mail to news@downtownpublications.com or mailed to Downtown Publications, 124 West Maple Road, Birmingham MI 48009.

Please include your name, community and day time phone number for verification.

hand to do the deed. With the consolidation of the high schools, that is not the case. Unless or until they have the money, they cannot consolidate.

If the district really wants to solve the high school facilities question, they need to achieve consensus on the fundamentals first. Do we want to be a district of small neighborhood schools or not?

The most definitive work to date asking that question about high schools is a 2007 post election survey. By 61 percent to 39 percent, the community said they wanted two renovated high schools. Times may have changed, but the voters have not. They still rejected a large new high school 55percent o 45 percent.

Mounting a public relations campaign costing multiple tens of thousands of dollars to justify a preconceived notion that consolidation is “best” is not a good substitute for community dialogue.

As you said, “This is definitely not the time for grandiose plans or arrogant decision-making.” The board should ask the community what it wants, then go do it; not,

The photos for the St. Joseph Mercy Fall Spectacular were just great (Sally Gerak Social Lights/ December 2010). Thanks for doing a very professional job.

Rick Forzano, Bloomfield Hills

Thoughts on Child Killer Excellent article (Oakland County child Killer/October 2010).

My thoughts: Why wasn't Busch at the top of Patterson's list? He had committed 75 sexual assaults on young boys. He should have been their top suspect.

From what I understand, he had a blue Vega with a white stripe that looks just like the blue AMC Gremlin, that should have been another clue. Why did only Greene go to prison and Busch was set free to murder when he and Greene were both charged? Was money involved? Greene had no money but Busch did by way of his GM dad.

Can George Enochs be located to ask what four cases Busch was despondent over (and therefore committed suicide?) Why doesn't someone give Wasser a lie detector test.

They had a drawing of the would-be killer back in the 70s and he had pointy features, beady eyes and long straight hair. What did Busch look like? Does anyone have his high school picture? What kind of a job did he have or was he totally subsidized by his dad?

Tell them not to give up.

Sometimes it takes a long time to get justice. Right wins out.

Name Withheld Upon Request Here's the 15 lucky people who received one of the prizes in the random drawing:

CONTEST WINNERS

Jan Doxtader, Bloomfield Hills Kathy Petoskey, Bloomfield Twp Jeannine Krause, Birmingham Judy Goldwasser, Bloomfield Township Brenna Turner, Bloomfield Hills Teresa Newman, Bloomfield Hills Cynthia Cotter, Bloomfield Hills Devin Shallop, West Bloomfield Toni LaDue, Birmingham Suzanne Medici, Troy Susie Rosenberg, Bloomfield Township Susan Dugas, Bloomfield Township Ruth Peppiatt, Birmingham Kathi Vermillion, Birmingham Keith Troutt, Birmingham

THE CONTEST MAY BE OVER BUT YOU CAN STILL SIGN UP FOR THE E-NEWSLETTER AT OUR WEBSITE–DOWNTOWNPUBLICATIONS.COM

9

DOWNTOWN

01.11

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CRIME LOCATOR

NORTH

Map key

Sexual assault

Assault

Murder

Robbery

Home invasion

Breaking/entering

Larceny

Burglary

Vehicle theft

Larceny from vehicle

Vandalism

Drug offenses

Arson

These are the crimes reported under select categories by police officials in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills through December 17, 2010.

Placement of codes is approximate.

COMING HOME: CLASS OF 2003 A round table discussion of those who returned

M

ore or less accepted by many families in the Birmingham/Bloomfield area is that once their children have graduated from college, they will go off to the big city, embarking on their career and their young adult life somewhere other than Michigan. As a result, statistically, Michigan is experiencing a “Brain Drain,� the phenomenon of the best and brightest leaving one region for another, and therefore bringing their talents and creativity with them to their new home. However, a reverse trend is emerging, with signs that many 20-somethings want to live in the Detroit area after years away.

Our best wishes for a Healthy and Prosperous 2011

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01.11

Eight 2003 graduates of local public and private Birmingham/Bloomfield high schools convened over Thanksgiving weekend at the offices of Downtown Publications. Each had the opportunity to live away for a period of time, and then for various reasons, have decided to move back to the area. Some went far away for college, and came back for work. Others have traveled to Europe and Asia, and returned of their own volition. Some went to Chicago, to work and play, yet found something missing, an indeterminate ingredient that can only be found here, in a place called home.

Downtown Publications drew a roundtable of these young adults, where they gathered to talk and share intimate thoughts about where they’ve been, and the paths their lives have taken, and why they have returned to the Birmingham/Bloomfield area. They candidly shared their thoughts and opinions with moderator Hillary Brody, who has not returned to the area, still living and working in New York City.

“I am guilty of being part of the brain drain, as I went to college in New York City and have lived there ever since. While I return frequently for vacations to see my family, I can’t answer the question of if or when I will return to suburban Detroit,” said Brody. “ I always felt like I was in the majority, knowing hardly any colleagues from childhood still living in the area. The afternoon definitely made me homesick.”

The entire afternoon was videotaped by producer and videographer Garrett Hohendorf, a 2003 grad of Cranbrook Kingswood and Villanova who works for MTV in New York City. The video can be viewed in its entirety on our website, www.downtownpublications.com.

BRODY: I’m Hillary Brody. I graduated from Cranbrook Kingswood in ‘04. I went to Barnard College in New York, and have been living in New York ever since. I work for Swann Galleries, which is an auction house, and have also worked for a bunch of publications. I have also been writing as well. What we’re going to have you all do is we’ll have you introduce yourselves, and I’ll ask you a few questions, and then we’ll let it turn into an open discussion. We’ll start with Meredith. Introduce yourself, where you went to school, and what you’ve been doing since.

GANNES: My name is Meredith Gannes. I went to Cranbrook, Michigan State, and after I graduated, I moved to China. I was there until June. I was working for Lear; I still am. They transferred me back. Now I do advanced material engineering for automotive fabric and leather.

SASSON: Jeremy Sasson. I went to Miami of Florida (after Detroit Country Day School). I graduated in ‘07, and returned to family business in real estate and now I’m engaged in my own real estate projects outside of my family’s business, and I’ve been doing that since the beginning of 2010.

DEAN: My name is Jamie Dean. I grew up in the area, went to Seaholm, and went to Miami of

Ohio. After graduating, I went to Europe, and I spent the last three fall, winter, sometimes spring, touring with a national company called “Holiday on Ice.” I just moved back three months ago from Cedar Point, which is what I did in the summertime. I skated in the ice show there. I’m home now, and I just started working for a company called Digital Pen Media.

KOROTKIN: I’m Emily Korotkin. I went to Seaholm. I went to Michigan State and Columbia College in Chicago. I moved back about six months ago from Chicago to pursue a career in the family insurance business, which is what I do now.

MAIMAN: I’m Lauren Maiman. I went to Groves and then went to Boston University and got a degree in journalism and came back in ‘06 to work for Style Magazine, which folded a year after I started there, so I went right into PR, which is what I am currently doing, and I have a second job as the director of public affairs for a non-profit for kids with cancer.

SABATINI: I’m Christina Sabatini. I graduated from Sacred Heart in ‘03, and I went to DePaul

WHEN I WENT AWAY TO COLLEGE, I DIDN'T EVEN APPLY TO ANYWHERE IN MICHIGAN. I WAS GETTING OUT. I DIDN'T WANT TO BE HERE. THEN AS I WOULD COME BACK HERE TO VISIT, I REALIZED MICHIGAN WASN'T SUCH A BAD PLACE TO BE. –MAIMAN

for a year-and-a-half, and then I graduated from U-M in ‘07. I moved a couple of places. I went to Denver and then assistant taught at an elementary school in Chicago for a year-and-ahalf. I moved back here in September. Now I’m helping to manage a yoga studio in West Bloomfield and since February, I’ve been working with a non-profit to help raise funds for international development projects with a nonprofit, yoga-inspired.

BRITTAIN: I’m Ryan Brittain. I went to Brother Rice and Miami of Ohio. Graduated from Miami, took a job in Columbus, Ohio with a manufacturing company and moved to Switzerland, and then back to Columbus, and then now, here I am. I actually moved back about three months ago. I started a career in commercial real estate. I’m working on the broker’s side with Grubb & Ellis in Southfield and loving it so far.

STRICKLAND: My name is Anne Carney Strickland and I moved back two years ago, maybe a little over two years ago. I went to Cranbrook, Michigan State, and then I worked in Chicago. I do residential interior design.

BRODY: Was it all your choices to return? Did you have family pressure to return? Why did

each of you choose to return to Michigan?

GANNES: I came back because my company offered me a job here that would advance my career. So I moved.

BRODY: Were there any hesitations?

GANNES: It’s bittersweet. I only know Michigan and China. I just went with the flow. I figured if it’s so bad, I’ll move back to China.

SASSON: Pressure, no. I always wanted to come back to Michigan and learn real estate development, and who better than my family to teach me the way that I would not necessarily receive if I went to work for another company.

Real estate development looked a lot shinier in ‘07 than in ‘08 and ‘09. The fact is there’s no pressure to stay here. It’s by choice. That’s what’s kept me here. If there had been pressure, I probably wouldn’t have stayed here.

DEAN: With Holiday On Ice, each show has a three-year life span, so I chose to go back for three seasons. After going back for three seasons, I got the invitation to do the new show, but I just felt it was a good experience. I had completed one complete show from Opening Day to final curtain.. I was really missing home. Each time I came home, I just had a better and better time, and felt more connected. My family was really supportive, they just wanted me to do whatever made me happy. After skating for that long, first competitively and then professionally, I got to the point where I didn’t want to exploit it, and I got close. I just felt it was time to hang up my skates. Now I coach on the weekends.

KOROTKIN: No pressure here. I sort of always pictured myself working alongside my dad, but I wanted to try other things first to make sure it was the right decision. Before, when I moved to Chicago, I had this idea that Michigan was this horrible place and realized that my sisters are here and I don’t want to be five hours away from them. I want to be able to spend time with my nieces and nephews whenever I want to. Going into the field that I’m in, the growth is best here, with four generations of my family here before me. There’s no pressure; I’m happy to be here.

MAIMAN: When I went away to college, I didn’t even apply to anywhere in Michigan. I was getting out. I didn’t want to be here. Then as I would come back here to visit, I realized Michigan wasn’t such a bad place to be. I lived in a big city; I lived in Boston, and I realized how much I liked getting in my car to get groceries, and not carrying bags of groceries up five floors of stairs. I think that was the driving force, as well as I interviewed for a job in April, the year I graduated, and they offered it to me, so that made it really easy knowing I would have that job. I was dating someone who lived here and had a family business here, so that made it really easy. He wasn’t going anywhere. I subsequently married him, so that was a good decision. But no pressure from my family.

SABATINI: No pressure for me. It was more finding an opportunity here. I was doing education in Chicago, where I lived for two years, and then not enjoying it as much as I had hoped. Transitioning over to something that I’m

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devoted to, like my yoga practice and nonprofit work. I was able to find opportunities and a job here. I was looking to come back home. There wasn’t pressure. It was all good.

BRITTAIN: I agonized over it for a long time.

When I graduated, I took the best job I could.

What it came down to was, this is where I want to be. It wasn’t so much the economics or family pressures as much as the things I missed. I like going to Tigers games; I like going to the cider mill; just everything about the area. Things very unique to Michigan that don’t exist anywhere else. Days would go by, and everything was OK—job was OK, city was OK, but it was just OK. Here I was, 25, why did I have to settle for OK? Rolled the dice, quit my job, moved back without a job, took a chance, and landed on my feet somehow.

STRICKLAND: One of the things you said to me was that you had a good job, and you didn’t want to spend your career finding an avenue back here.

BRITTAIN: It’s true. Why find the rest of your career finding your way back home. Just do it, and work from there. There wasn’t pressure.

Obviously, my mom was ecstatic. My dad kinda questioned my sanity for a few weeks, then he got it, too. Worked out well.

STRICKLAND: I always thought I’d do something different after school. I did the Chicago thing after school. I had a long distance relationship. Scott’s a couple years older. He decided after I’d been living in Chicago for a year that he was going to move back to Birmingham, and start working with my dad. At first, I was still planning on having my Chicago shenanigans for another year. But then, as he was settling here, and setting up a life, and looking for houses, I thought, this is really nice.

And having gone in-state to school, there are so many people here. There’s a good network, and why am I fighting this? Why am I extending my time in the city, because that’s what I should do?

I picked up and moved back about five, six months later.

BRODY: This is about your decision to move back, more from your peers. Was there social pressure about returning to Detroit, especially if you’re in a city like Chicago? Do they want to know why you would want to go back to Detroit, or how could you leave this city?

What do other people say?

KOROTKIN: That exact thing. Why? There’s plenty of people here, but I left Michigan for four years, and pretty much all my friends from Michigan are in Chicago, no where near home.

They were maybe from Michigan but not from Detroit, and I sort of picked up and started over.

And I felt, why am I fighting this when I really want it. Then I realized, Chicago isn’t going anywhere. If I really hate it, I can always move back, or I can be there in four-and-a-half hours for the weekend.

DEAN: With skating, it’s funny, because showgirls have an obsession with tour and skating, and they never can picture not doing it.

And then all of a sudden, I found myself, I was

living in the moment, trying to enjoy everything, but it got to the point where I was questioning why I was still doing it, and how much longer I would do it. And all my friends were like ‘You’re such a lifer,’ and I said, ‘I got to go home, guys.’

It can be pretty glamorous. They felt kinda bad for me. It was pretty hard to have that message coming at me from pretty good friends. For them, they couldn’t picture not doing it, and for me, I couldn’t picture doing it any longer. My life was exciting and an adventure, but it was on hold. I wasn’t living to my potential.

STRICKLAND: One of my friends moved back here, and her license was different. She went to the Secretary of State’s office, and they asked her ‘Why would you move back here from Texas?’ It’s that negativity. We have to be our powerful epicenter.

BRITTAIN: I spent three years in Columbus, so I was used to Michigan negativity. The biggest thing that speaks well about this state is that I bring people up here for holidays or to visit, and everyone always left with great impressions.

What a great place. You have to be from this

PEOPLE HAVE THIS STIGMA OF DETROIT BECAUSE THEY’VE NEVER BEEN HERE OR DON’T KNOW ANYONE FROM HERE. ALL THEY SEE IN THEIR HEAD IS 8 MILE, THE MOVIE, AND ASSUME THAT EVERYWHERE YOU GO, THERE’S GANGSTERS, THUGS AND DRIVE-BYS. –KOROTKIN place to understand it. And that’s the thing that, if you haven’t been here, and haven’t experienced it, you can’t really appreciate it. I was talking with some friends last night (Thanksgiving), and they live in Chicago or Atlanta, and they all say, it’s good to be home again. I don’t think you ever lose that.

KOROTKIN: People have this stigma of Detroit because they’ve never been here or don’t know anyone from here. All they see in their head is 8 Mile, the movie, and assume that everywhere you go, there’s gangsters, thugs and drive-bys.

It’s just like any place, and we all feel a sense of family and home here. That’s not something that’s multiplied around the nation. Other big cities, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, L.A., have stereotypes, but they’re different.

SASSON: Michigan’s negativity is because it’s in the media. People’s perception is because it’s what they’ve read or heard. I started college at Michigan State, and I looked at myself, and I said, I really want to leave Michigan now so that I can come back and bring something back to this area. In my early to mid-20s, I can bring a dynamic that is in other areas, and bring it here.

My friends at Michigan State are going to be my friends forever. I’m going to have the opportunity

at Miami for the next three or four years to meet people out of my area that I would never have met if I had never have left. As important as it is to stay, it’s important to see outside, to know how good you have it where you are.

BRODY: When you went away to college and came back here, did you have high school friends, networks from college, how is the networking and meeting people work here?

BRITTAIN: We talk about this a lot.

STRICKLAND: Everyone has a common thread when you’re all from here. We all have some way of knowing each other or figuring out who you are real fast. Living here, I see the friends I’ve known my whole life but also met so many new ones because we feel the need to band together.

We’re setting up a life here and doing all this stuff together and we need each other.

BRITTAIN: On the flip side, for somebody new to town, I don’t think it’s all that easy to meet people here. There are a few organizations. But the people who are here, grew up here and have some kind of a connection or network. I know this guy through that or that. If I just moved here, in other cities there are other groups to fall back on, whether work or whatever, and everyone’s going through the same things. Here, it’s a little bit different. We’ve talked about having some kind of monthly social club or happy hour, just to get to know each other, to say hey, I get my hair cut here, I get my insurance here.

I wish it was easier for people who are sent here

by GM or whatever and had a bad impression.

BRODY: But if you’ve been gone for several years and come back, is there a middle ground?

DEAN: I was just grateful, because I was gone about seven years, and the people who had gone to Michigan or Michigan State, or who had come back before me, had developed this really great core network, and were so welcoming to me. I felt so fortunate to have these instant new friends, but they felt so genuine because of all those common threads. From that point, I think there’s a lot of potential for people coming in because people are really nice here.

KOROTKIN: I think half of it is growing up, where we get rid of from growing up, who’s friends with who, and you’re not cool enough.

We’re all in the same place now. We’ve all been through similar experiences, we’re all home now, and it’s ‘my friends are getting together, why don’t you come with us.’ It doesn’t seem weird anymore. It doesn’t seem weird to see people you haven’t seen in seven years. You just pick up where you were seven years ago. At the same time, I do agree with you, people are a lot nicer here than we give credit for.

MAIMAN: I graduated a year early from college, so I came back before all of the ‘07 people. For a whole year, my boyfriend/husband and I sat in his bedroom because we knew no one and went to dinner with his parents every night because we knew no one. And then one night we were at Leo’s Coney Island and ran into someone he played baseball with in high school. But we

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didn’t really know them well. And now they’ve become our core group of friends. It was about finding people who were at a similar stage in life.

I love the idea of a social club, because there’s got to be something other than going to the bar.

GANNES: I came home (from China) every six months. I’ve been back for five months now, and it’s still like an extended holiday where I still find I’m running into people and catching up. I like being here because everyone comes back to visit.

I was afraid I was going to be sick of being back, but so far it’s been good, and I like the constant flow of people. I’m always running into people.

SABATINI: In my experience, it’s also about having left and feeling out what my interests are and what I want to be pursuing in my life, knowing a little more about myself. Now I’m in a community, I work at the Yoga Shelter in West Bloomfield, and West Bloomfield is a new community for me. I’m in a community where I know all new people, sharing something I’m involved in. Coming back here and finding opportunities and finding niches, there’s always someplace to find that, here, Chicago, wherever.

There’s also tons of people from Grosse Pointe who come to Yoga Shelter. So now I feel I’m living in a new city.

BRITTAIN: Rediscovering it.

SABATINI: Yeah. The whole thing about Detroit.

Our generation (can) illuminate it in a nicer way.

There’s something called downtowndetroit.com, or something, and I just found it, and it tells you about Eastern Market, and tells you about all these different places you can go. That’s another cool opportunity, living here, living only 17 miles from Detroit.

DEAN: I’m coaching now in Rochester, so that’s an area I’m getting familiar with, and I’m babysitting in West Bloomfield, so I’m getting real familiar with that area, and I’m working now in Novi, so there’s all these cool little cosmopolitan areas that I’m finding out about and rediscovering.

With Detroit, I’ve gone to Slow’s (Bar BQ) a few times, I’ve gone to some baseball games a few times, I’ve done some cool things, and I’ve come home, and my parents are like, ‘We’ve been doing that for years.’ So Detroit is such a gem, and people do realize it. Maybe it’s not talked about as much, but there’s great opportunities.

BRODY: So is downtown just an area to go to for sporting events? Do you see a revival at restaurants and other places?

(Many voices): Yeah, yeah.

KOROTKIN: You don’t even realize what’s going on down there. I get all of these new calls, and they’re all from Detroit. I go down there because I like to see what’s going on when I get a new client, and there’s everything from stores to bars to restaurants to new manufacturers, distributors. Everything. It’s really nice to see these areas because in the middle of what seems to be destructed, it’s slow, but it is happening.

It’s cool.

BRODY: So where are you guys hanging out on weekends? Are you hanging out for dinner and in the bars in Birmingham? Royal Oak? Detroit?

BRITTAIN: I’d say all.

STRICKLAND: Detroit is a bit of a hike. I save it for a special occasion, though it doesn’t take much for me to consider something a special occasion.

DEAN: And it does require a designated driver or some kind of safe transportation. But I’ve had friends come visit and been so proud to take them to Greektown, and they think it’s such a cool place. I’m hoping it becomes, ‘Let’s go down to Detroit.’ That’s why I’m excited to go to the theater, to go to the downtown area to skate (at Campus Martius). I had a real good friend who lived down there for law school and that’s what opened my eyes to it as an adult.

BRITTAIN: Jamie touched on this subject of transportation. That’s the issue. It’s a major issue. The thing that’s really going to help is when they connect up here and make it convenient for people our age to get down there.

Safely. Like when they do things like the Tiger Train, and it sold out in like 10 minutes. Picks you up in Birmingham and Royal Oak and takes

...ON THIS SUBJECT OF TRANSPORTATION...IT'S A MAJOR ISSUE. THE THING THAT'S REALLY GOING TO HELP IS WHEN THEY CONNECT UP HERE AND MAKE IT CONVENIENT FOR PEOPLE OUR AGE TO GET DOWN THERE (DETROIT). ..THAT'S THE BIGGEST THING FOR ME. –BRITTAIN you down to the game and back. It was a gimmicky thing they did one summer, and it was awesome. It’s nostalgic, and it’s practical. You get people our age down there. That’s the biggest thing for me.

BRODY: The lack of public transportation?

BRITTAIN: I go down for games and bars, but for the average person, why would you go? If they made it easier, it would be awesome.

BRODY: So where do you find yourself hanging out on a Friday or Saturday night?

BRITTAIN: Here. Royal Oak. KOROTKIN: All over. Someone might decide to go to a specific place in Rochester, and you end up in Rochester. Even Novi has a great FountainWalk. There’s tons of things you can do, and because it’s become apparent there’s so much you can do, you do it.

SASSON: It’s quality of life.

BRODY: I know Gov. Jennifer Granholm has talked about the concept of “cool cities” is the key to retaining to young, bright people such as yourselves. Do you think that really makes a difference? Do you think Birmingham, Royal Oak, Ferndale, and the other cities you have mentioned, are, or have the credentials to become cool cities?

SASSON: I think the whole reason big

metropolitan cities exist is because of businesses. To enjoy a cool city is based on hundreds of thousands of people investing the money they’ve made in an area back into their community. So when people are driven away because they can’t find a job, establish a career, cities have a hard time resurrecting. That’s why Detroit’s having such a hard time. In cities like Birmingham, how many of these are national businesses? With the exception of maybe Einstein’s, most of the restaurants in this town are either regional or local businesses. That’s why Royal Oak works, that’s why Ferndale exists, that’s why this town [Birmingham] exists.

It’s not because we’re saying it’s a cool city. It’s because businesses want to be here to support that.

BRODY: Is it more than just businesses? Big cities have cultural institutions. Those of you who lived in other cities, did you take advantage of the cultural institutions?

DEAN: When I was on tour, and in a different city every week, I made a big effort to do anything and everything possible. When I came home, I felt I was really missing things. Then I realized, it wasn’t because they weren’t available, I wasn’t looking for them, or I wasn’t seeking out the friends who would do the things I wanted to do. So one day I went to this really cool concert in Pontiac. I realized they’re everywhere. You just have to find them. You just have to pull your sleeves up and find them.

KOROTKIN: You have to realize that everything that’s in a big city is here, you just have to take the time to look for it. Like the cultural institutions, the nonprofits. There’s always something to be involved with. A bowling club. I know someone in a dart club. In the summertime, there’s sports leagues. Everyone’s doing something. You just have to be one person standing up and saying let’s do it.

MAIMAN: My first job was with this magazine, and a lot of these assignments were to check out this new restaurant or interview this new store owner. Right off the bat, I was meeting and going to more places than I might have naturally done. But because I had to for work, I would drag all my friends along for work. I knew Birmingham, and I love Birmingham, but I had to go to Milford and Plymouth and Rochester, and now I love all of those places too. They’re really cute and fun.

BRODY: In terms of cultural institutions, are you willing to pay to keep them open? The area is so economically depressed, that now they’re going to look at a tax to put on the ballot to keep the art institute open, or possibly the symphony.

MAIMAN: I think the people in this room would, but I know my husband is opposite me in almost every way, and he wouldn’t. He doesn’t care, he doesn’t go to those places. We just had a millage on the library (in Bloomfield Hills), and he was, ‘I don’t go to the library.’ I said, what about when we have kids and I want to take them there? He said we can buy a card to go then.

BRITTAIN: It goes back to the quality of life

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discussion. We’re all in our twenties, so we see it more as an investment. We want to see the area and the region thrive, and you need those things to thrive.

SASSON: What would I have to sacrifice to get that benefit? The symphony can always return. I don’t think the area can afford it. I think it’s a compromise.

SABATINI: I don’t really have the knowledge to know. But when I heard that, I thought, No, I wouldn’t want that to happen. I wanted to say, come on guys, let’s go to the symphony. And I’ve never been there. A feeling that a community effort can make a difference, can make something happen.

STRICKLAND: It’s defining of a community. It’s like, we don’t want the basketball team to leave here, either.

DEAN: And if someone is weighing two jobs, if we don’t have the symphony, or the Pistons, then they might not want to come here. I can’t imagine if we didn’t have a nice theater or nice opera.

BRODY: To friends of yours who live out of state, do you see a way of convincing them to come back?

SASSON: How about you?

BRODY: I don’t know yet. But friends that you grew up with. When they see that you’re back here, friends who are living away, that you can buy a house, that you can do all of these things, do you think you can get them to come back?

DEAN: I think there’s a buzz here right now. I keep hearing people have every intention of coming back and raising their families here, it’s just not the right time. I don’t think anyone’s against it, you just feel this need to be doing something else. I felt it. It wasn’t about shunning Michigan. I always loved Michigan. You just feel the need to leave for a while. I felt like I needed to see the world, see other places and meet other people that had nothing to do with myself. It just wasn’t the right time before.

BRITTAIN: So why is it the right time? I think about my friends. If I had my own company, and had 10 dream jobs, and handed it to them, I betcha eight of them would grab them, because a lot of them do want to come back. It’s the jobs.

MAIMAN: It’s all emotion-driven. My friends who want to come back, they all love the area, the weather, they’re comfortable, it’s family. I have a girlfriend who says she misses living on a lake. But none of it has to do with anything practical, like, I hear in Michigan you can own a house cheap and interest rates are low. They all want to come back, but they’re too afraid to come back. I probably have this conversation with four or five girlfriends once a month. They email me, ‘Am I ever going to get back, now I’m dating a guy from New York. What is that going to look like. And what about when I have children. I want to be near my parents.’ It’s all on the emotional, and not at all on the practical or business side. I wish I had the knowledge Jeremy did that I could counter with this, this and this. Also, my husband’s company was

looking to do some hiring. They looked for six months, and they couldn’t find anyone that would fit the bill. They weren’t even being picky.

Everyone says you can’t find a job in Michigan, but people were on unemployment, and they said they can make more money on unemployment. That’s what I say to my friends when they say there are no jobs here. I say, well have you looked? They haven’t even looked.

That’s just in their heads. Their parents have told them don’t come back, it’s a recession.

KOROTKIN:When I decided to come back, I just decided Michigan was the one. A lot of it was emotion, but I was weighing my options. The life I always wanted for myself might be a little different, but when I was getting ready to move back, I said where is the most room for upwardmobility and socially, and I thought, I could stay in Chicago and be little fish, big pond, or I could move back home and possibly be big fish, little pond. A lot of it is emotional, but a lot of people are doing the practical thinking that we are giving ourselves credit for.

DEAN: When I was working in Europe, the only

I THINK THERE'S A BUZZ HERE RIGHT NOW. I KEEP HEARING PEOPLE HAVE EVERY INTENTION OF COMING BACK AND RAISING THEIR FAMILIES HERE, IT'S JUST NOT THE RIGHT TIME. I DON'T THINK ANYONE'S AGAINST IT, YOU JUST FEEL THIS NEED TO BE DOING SOMETHING ELSE. –DEAN news I could get was BBC World News, and everything was how bad it was here, and everyone was, it’s so good you’re not here, and I felt so bad I wasn’t contributing. I felt really guilty about that for a long time. Everyone was ‘things are so bad, things are so bad,” and I came home and I was so scared. I looked at my resume, and thought, I’m just a skater. How am I going to get a job in a traditional field when all it says is skater, skater, skater? I have to say, I got my job after one interview. People want to hire people. There are jobs. I think those opportunities are out there for other people as well.

BRODY: So are you all back for good?

Meredith, if you got another job in China, would you go?

GANNES: I’m starting my MBA in May, and I’ll be continuing to work while I do that, so I’ll be here for the whatever, and I’m playing it by ear.

I’m happy with my job; it excites me. I’m comfortable. So as long as my life stays this way, I’ll continue, but I’m not opposed to going to where there is an opportunity because I don’t want to close myself off to what else could be out there. But I’m in no rush to go anywhere else.

SASSON: I definitely see myself being here. I

would never look away from opportunities in other places, but they would have to be passive moves, where they were investments, which could allow me to continue doing what I’m doing here. I’ve made investments here, not just in homes, but in businesses, that will require fruition in time. I give back to the town, so I certainly want to see the results of what I am investing.

DEAN: From my experiences, I’ve seen the world be a small place, and that’s really comforting. I was in Prague doing a show, and I ran into old teammates from Miami on the streets of Prague.

My life suddenly made so much more sense. We are all so connected, it’s insane. I run into people I know and love on the streets, and I love that feeling and I crave that sense of community. I love being back here. For right now, I see myself being back here. I agree, I wouldn’t close myself off to other opportunities, but right now, I’m enjoying my job, I love being with family and friends and enjoying this sense of connectedness that I’ve been missing for the last seven years.

KOROTKIN: Never say never, but I’m here until my picture is in the boardroom after I’m gone.

Hopefully.

MAIMAN: I think we’re here for the long haul.

My husband is working for his family’s business, my parents are here. We own a home here. Never say never, but I cannot even fathom what would take us from here.

SABATINI: I’m working on a project that allows me to work on it here, and do it anywhere. I’m enjoying reaching out to my own community and letting them know about it. I also have a desire to travel. I’d like to go out and experience the world again and again. But this is home, and it’s great to know where home is. I have a great community where I work, and that is such a core for me to be in, and I will definitely miss it if I ever left. It’s so good to know it’s here in Michigan. That’s what’s so awesome about it.

BRITTAIN: If my career doesn’t work out, I’ll look for something else here. I feel like since I left school, I’ve been searching, searching, searching looking for a good spot for me. Now that I’ve found it, it would be really unfortunate to leave. This is it. I would never move. It’s great. This is home.

STRICKLAND: Scott and I had a conversation about this this summer, about this work thing. We sat down and looked at our life. We said, we have our families here, we have a great group of friends, we have a house, we live in a great community. Why would we leave this? I think this city can be a place for opportunity, and we’re all testament to that because we’re young and we’re here and we’re finding it. I’m not nervous because I think I’ll be able to find that for my whole life. I’m speaking for Scott too. Now his siblings are moving back here too. Now people from outlying areas are moving back here. It’s setting up for a really nice quality of life, in personal relationships, professional relationships.

There’s a lot of nice things going here and I think it’s only going to keep going.

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Apryl Mueller t just age 17, Apryl Mueller has a promising modeling career that has her jet-setting to photo shoots throughout the U.S. and abroad. Yet, despite the allure, the Roeper student manages to keep her head focused on her studies.

“All my teachers are very supportive of me and I’m glad I go to a place like Roeper,” she said. Mueller traveled to Japan this September for a modeling job and had to miss a month of classes.

“I keep up online and they help me pick up when I get back.”

At 14-years-old, the Birmingham resident was discovered by an agent at the Somerset Collection in Troy and landed her first job with Styleline, a Detroit fashion magazine.

“It was a one-picture beauty make-up shoot,” Mueller said. “I thought ‘Oh my gosh! I’m finally going to have my face in a magazine.’”

Since that time, Mueller has modeled in ad campaigns for Figo Salon in Birmingham, walked runway shows for Rochester designer Cynthia Lamaide, and has been photographed in several magazines out of New York, Detroit and Japan.

“My favorite place to go is Japan,” Mueller said. “I’ve always wanted to go there and I’m planning to go back. I really liked the culture.” As a minor, Mueller’s mother accompanies her on modeling jobs.

“My mom has always been very supportive of me,” she said.

“She just wants me to be careful and avoid anything shady. But I feel like I’ve been raised well enough to know who to trust.” Mueller acknowledges the adversity that causes some models to struggle with a healthy body image.

“There is some truth to it, but to be a model, you have to be comfortable with who you are,” she said. “Clients look for people who are confident and happy and, if you’re not, you’re hurting yourself more than anything else.” Modeling has proven to be a superlative outlet for Mueller to express herself and become more confident socially.

“I’m a shy person,” Mueller said. “But modeling has really helped me come out of my shell. I definitely needed to learn how to do some things myself and I needed to be comfortable talking to people.”

While the young model said she hopes to see her face on the cover of Vogue magazine one day, she continues to excel in advanced placement classes at Roeper. Her longterm goals are primarily scholastic.

“I really, really want to go into chemical or medical research,” she said. “I could also see myself as an English teacher living in Japan.”

In the meantime, as Mueller continues to cultivate her highprofile career, she still finds time to participate in the school choir, dabble in art and serve on the editorial board of “The Muse,” an art magazine published at Roeper.

Currently, Mueller is mulling over a 10-week modeling contract in Singapore. While she’s appreciative and excited for the opportunities and the glamour of the industry, she remains focused on her future and the importance of her education.

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DOWNTOWN

01.11

SECOND STORY BUSINESS LIFE ABOVE CITY STREET LEVEL

BY LISA BRODY

e all love window shopping, peering into store and restaurant windows, imagining wearing the clothes and dining in the bistros. Yet most of us have given little thought to the businesses that operate above those retail establishments.

In Birmingham, the world one floor up is a microcosm of the business domain at large. There are lawyers and doctors (lots and lots of each), accountants, insurance brokers and agencies, financial planners, travel agents and investors.

There are wealth managers, private banks, builders, realtors, real estate services, an executive search firm, gemological services, advertising agencies and public relations associates. There is a hyper-local publishing company, a payroll company, spas, counseling services, and an autism center. There are interior designers and architects. Spaces are leased to freelance services, and a private college counseling service. There are photographers, tailors and hair salons.

In short, Birmingham truly does have it all.

When people wonder about business in Birmingham, and if it's occupancy has grown to reflect the citizens of Birmingham and its surrounding area, they can be reassured that it does. The first floor occupancy rate is at 94

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percent, marvelous even in good economic times.

But it's not the only point-of-view Birmingham can offer. Above the thriving retail is another world of business.

Throughout the downtown area, there are cool and unusual businesses situated amongst numerous physicians, psychologists, dentists, social workers, lawyers in both large firms and small, and accountants. Some have inhabited Birmingham for decades; others are more recent transplants.

For over 35 years, International Cryogenics has been operating out of the second floor of an office building in the downtown. They are a pioneer in the world's sperm banks, and one of the first four in the country. The biggest part of what they do is banking sperm for cancer patients, people in the military, pre-vasectomy patients, and those with highly-dangerous occupations, such as those who may work in industries where they are exposed to toxic chemicals, and want to protect their sperm from that exposure. They also do fertility testing with men who are having difficulty establishing pregnancies. They only work with the male partners. They do provide anonymous sperm specimens to physicians dealing with infertility, but they do not work directly with patients.

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Today, there are approximately 20 large qualified sperm banks around the country, and 80 small facilities countrywide. And one of the large ones is upstairs in Birmingham.

The Birmingham Tailor is often referred to as “Ali the Tailor.” Upstairs on W. Maple, nestled between Lucy and Sweet Endings, Ali Cheaib is the tailor for some of the finest garments in metro Detroit, and all of the other ones, as well. With no appointment necessary, climb the stairs to his convenient tailor studio, and you'll be as likely to see someone trying on a $2,000 dress or suit as a $100 pair of jeans.

“All of the stores refer to us: Tender, Caruso Caruso, Linda Dresner, Carl Sterr, lots of Somerset stores like Gucci, Max Mara, Barney's New York, J. Crew,” Cheaib said. “They all send their customers to us.”

Cheaib said he is especially proud of the work they do on jeans, claiming to be the first to invisibly replace the original hems back on jeans when hemming them. He also specializes in dress clothes and leathers.

He noted that it's not just locals patronizing his shop; he has people who drive an hour or two to have him do their alterations. A woman picking up clothes at the time of the interview said, “My sister moved to Boston, and she still takes her clothes to him. I'm picking them up right now.”

Cheaib has been a tailor his entire adult life, learning the trade in Lebanon, before coming to the United States in 1995. Before opening his own tailoring shop in 2002, he was the in-store tailor at Maxwell's men's store in Birmingham. Today, there are three others working with him six days a week.

Up the escalator in the Merrillwood Building on Merrill is the House of Renew, a one-of-a-kind repair and restoration studio. It has been in business in Birmingham since 1976, opened because there was no place anywhere in the Detroit area where owners of fine crystal, silver, china or other collectables could take their belongings to be repaired. Current owner Ruth Peppiatt bought it seven years ago from the original owner, continuing the work of repairing, fixing, restoring, renewing, or mending literally anything that has been broken, cracked, worn down, become tired or aged, or needs to be reconstructed.

As a testament to the extraordinary work that they do, they are regularly referred to by well-known art institutes and galleries, appraisers, historical

(Above) Ali Cheaib, The Birmingham Tailor; (below) House of Renew, repairing a crystal vase.

societies in the area, jewelers, and stores from all over the United States.

In the front of their business is an area set aside as a consignment store, featuring items that have not been broken, but are for sale. On any given day, astute shoppers can discover antique silver tea sets, a variety of antique silver trays, silver and crystal vases, lamps, crystal and glass goblets, and original art works, some done by House of Renew staffers.

“The consignments change all of the time. People ask for things, and we create a wish list,” said Laurel Levine, who does general repairs and painting on all types of the ceramics and porcelains.

But open the door behind the counter, and it's like stepping back in time. Everything is done by hand.

“In the 37 years we been here, we haven't changed much at all. We're still using technologies we always have. We're always trying new things, but the way we've always been doing it, usually works best,” Levine said.

“Or sometimes something will work for one thing, and not for another,” noted artist Justin Marshall.

Levine and Marshall do all of the painting by hand, just as in generations past. Marshall can painstakingly recreate and reposition a broken plate or ceramic piece, putting the pieces back together with glue, then carefully sanding them smooth before they're painted to look new. Often, the cracks are imperceptible. If a piece is missing, it is not uncommon for them to fabricate it to fill in the absent piece.

“In this Meissen (German porcelain) bird, many of the leaves were missing, so I made a cast of one, and recreated the others,” Marshall said. The finished product looked perfect.

Because it is such a labor-intensive process, it is not unusual to have repairs take a couple of months to complete. “You have to color match areas, then look at it, maybe it's not smooth enough or the colors are nor right,” he said.

They noted that they frequently repair Lladro, Hummel, Royal Doulton, Roseville, Wedgwood, and Boehm as well as Meissen. They also bronze baby shoes, and have bronzed marathon running shoes, ten-gallon hats, hole-in-one balls, pacifiers, flowers, a jockey saddle, and even a windshield wiper from a classic car.

Silver replating and repair is a special service that is unique to the business. They can solder

Willits to Oak Street, and south of Brown to Lincoln, as well as in the “The last four or five years, Birmingham's office space occupancy has Triangle District, east of Woodward to the west side of Adams Road, is remained high, especially compared to Southfield or Troy,” said John assessed at just under 25 cents a square foot. The second story in district Heiney, executive director of Birmingham's Principal Shopping District (PSD). “It's a great value to employees to be in a walkable community, with 1-A is assessed at almost 10 cents a square foot.

The maximum PSD assessment a stores and restaurants. We've heard property paid in 2009, the last year back that being in a walkable, fullfor which there are figures, was service downtown is a huge benefit $13,820. to businesses and their employees.

Looking up in terms of rentals Heiney noted that the building's They can also entertain their clients. landlord is required to pay the PSD It's increased the desirability of being assessment, whether the property is here.” occupied or vacant. The assessment goes directly to the building's owner, The PSD has a four-tier special assessment for businesses in the areas it and not to the tenant. covers. The PSD offers marketing, advertising for special events, Facebook, State law sets the PSD's consumer price index (CPI), and determines the a website with a free page for businesses, the ability to be in Birmingham magazine, snow removal on over 53,000 linear feet of sidewalk, holiday tree price adjustments. Every three years, however, the PSD must go before the Birmingham City Commission for public hearings of necessity to confirm decorating, and seasonal planting in large planters around the downtown the role of assessments, permitting the commission to review the numbers area. for every building in the downtown, and the assessments, and to allow the Retailers, or other businesses on the first floor in the central business public to comment on the figures. district, pay the highest assessment, of approximately 50 cents per square They were last approved, for three years, in Nov. 2009. foot. The second floor and up in the central business district is assessed at “Our last request and approval was a flat rate for three years. We did 19.6 cents per square foot. not ask for any increases for the next three years,” said Heiney.

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pieces back onto tea sets and trays, repair handles, remove dings and dents, and bring damaged silverware back to life, as well as returning the original luster to the silver.

Another remarkable repair option they offer is their ability to remove rim chips in fine crystal goblets, wine glasses, cut glass bowls, candlesticks, and other crystal and fine glassware.

“If it's a valuable glass or vase, you don't need to give it up. You can still have your memories—and your glass of wine,” said Levine. “A lot of Waterford is repaired here. If the stem is broken, we can transfer the stem. If the chip is too deep, we can cut it down, and you can still have a beautiful piece.

This way, you just lose a piece of it, and not the whole piece.”

Repairs can cost any where from $20 for a chipped glass to $1,200 to $1,500 to fix a large mosaic. The good news is, they can fix it.

Across the hall in the Merrillwood Building, besides the antique shops, a jewelry assessor, a pilates studio and a bridal accessory store, is Foreign Currency Exchange Services, which buys and sells foreign currencies, has over 60 currencies in stock on any given day, provides walk-in services, and offers foreign drafts and wires immediately.

Bruce Beattie has owned the company for five and one-half years; before that it was an American Express office, offering similar services.

“If you go to a bank, you cannot get the currency you want that day,” Beattie said. “We offer a better exchange rate than an airport by a minimum of 5 to 10 percent. That adds up real fast.”

Among the 60 currencies he and his staff have on hand on any given day are euros, Canadian dollars, British pounds, Australian dollars, Argentinian

pesos, Mexican pesos, Polish zloty, Russian ruble, Brazil reals, Chinese yuan, Egyptian pounds, Japanese yen, Korean won, New Zealand dollars Swiss franc, Thai baht, Vietnamese new dong, Israeli sheqalim, South African rand, and Hungarian forint.

Beattie said that Iraqi Bruce Beattie, Foreign dinars are offered to Currency Exchange Services people wanting to invest in them.

He noted that he is seeing an increase in foreign travel again, as some international travel advisories are being lifted. “Right now, it's about 80 percent leisure travelers, and 20 percent business travelers,” he said. “We're just starting to see a trend of business travelers sometimes traveling to their satellite offices, instead of using Skype or a webinar.”

Most business travel that he sees is to Asia, primarily China, Korea and Japan, and some to Europe and South America. He said leisure travelers are primarily venturing to Europe, although some nomadic journeys are to far-flung corners of the world, whether the nether regions of South America, Africa or Asia.

“The demographics here in Birmingham is that there are a lot of travelers, many who travel overseas once a year. There are some who may go to Paris for the weekend, others who go away for a month. I have one customer who has been to more than 170 countries,” Beattie said.

Beattie enjoys traveling when he can, with a favorite destination being Thailand. He's been to 32 states so far, and plans on getting to all 50 one day.

From a monetary point of view, he said that right now, the best values are South America, Costa Rico, Thailand, and Poland.

“Certain places may be off the beaten track for some people, but we're more than happy to guide people in,” he said.

Over on Brown, in an office building, Mike Fishman wears several business hats. He has a traditional real estate law practice, manages rental properties, operates The Sports Gallery, a sports memorabilia dealer who works directly with athletes via auctions and charities, and Thunder Falls Family Water Park in Mackinaw City, MI. “In the early 1990s, I moved back from (Washington) D.C., and I was practicing all kinds of law,” Fishman said. “I was always an athlete, and for the last 10 years, I've played in a 35-and-over Master's Basketball league. I started collecting memorabilia when I was young, and it became an obsession.”

Years ago, there had been a baseball card shop on Hamilton Row in Birmingham. “I subleased the lower level from the owner for the holiday season in 1994. With very little advertising, people found us,” he said. “A guy came in and wanted to do corporate incentives, and I knew I was on to something.”

After the holiday season, he opened up a retail gallery on S. Old Woodward, next to Harp's Lingerie.

“A lot of it was timing. The Red Wings were hot. I had athletes coming in to do signings, and there were lineups around the block. There was a frenzy for the Russian Five,” he said. The company evolved into a sports marketing and event firm, creating

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events for corporations and charities featuring athletes.

He closed the retail gallery after a while to focus on online sales, which he said “keeps growing through the roof.” He built a main warehouse into his location on Brown Street. He currently has four employees handling the event and marketing side of the business.

“We do about 100 events a year, whether we run the events, donate the materials, or give items on consignment,” he said. “We're the only distributors of Wingnut hats besides at the 'Joe.' We ship them overnight to Colorado all of the time—and it's $70 to ship them overnight!”

Fishman's newest endeavor is a turnaround business which he wasn't looking for, but which he's having a lot of fun with. It's Thunder Falls Family Water Park in Mackinaw City, which he is doing with partner Michael Brode.

The seasonal business employs 60 from May through Labor Day. “I was the lead attorney on a partnership dispute,” Fishman said. “Now, since the fall of 2008, I'm the managing partner. It was a mess. But we've really turned it around, and we're a mainstay business now in Mackinaw City.”

The water park is set on 20 acres in Mackinaw City, and has 12 water slides.

Fishman spends most of his summer now in Mackinaw City, eating at local diners, becoming part of the community as he creates a thriving business, whose headquarters are upstairs in Birmingham.

Gibbs Planning Group is in the second floor of a building behind Roots on Martin, facing the new Shain Park, which is prophetic since Robert Gibbs, managing principal, was a lead designer of the Birmingham 2016 Plan, which called for the recreation of Birmingham as a walkable, destination city, vs. a suburban town. Gibbs Planning Group (GPG) is considered one of the foremost urban retail planning consultancies in the U.S., with expertise in commercial development and sustainable town planning.

Jeffrey King's office, Jeffrey King Interiors GPG pioneered the development of sustainable and community-oriented principles of traditional town planning and smart growth as an antidote to the sprawl of suburbia. The group promotes that responsible planning is more than assembling coherent urban villages or walkable neighborhoods; vibrant community life is only possible, they say, through vital commercial life, and that new and old towns both need intelligent strategies to insure their survival. They have worked with both the development of new communities, and the revitalization of historic cities, working on mixed use commercial centers that provide for the needs and desires of a community while earning a market rate of return for the private sector.

Besides Birmingham, GPG has worked with Chicago, Atlanta, GA, Charleston, SC, Cambridge, Mass., Naples, FL, Seattle, and Santa Cruz, CA, among other cities and communities. The firm advocates a multidisciplinary investigation of market and design conditions, focusing on the unique conditions to each community.

Tucked upstairs, in the former Kay Baum offices (longtime residents will remember Kay Baum's as the premier junior store, located right on Maple, in the 1970s and '80s), is Jeffrey King Interiors. King, who has been in business for 21 years, and in his present spot overlooking Maple Road for the last 14. A narrow outdoor staircase takes you up, where a welcoming open floor plan, in a loftstyle, presently designed in oranges and khakis, brightens up against winter's gloom. Primarily self-taught, he attended the Center for Creative Studies, but laughs that he left when he was offered a job to decorate an apartment at the 555 Building. “I've just evolved,” he said. “I kept getting opportunities, and I've grown.”

Jeffrey King Interiors, which currently has four employees, including King himself, is known for classic, warm contemporaries. It is a full-service interior design firm that does both residential and commercial interiors, all over the state of Michigan, and more and more in Florida, California and New York.

“A lot of my clients now have second homes, and it's natural to have me follow suit,” he said.

While he designs to the wishes of his clients, many of his interiors feature clean lines, classic furnishings and can be termed “warm contemporary.” He said he has rarely done a stark contemporary, and “I've never done heavy, goopy traditional. I still punch it up with some fun and funk.”

He recognizes the necessity of staying current in an ever-changing field that is as much fashion as it is function. “I go to market (in North Carolina), I go to downtownpublications.com

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01.11

New York, I read my magazines and stay up with what's going on, or it gets old and gets boring real fast,” he noted. “Today, I look at Thomas O'Brien and Barbara Barry. I'm fascinated by their vision and what they're doing next.”

Above Panera and The Cupcake Station, Storm Kirschenbaum has an elite sports management agency called Metis Sports Management. Kirschenbaum, who lives in Birmingham with his wife, Alison, a Rochester Hills dentist, and his toddler son, says Metis Sports Management is a full service baseball and football representation firm.

“We represent contracts, do endorsements and marketing for the athletes. We are their attorneys, and we are their babysitters,” he said. “It's a full-time job.

We're in the office from 9 to 5, but the majority of the phone calls come after 5 p.m.”

Kirschenbaum developed his passion for sports as a hockey and baseball star growing up. As a senior at Groves High School, he decided to attend the University of Florida to play baseball, then the number one baseball school.

A fiercely competitive program, he realized he would never be a star player, and transferred to Long Island University, where he graduated.

“I had wanted to be an agent, and Storm Kirschenbaum, Metis Sports Management I had a lot of contacts from being in the south,” he said. “One of my teammates got drafted (to play baseball). He wasn't good, but good enough for me to learn the game; to negotiate his contract and develop relationships in Major League Baseball, while I was still a senior in Long Island. I had already applied to law school, at University of Detroit Mercy. As a first year law student, through word-of-mouth and contacts, I started getting clients. They were all baseball players. Today, we represent about 70 athletes in baseball and football worldwide.”

The agency recently acquired another agency in Phoenix, whose specialty is Spanish-speaking baseball players. The acquisition resulted in approximately 10 baseball players.

Kirschenbaum travels a lot, up to four or five times a month, primarily to Florida, California, Arizona, Curacao, and the Dominican Republic.

“It's split between major and minor league players,” he said. “We also represent high school and collegiate athletes in an advisory capacity.”

As for the name, Metis Sports Management? “Metis was Zeus' wife, and she provided Zeus with all of his wisdom and knowledge, which is what we do for our clients,” Kirschenbaum said.

Alan R. Miller, with his own law firm upstairs at E. Maple and Woodward, specializes in sports management as well, with his niche representing a substantial number of NASCAR teams and drivers, including Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, Casey Mears, Helio Castroneves, Danica Patrick Racing, David Gilliland, and numerous others. He and his firm are considered among the preeminent motorsports law firms in the country.

Miller's niche in pro sports representation began as a college and professional football player. He was a member of the All East and All New England Teams in 1959 while playing at Boston College, won the Omelia Trophy in 1959, and is a member of the Boston College Hall of Fame. After college, he played pro ball with the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders. After his football career, Miller served as general consul to the American Football League Players Association, and then the National Football League Players Association, consolidating the two players associations and handling collective bargaining and labor negotiations through 1972. He was also a successful amateur race driver. He eventually settled locally, focusing his law practice in sports and motor sports law, as well as corporate and securities law, commercial litigation, motor vehicle dealer act litigation, and franchise law.

There are numerous other law firms inhabiting the upper stories of Birmingham, as well as accountants, medical practitioners of varying specialties, psychologists and psychiatrists, and a plethora of creative folk, be they in advertising, public relations, interior design, photography or other artistic ventures. So the next time you're in Birmingham, look up.

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FACES Jay Adelson ay Adelson, a successful Internet innovator and self-proclaimed computer nerd, has evolved from an inquisitive Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School student to the founder of multimillion dollar companies.

“If you’d have seen me as a child growing up, you’d have seen a skinny little kid with giant coke-bottle classes standing on the sidelines,” said Adelson. “But I was definitely curious and perhaps even a little artistic in a way.”

Adelson, who grew up in Bloomfield Hills, has made a name for himself in Silicon Valley throughout the past two decades as co-founder of Digg, an interactive networking site, Revision3 Corporation and Equinix, a company that is essential to the effectiveness of the Internet today. His fascination with the web, however, came long before many knew the impact it would have on their lives.

“I think as a child, I saw the online world as a way to socialize and expand my universe,” Adelson said. “For most people, their universe explodes when they turn 16-years-old and they get a car. For me, it was years before that when I was 10 or 11.”

After Cranbrook, Adelson studied at Boston University, eventually migrating to California. He discovered his personal salvation and meal ticket by temping for companies seeking computer knowledge, an elusive commodity at the time.

“Living (in California), even in the early 90s, was very expensive,” he said. “But if you had computer knowledge, you could really write your own ticket. I was comfortable in that environment and it paid my rent, and then some.”

Adelson became a permanent fixture in the Internet world, and the pace of constant progression has made his life interesting, he said.

“I did well within that world. I think I could translate well between the non-technological world and the technological world.

I could communicate to others what technology would mean to them.”

While Adelson has made a very lucrative living creating and enhancing technology, he is cautious not to let it take control of his own life. It is his firm conviction that the latest gadgets should enhance the lives of users, not complicate them.

“I don’t have an iPod or an iPad,” he said. “I’m not that guy. I love technology, but I like to understand things really, really well before I jump in.”

Earlier this year, Adelson left Digg to “reboot” his family life and ultimately pursue fresh ideas as CEO of SimpleGeo, a San Francisco-based company working with applications and indexing data.

“My personal life had taken a major toll,” he said. “The time off totally paid off in a major way.”

Adelson, now a resident of Mill Valley, a small town in California reminiscent of Birmingham, recently returned to his alma mater to speak with Cranbrook Kingswood students about Internet privacy, security and social organization.

While Adelson has become an Internet mogul with a seemingly unlimited ability to tap into his creativity, he remains a grounded and accessible computer geek able to develop technological improvements capable of affecting the lives of the masses.

J

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M

edical marijuana. Depending upon your point of view, it's either a gateway drug to hardcore substances and crime, or it has the ability to soothe and ease the misery of chronic pain and torment of numerous diseases. For local Oakland municipalities, and communities across the state, the issue has become a nightmare of legal considerations against the background of voter support for medical marijuana in 2008, an issue that will now be played out in the courts.

Since Michigan became the 13th state in the country to legalize marijuana strictly for medicinal use, the debate has been raging over the appropriate use and dispensation. Municipalities are saddled with determining if their communities are a place where zoning ordinances will permit medical marijuana dispensaries, and even if the use of medical marijuana is legal given the existing federal law prohibitions. Sitting on their hands is the Michigan state legislature, which could clarify the medical marijuana law, but has so far chosen to stay out of the fray.

Medical marijuana was approved by a statewide vote of 63 percent to 37 on Nov. 5, 2008. It became law in the state in April, 2009. Proposal 08-1, known as the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, stated specifically that it was â&#x20AC;&#x153;A legislative initiative to permit the use and cultivation of marijuana for specified medical conditions.â&#x20AC;?

The law is vague, stating that patients must get appropriate documentation from an approved physician (not necessarily their own), and then be approved by Michigan Department of Community Health, which then issues them a permit card to allow them to use it as medicine. The physician must state in writing that the patient has a qualifying debilitating medical condition and that medical marijuana may mitigate the symptoms or effects of that condition.

The Michigan Department of Community Health also issues a caregiver card, allowing caregivers to grow or acquire 2.5 ounces of usable marijuana and grow up to 12 marijuana plants for a qualifying patient. One individual caregiver can assist up to five patients, who can be a relative, friend, associate, or other known relation, as long as they've never been convicted of a felony drug offense. One caregiver can thus have a total of 60 plants. What has not been addressed by the law, law enforcement, municipalities, or the legislature, is what caregivers can do with any excess marijuana they harvest from their plants, beyond the mandated 2.5 ounces per patient.

Confusion continues to reign in the state of Michigan.

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Language in the 2008 ballot proposal was vague, asking voters only if the wanted to: • Permit physician approved use of marijuana by registered patients with debilitating medical conditions including cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis C, MS, and other conditions as may be approved by the Michigan Department of Community Health.

• Permit registered individuals to grow limited amounts of marijuana for qualifying patients in an enclosed, locked facility.

• Require Department of Community Health to establish an identification card system for patients qualified to use marijuana and individuals to grow marijuana.

• Permit registered and unregistered patients and primary caregivers to assert medical reasons for using marijuana as a defense to any prosecution involving marijuana.

Missing from the proposal, and the subsequent law, Initiated Law 1 of 2008, effective April 4, 2009, was how and where municipalities should allow it in their communities; how they should create zoning ordinances; and any regulations on the issue of dispensaries.

Outgoing Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox (R) said it was up to local communities to determine how to enact and enforce the Medical Marijuana Act, leaving communities to fend for themselves. He repeatedly refused to represent patients who are protected by the law. State legislators, afraid before the 2010 election to touch a hot issue such as this, avoided it like the plague. Incoming Attorney General Bill Schuette (R ) has stated while he was campaigning for the office that he was against medical marijuana, and would not support it in office. Yet, the question remains, if the voters have voted for it, and it is a state law, shouldn't the state's highest law enforcement officer enforce and protect the law?

In Oakland County, 66 percent of general election voters affirmatively voted to allow for the compassionate use of medical marijuana. In Birmingham, 70 percent of voters approved it; 62 percent of Bloomfield Hills voters and 63 percent of Bloomfield Township voters supported the proposal. When you speak with these municipalities, these facts are not debated. Yet, at the current time, Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills have created and approved ordinances which prohibit the usage and dispensation of medical marijuana, and Bloomfield Township has an approved ordinance where state registered patients must register at the township police department in order to use the medicine in their own homes. Their law prohibits any cultivation and/or distribution activity in the township by any caregiver or patient, in direct conflict with the state Michigan Medical Marijuana law.

On Dec. 1, 2010, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed suit against the cities of Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Livonia, on behalf of a Birmingham couple who are each valid, medical marijuana patients, Linda and Richard Lott of Birmingham, asserting that the cities' ordinances violated their right as patients and caregivers. They claim they currently fear arrest and prosecution by local officials if they use or grow medical marijuana in compliance with state law.

Linda Lott, 61, is a Birmingham resident who has suffered from multiple sclerosis for 28 years. Confined to a wheelchair and blind, Linda experiences painful and relentless muscle spasms that can no longer be controlled by conventional medications and narcotics. Soon after Michigan enacted its medical marijuana law, Linda received approval from her doctor, Dr. Sami Mounayer, director of neurology at Beaumont Hospital, to register as a medical marijuana patient. From his professional point of view, Mounayer said Linda was likely to benefit from the medical use of marijuana to alleviate her muscle spasms, and provided her with the written certification required by Michigan law to become a qualifying patient with the Michigan Department of Community Health. Since, she has found that just a small amount of marijuana brings her instant relief from severe pain, and has dramatically improved the quality of her life. Besides wanting to use her

SITTING ON THEIR HANDS IS THE MICHIGAN STATE LEGISLATURE, WHICH COULD CLARIFY THE MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW, BUT HAS SO FAR CHOSEN TO STAY OUT OF THE FRAY.

medicinal marijuana at home in Birmingham, Linda would like to visit a social club she has long belonged to in Bloomfield Hills for classes and social reasons, and if needed, discreetly utilize her medicine.

Because each patient must have a caregiver who can provide them with medical marijuana, Linda's husband Robert, 61, applied for, and received, that designation from the state.

He subsequently was diagnosed with glaucoma, a disease which is characterized by a build-up of pressure on the optic nerve leading to vision loss and blindness.

Marijuana use has been scientifically proven to reduce intraocular pressure, and may lessen or delay the optic nerve damage and vision loss caused by the disease. He asked his ophthalmologist, Dr. Marc Siegel at the Glaucoma Center of Michigan, who judged that Robert would likely benefit from the medical use of marijuana to treat his glaucoma, and Robert registered as a patient as well as a caregiver with the Michigan Department of Community Health. The Lotts own a warehouse in Livonia where Robert would like to cultivate the plants, but is prohibited from doing so by ordinances in Livonia.

Livonia, like Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills, has prohibited any use or dispensation of medical marijuana.

All three municipalities' ordinances states that individuals cannot do anything that violates federal law, without directly stating that medical marijuana is prohibited.

The three communities have done it under general regulatory authority, rather than using zoning power. On April 26, 2010, the Birmingham City Commission adopted an ordinance which makes it “unlawful for any person or business to engage in any activity, conduct, use or venture in the city that is contrary to federal, state or local laws...”

City attorney Tim Currier said at the time that marijuana remains illegal under federal law, and the purpose of the ordinance was to provide a clear statement that the city was not going to permit illegal activities. On June 8, 2010, Bloomfield Hills City Commission used the same language to amend their city code. City attorney Bill Hampton urged the commission to adopt the ordinance, stating, “Even though the state law permits dispensing and use of medical marijuana, it's still a schedule one controlled substance under federal law.”

Shelli Weisberg, Legislative Director for the ACLU, said, “A community cannot ban a patient or a caregiver from accessing or providing their allowable amount. That is the only thing we are suing over.”

Interim Birmingham City Manager Joe Valentine said, “The action that the city has taken is to adopt ordinance 2026, and that is the only thing we have done. It's being challenged currently and it's being investigated legally.” He said he could not comment further, citing the pending ACLU litigation.

While Currier will not comment on the pending lawsuit itself, he did say that, “We have filed a motion to change the venue from Wayne County to Oakland County, and it was changed to Jan. 21. We filed it jointly with Bloomfield Township. Livonia had no objections regarding the change of venues.”

Bloomfield Hills City Manager Jay Cravens deferred most comments to the city's attorney, Bill Hampton, who did not return several phone calls. Cravens did say that Bloomfield Hills' ordinance was not intended to prohibit medical marijuana patients from using the medicine in the privacy of their own homes.

Yet the result of the ordinance clearly does prohibit the use of medical marijuana because it says the federal law takes precedence over any state law. It can make patients, like the Lotts, feel that they cannot use their medicine in the privacy of their own home without fearing that law enforcement could potentially break down their door, demand to see their Michigan Department of Community Health-registered cards, and cite them with the misdemeanor.

The ordinances are also very unclear for caregivers. How do you provide the 2.5 ounces per patient, allowed under state law, when the zoning for dispensaries has been prohibited throughout Oakland County? Patients regularly

44

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ask where they should go to acquire their medical marijuana. They cannot go to a pharmacy, like for prescription painkillers, because pharmacists are licensed under federal law, and under federal law, marijuana in any form is illegal.

From a federal level, marijuana is a schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Schedule I drugs are classified as having a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision. Some sources say that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved smoked marijuana for any condition or disease in the United States chiefly because good quality scientific evidence for its use from U.S. studies is lacking.

However, a major barrier to acquiring the necessary evidence is the lack of federal funding for this kind of research. That may be changing as voters in more and more states approve marijuana for medicinal use. In 1988, Judge Francis L. Young, representing the Drug Enforcement Agency on an administrative law case, said, “Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.” Since voters in Michigan approved it, two more states have also voted in support of allowing medical marijuana, and it is pending on the ballot in more states.

Despite it being a schedule I substance, on Oct. 19, 2009, President Obama directed the Department of Judiciary to not go after states, and their residents, with Medical Marijuana Acts, citing his respect for the wishes of the voters and that supremacy in those states. So far, there have been no arrests by federal agents on federal grounds.

Medical marijuana advocates assert that standing takes precedence.

“Municipalities do not have a legal right to do this. It violates the precept of the law in that the federal law says it can co-exist with the state law. The cities are relying on that, and that's not true,” said Michael Komorn, a Southfield attorney who is on the board of Michigan Medical Marijuana Association and a patient advocate.

“The cities are not acting in a democratic way. They are removing the people who voted this initiative into law, and then local lawmakers are banning it. It's not democratic.

They're actually circumventing democracy. It's very unfortunate because it's the will of the people.”

“Municipalities cannot just choose to ignore state law and enforce federal law. They're not federal agents. They're state agents. It's a state and local issue,” said a former Birmingham compassion club manager who is afraid of having his name made public because “Oakland County is a sensitive place right now.”

“Some police departments want to go into homes and check how much patients and caregivers have,” said ACLU's Weisberg. “We don't do that with Ocycodone or any other prescription drugs.”

Bloomfield Township did not outright outlaw medicinal marijuana. Instead, it has required patients living in the township to register at the police department as medical marijuana patients, so that law enforcement will not accidentally raid them. The ordinance amendment was unanimously approved at the township board of trustees meeting Oct. 25, 2010. It prohibits any cultivation and/or distribution activity in the township by any caregiver or patient; allows up to two qualified patients with lawful registration cards per dwelling; requires a qualifying patient to register with the Bloomfield Township Police Department with the only residential address where the patient will be allowed to use medical marijuana in the township; and permits medical marijuana usage be registered patients in R-1, R-2, R-3, RM Multiple-Family, and PRD Planned Residential Development zone districts. Since the ordinance was adopted, no one living in Bloomfield Township has registered as a patient.

On Dec. 15, 2010, Oakland County attorneys Neil Rockind and Thomas Leib filed suit against Bloomfield Township and its ordinance, citing the ordinance and alleging that it is in conflict with the state's Medical Marijuana Act.

TROY, ROYAL OAK, FERNDALE, WEST BLOOMFIELD, SOUTHFIELD, AUBURN HILLS, CLAWSON, FERNDALE AND HUNTINGTON WOODS ARE ALL GRAPPLING WITH THE SAME ISSUE.

Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Bloomfield Township are not the only Oakland County municipalities with prohibitions against medical marijuana. Troy has a prohibitionary ordinance similar to Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills. Currently, Royal Oak, Ferndale, West Bloomfield, Southfield, Auburn Hills, and Clawson have either moratoriums to study the issue, or, like Ferndale and Huntington Woods, are using local zoning ordinances and the issuance of permits as a way to control the dissemination of medical marijuana.

In Ferndale, following raids on distributors, marijuana can only be dispensed under court order, and in Huntington Woods, “primary caregiver” is disallowed as a home occupation, preventing the individual from receiving zoning to be a caregiver, according to a memo from County Executive L. Brooks Patterson which Downtown acquired.

Previously, a Ferndale zoning ordinance provided that a structure that used 20 percent or more of its space to grow marijuana was prohibited in the office district between Eight Mile and Nine Mile roads. The Ferndale ordinance has been suspended since September, when Oakland County Sheriff deputies and other law enforcement agents raided marijuana dispensaries in Ferndale, Waterford and homes in those cities, as well as Birmingham, arresting 15 people, charging them with dealing marijuana, other narcotics and other offenses. Ferndale is currently under a moratorium, determining which way the wind is blowing, much like other municipalities.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard and Oakland County Prosecutor Jessica Cooper contend that the federal law says no to dispensaries, and that so does the state law.

However, the state law actually doesn't address dispensaries, just that patients can use marijuana for medicinal use.

When Cooper was asked how patients and caregivers are then supposed to get seeds and cuttings, and learn how to carefully grow and manage medical marijuana if it's against the law to have dispensaries, Cooper said she had no idea.

“These statutes aren't well written,” she said.

Cooley Law School Professor Gerald Fisher , who has authored a “White Paper: A Local Government View of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act” contends that the Act will be interpreted in the courts, which is where several municipalities' ordinances are now heading.

“It is unfortunate that, in the current economic climate, significant time and resources will be devoted to emotional court battles that have a low probability of producing a comprehensive and lasting solution, and that many unsuspecting criminal defendants will have been caught in the statute's web of uncertainty,” he wrote in the “White Paper,” which was dated Oct. 5, 2010. “The proponents of medical marijuana could come to the bargaining table with legitimate evidence that a sufficient proportion of the public is in support of a defined use of medical marijuana.

Local government could come to the table with equally good evidence that the system devised by the Michigan Act compels local regulation in order to avoid serious problems, including an increase in crime, unnecessary adverse impact on children, and safe and effective law enforcement.

“In the interest of the state's population at large,” he continued, “it is suggested that the best solution would be to replace the existing statute, have all sides work with the State Legislature on a statutory arrangement that permits medical marijuana use on relatively narrow terms that would facilitate assistance to those who are truly suffering, and also provide a more organized method of medical marijuana distribution.”

State Rep. Chuck Moss (R-Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township) agrees. “It's reached crisis stage for local municipalities. I'm hearing that from all 11 of my communities,” he said.

“It's time for Lansing to create a framework for legal marijuana as medicine,” he stated. “The people approved a broad law, and are asking where the law is. The prosecutor and the sheriff are doing their job; now we're going to have to do our job with the new leadership in Lansing. We don't want judges to make this stuff up. It's our job as legislators.

Now, it's not only on the front burner, it's boiled over.”

CITY/ TOWNSHIP Retention basin answer awaited

By Lisa Brody

Leadership in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills are seeking a resolution from the Oakland County Water Resources Commission on a dispute involving management costs, lease agreement schedules and the question of whether some neighboring communities leased or purchased on a permanent capacity in three storm water retention basins built in the late 1990s, although the county may be ready to offer a decision that solves the debate.

There are three retention treatment basins, each costing $100 million, as part of the Evergreen-Farmington Sewage Disposal System and they store and treat storm water. The three basins are the Birmingham Retention Treatment Basin at Quarton Lake; the Bloomfield Village Retention Treatment Basin in Bloomfield Township; and Acacia Park Retention Treatment Basin in Beverly Hills.

Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills have combined sewer and storm systems, while other communities have separated sanitary sewer lines and storm water systems.

In the late 1990s, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) told the Oakland County Water Resources Commission that improvements would have to be made to the Evergreen-Farmington Sewage Disposal System to decrease the number of sanitary sewer overflows, especially during storms. The water commission proposed diversions through retention treatment basins, freeing capacity in the Evergreen Interceptor which serves 15 communities.

A retention treatment basin is a large underground concrete storage tank and treatment facility used to hold combined sewage when the sewage disposal system reaches its maximum capacity during wet weather. It is typically 95 percent storm water, and the rest wastewater.

The water is either held until there is adequate capacity in the sewer system, or it will be treated through a settling, screening and disinfection process before it is released into local lakes and streams.

Based on past practices with the water commission, local communities acquired capacity in the interceptor based on changing municipal

conditions and needs. Birmingham, for example, has excess capacity, while other communities have less capacity than needed and added capacity was supposedly leased to such communities.

The debate now centers on when the actual 10-year leasing arrangement began and whether the additional capacity was a temporary lease situation or an outright purchase of added capacity for the future, particularly as it applies to Farmington.

Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills contend the capacity usage of the retention basins has been on a ten-year lease, and they have been seeking to determine when that lease took effect, and when it expires.

At the time, Birmingham was paid $806,376 as a ten-year rental fee for its share of the excess capacity. Beverly Hills was paid $321,710. Farmington and Southfield assert that it should be a permanent purchase, and that other communities should not receive any further compensation.

Birmingham and Bloomfield Township also contend their citizens would not have agreed to pay the $100 million price tag via assessments if it was a sale price, rather than a lease agreement. The communities had been asking McCullough to make a final decision.

“To now suggest that the capacity purchase period is in question came as a big surprise,” Paul O'Meara, chief of Birmingham's engineering department, wrote in a memo to former City Manager Tom Markus. He said other letters from the commissioner “leave the reader with the impression that they are preparing to possibly even eliminate the meager credit we are getting now, much less increasing it, as was discussed in (retention treatment basin) capacity work group.”

Minutes from the Nov. 22, 2010 Birmingham City Commission meeting read: “Mr. O’Meara explained that after discussions with the OCWRC office, two items were left unresolved, including the starting date of the ten-year capacity rental fee as well as how the operation and maintenance credits should be calculated. He stated that the Water Resources Commissioner stated that the ten-year capacity rental concept was inaccurate, implying the purchase was permanent. Mr. Markus stated that the city never discussed selling its capacity. He stated the city, as

good neighbors, said that it would work with the Water Resources Commissioner on this issue. He stated that to suggest they purchased this capacity on a permanent basis is inaccurate and does not comply with what took place. Mr. Markus expressed that the city’s goodwill to help the other communities is being taken advantage (of).”

“We have been dealing with this issue for a long time, and it should be dealt with,” Bloomfield Township Superviser Dave Payne said. “I totally disagree that Farmington sees this as

Bruner chosen as new city manager

By Lisa Brody

ob Bruner, 34, the city manager for Ferndale, was chosen by the Birmingham City Commission as the new city manager to replace former city manager Tom Markus, who left earlier this month after 22 years at the helm of Birmingham to become city manager of Iowa City, IA. The commissioners made the decision on Sunday, Dec. 12, after two days of presentations and interviews with three candidate finalists.

Mayor Gordon Rinschler made the announcement, saying, “The commission is pleased to have found in Mr. Bruner a very talented and skilled manager who appreciates the past success of Birmingham and has the passion and vision to continue that success into the future. In every phase of our evaluation, he demonstrated integrity, openness and a deep commitment to public service.

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a sale. I was involved in the initial discussions. It was done only to mitigate the system to allow it to dry itself out and to prevent the building of more retention basins in the Evergreen-Farmington system for $100 million each. It was always meant to be a temporary, not a permanent solution.”

A decision had been expected at the monthly Water Resources Commission board meeting, which McCullough chairs, on Dec. 14.

Interim Birmingham City Manager Joe Valentine, city attorney Tim Currier, Birmingham Mayor Gordon Rinschler,

and commissioners Stuart Sherman and Tom McDaniels, as well as Bloomfield Township Superviser Dave Payne and Beverly Hills City Manager Chris Wilson, all attended the meeting. Unfortunately, McCullough was a no show.

“There were 26 people in the audience, many from the three B's,” said Sherman. “The three members of the drain board are here without him.

No excuse. No explanation. He does this regularly.”

Because of McCullough's absence from the water board meeting, a Clearly, Bob will be a tremendous asset to our city. ” Bruner grew up in Redford Township and moved to South Lyon in 1990. He graduated with a degree in political science and management from Albion College in 1999. In his opening remarks to the commission on Saturday, he said he had been a White House intern in 1998, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, “and I got turned off of the federal government. I came back, moved to Detroit and became interested in public service again.”

Bruner first worked with Accenture, then known as Andersen Consulting, before applying for, and becoming the assistant to the city manager of Oak Park in October 2001. While working in Oak Park, he simultaneously earned a Masters of Public Administration at Wayne State University. In 2004, he became the assistant city manager of Ypsilanti, and then became Ferndale's city manager in February 2007. He currently resides in Ferndale with his wife and young daughter, Audrey.

“I know Birmingham well, and I decision could not be rendered. Other board members said it was a decision McCullough had to make and the issue was tabled until the Jan. 18, 2011 board meeting.

However, it turns out McCullough was in the building. As Township Superviser Payne was leaving the meeting, he saw McCullough.

“As I was leaving the conference room, I saw him in his office,” Payne said. Payne said that McCullough gave him no reason as to why he had missed the meeting.

McCullough told Downtown Publications he had a conflict with a

NOW OPEN meeting for a non-profit board on which he sits. He said his deputy water resources commissioner was in attendance, and there should not have been a problem with his absence.

McCullough acknowledged the communities needed a resolution, and said he had come up with one with the assistance of his engineering staff.

“I'm going to tie it back to day one, and that's the term of the permit, including the extensions, so it's 2015,” he said. “And we would look at appropriate reimbursement for use of avail myself of it,” he told the commission. “I'm very interested in walkable communities. I really like walking to work, and I do not want to live in a community where you cannot walk to work.”

When questioned about his relative youth, he said that now that he is married and a father,while he once participated in national job searches, he now wants to stay in Michigan and be part of the solution. He noted that, “I have had my eye on this position for eight years. This is where we want to be.

We do not want to leave Michigan.

Where else in Michigan would we want to go?”

He said he believes the role of a city manager “is not one to say what kind of a community we are to be, but someone to identify the problems and opportunities, and then determine which opportunities we want to take advantage of. I

operation and maintenance costs to those municipalities. There should be more reimbursement to those communities (who have been active participants, such as Birmingham and Bloomfield Township).”

He said he understood not every community will be happy with his decision. McCullough added, “After the expiration of the permit period (in 2015), there will be a new permit, and the use of the basin will not be as frequent, to preclude contaminating lakes and streams. These communities are being compensated for that.”

As of press time, Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills had not yet been informed by McCullough of his decision.

Preliminary township budget Bloomfield Township Supervisor Dave Payne presented a preliminary 2011-2012 budget for the township at the last Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees meeting.

“It was just an introduction. It will be changed extensively in the next know enough to ask the right questions, but I do not need to be an expert at everything. The staff are the experts. I'm the conductor of the orchestra, not playing the instruments.”

Rinschler noted that the commission deliberated over the three candidates, Bruner, Gary Boden, former city manager of Clinton, IA, and Larry Shaffer, former town administrator of Amherst, MA, looking at everyone's strengths and weaknesses, and then looking to see who was the right fit for Birmingham, between staff, commission and the public.

“Bob was the best fit. It was a unanimous choice. We negotiated a detailed contract, and it was signed,” said Rinschler. “We're not exactly sure when he will start, because his contract (with Ferndale) says he has to give 60 days notice, but that is often negotiable. At the latest, he will start Feb. 13. But he'll be participating in meetings before that.”

Commissioner Stuart Sherman, agreeing with the choice to go with Bruner, said, “We're looking to the future.”

three months. There are many things in it that will not be in it in March, and other things that will be added.

For example, we put money in there in case there was a constitutional convention, to cover the cost of elections. Now we'll take that out.

There are other examples like that,” said Township Clerk Jan Roncelli.

Preliminarily, for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012, Payne anticipates revenues taking a sharp dip, based on his budget presentation. Total revenue projections are at $36.84 million, vs. the current fiscal year at $39.51

million. Property tax revenue is anticipated to be $29.1 million, vs. $31.4 million in the current budget which ends March 31, 2011. He sees state revenue sharing staying the same, at $2.7 million. Interest income is also expected to remain the same as the current fiscal year at $250,000.

Expenditures are anticipated to rise, to $39.75 million in fiscal year 2011-12, from $37.98 million. General fund expenditures will rise to $9.8 million, from $9.6 million; road fund expenditures will drop slightly, to $3.56 million from $3.66 million this current fiscal year. Capital expenditures are projected to rise to $1.7 million from $1.2 million.

Roncelli said that now that the budget has been presented to the trustees and to the public, they will work on it and bring it back to the board in March.

TASTE

The Wine Guy store coming to township The Wine Guy was approved for a tavern license and a Special Designated Merchant (SDM) liquor license by the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees in late November.

The Wine Guy, a high-end retail wine store with a tasting area, will be at 1932 Telegraph Road at Square Lake. Joseph Newmyer, the proposed shop's owner, submitted the applications, as well as site plans, descriptions of the proposed existing building, evidence of financial responsibility, personal and previous business references, and the floor plan for the establishment to the township's police and fire departments, the planning, building and ordinance departments.

They all approved the documents before forwarding them to trustees.

According to Seth P. Tompkins, Newmyer's attorney, The Wine Guy is proposed as a fine wine retail shop in conjunction with a wine tasting bar, in accordance with the recent amendment to the township's ordinances governing tavern license within retail wine shops.

Township Clerk Jan Roncelli said it is the first of its kind to come to the township. “They're very common Up North, especially at vineyards,” she said. “From what I understand, they'll be selling very special wines, really for the wine connoisseur.”

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Bella Piatti to be new Italian bistro

By Lisa Brody

Birmingham city commissioners approved a special land use permit for a bistro license for Bella Piatti Bistro, after initially postponing the decision pending minor changes to the application which came up during the original application's public hearing.

Bella Piatti Bistro is a new food establishment from Mindy and Bob vonHellemont, the proprietors of Tallulah's, on Bates. Bella Piatti is proposed, under the city's bistro ordinance, for a 2010 bistro license, for 167 Townsend. It will be Northern Italian-style food, “fine dining, classy and fresh,” said Mindy vonHellemont, at a higher price point than Tallulah's.

She said it will only be open for dinner.

According to Matthew Baka, planning department intern, the facade of the restaurant would have three windows systems acting as doors, which open in nice weather; the center one would be the doors to the bistro. The restaurant would accommodate 62 seats, with 10 at the bar and another 28 patrons in outdoor seating configurations. They would have an outdoor dining platform utilizing two parking spots on the street in front of the restaurant, with 20 seats on the platform, and eight on the sidewalk at tables.

By city zoning ordinance, a bistro must conform to very specific criteria.

There may be no more than 65 seats in the establishment, including no more than 10 seats at a bar. They must have a full service kitchen, and they can offer low-key entertainment.

There must be outdoor seating, either on the sidewalk or on a raised platform in a parking spot, which is purchased through the city. The bistro must also have windows lining the street.

Baka said architect Frank Carnovale proposed a seasonal vestibule, built of steel and other heavy-duty materials, that would be attached to the front door during inclement weather, when the platform was not there. A canopy would extend over the establishment.

Baka noted there had been dissension and discussion at the planning commission over the vestibule because it extends onto the sidewalk into the public's right-of-way. Further,

it and the configuration of the dining platform would necessitate the removal of a tree. As a compromise, the vonHellemonts had offered to replace it with two trees, one on either side of the platform.

Paul O'Meara, director of engineering for Birmingham, said that the department did not recommend the tree's removal, the revised parking structure for the street, the enactment of the temporary vestibule and having it stick out onto the sidewalk which is city property.

“The building department does not allow doors to open out, so I do not know how they can build a vestibule,” said O'Meara.

He was asked if vestibules conform to the city's building codes.

“Not to my understanding,” said O'Meara.

“The vestibule is a more elegant

Assessment set for sidewalk project irmingham city commissioners unanimously approved a Special Assessment District for the installation of sidewalks on Cole Street on a block bordered by Lincoln, Eton and Commerce within the Rail District.

According to assistant city engineer Brendan Cousino, a similar project was proposed in 2009, but the city commission declined to go forward with the the project because they felt the economic hardship was too much for the local businesses. In planning meetings last fall, they determined the sidewalks to be a priority project at this point.

In a letter to the commission, city engineer Paul O'Meara wrote that the Rail District "is undergoing many changes in the general land use from its historical commercial and industrial base to many retail and service-oriented businesses."

Adding sidewalks will improve pedestrian access to the area, O'Meara said.

The project is expected to cost approximately $5,900, with construction to begin sometime after the first of the year.

Cousino said information about the project was sent to all property owners and an informational meeting was held on Dec. 9. Four property owners attended. “There was no strong support (for the

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temporary windscreen than plastic. It is more substantial, but it is temporary,” Carnovale said. “It's proposed for the months when the platform is not on the streets, to provide shelter on windy, snowy days to wait for a table, or to put their coat on, not to interrupt the flow of the street.”

Commissioner Mark Nickita did not see it that way. “I'm concerned about setting a precedent. There are numerous other restaurants just as small—Streetside (Seafood), Salvatore Scallopini, Panera. They've all accommodated the vestibule within their structure without going into the public right-of-way. This encroachment trickles into a host of other issues, moving a tree, a number of other things,” he said.

Commissioner George Dilgard was concerned about the dining platform, as Townsend is a narrower street project), but there were no strong objections, either,” he said.

A business owner on Lincoln objected during a public hearing, saying there is nothing on Lincoln for pedestrians to walk to or from.

O'Meara agreed, saying, “It's true.

There's not much happening on Lincoln. But we're hoping that by

putting in sidewalks it will help spur activity.”

Architect Frank Carnovale, who has had his offices on Cole Street for eight years, spoke in support of the project. “We are in need of safe circulation. In the summertime, people are walking to the swim club and tennis courts,” he said.

Dorothy Conrad, a resident of the area, said, “I believe you will pull more people there if they can walk safely on sidewalks and not in the middle of the streets. The property owners will all eventually benefit from these sidewalks.”

Current sidewalks in the area were installed in the 1950s. Cousino noted some property owners, eager for sidewalks, are seeking to put in their own sidewalks, submitting site plans to the city, and will coordinate with the city's efforts..

than many other city streets. That was confirmed as O'Meara said that Townsend is only 33-feet wide, compared with Maple at 45-feet wide, Hamilton Row at 39-feet wide, and Harmon at 37-feet. “I definitely would not support this bistro for a platform request,” Dilgard said.

Neighbors on the street, such as the Townsend Hotel, shared that concern.

Alan Greene, an attorney representing the hotel, said that outdoor dining “is not appropriate in all areas of the city. And this street is such a street. It's several feet narrower than other streets, and congested because of the hotel. We have major events there, and this bistro would be directly across the street from the hotel's entrance. There are limos, busses and taxis lined up.

We've got this special niche here, with sports teams, people working in

Cole Street bistro in Rail District n application for a bistro license for 2010 Cole Street in Birmingham's Rail District was unanimously approved by the Birmingham City Commission at its Dec. 20 commission meeting. It is the first bistro license given to a restaurant in the Rail District, and the final 2010 bistro license to be given out.

The new bistro will be called Cole Street, and offer upscale casual Italian dining. It will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday for lunch, and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday for dinner, and until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights. The restaurant will be closed on Sundays. It will have 65 seats in the restaurant, and nine in a defined bar area. There will be 24 outdoor dining seats in a private patio area tucked away to the west of the bistro. Full windows will overlook Cole Street. News sidewalks will be added in front of the entire establishment and parking will be to the east of the restaurant.

“I think it will be a great neighborhood, comfortable restaurant,” said applicant Mario Gogcaj. He is a graduate of the Culinary Institute in New York, and previously worked at the famed New York restaurant David Burke &

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the movies, staying there. It's going to become very difficult with this restaurant, and people dropping someone off at the restaurant then going to park. Townsend is a quiet street.”

Ray Fleming, owner of the Robert Kidd Gallery, which has been in Birmingham for 40 years, said, “It's an unusual street. All of the businesses are five-star businesses.

I'm concerned about the quality of the street. I'm concerned about the movement and flow of traffic. Our clients are comfortable moving back and forth, and they do not want to walk. Adequate parking is key to the ambiance of the street, and if there are more challenges, the street and the businesses will not function.”

Nickita pointed out that every street views their street as unusual, and their businesses as special. “Your street has a parking deck a half-block Donatella, was a sous chef at Forest Grill in Birmingham and at a restaurant in Grosse Pointe. This will be the first restaurant he will own.

“All of the restaurants I've worked at have been very high end, fine dining establishments,” Gogcaj said.

Bistros are allowed in Birmingham under a Special Land Use Permit, created in 2007, which is a zoning ordinance. It permits up to two bistro liquor licenses to new businesses in the Central Business District (the downtown area), or the Triangle area, and two licenses to existing businesses in the same areas each year. Earlier this fall, the city commission approved bistros in the Rail District as well, in an effort to animate and further revitalize the area.

The Rail District is a mixture of neighborhood, commercial and office space. Amtrak rail also goes through the area.

The restaurant was originally proposed to be called Cole Street Kitchen and Bar, but some residents and commissioners objected to the word “bar” in the name, as bars are not permitted in the area. After considering the issue with his attorney, Gogcaj decided to call his establishment Cole Street, and the commissioners approved the bistro license, liquor license and a resolution authorizing the mayor and city clerk to execute the contract for its operation.

away, and an on-street parking area another half-block away. People going to Einstein's want to park right in front, too. Everyone does. It's no one's right.”

He made a motion to revise the resolution, approving it with the condition of removing the vestibule, retaining the tree, and shortening the dining platform towards the storefront a minimum of one foot. It was approved by a vote of 5 to 2, with Commissioners Dilgard and Hoff disapproving of the resolution.

All of these changes were amended to the application, and commissioners approved the resolution.

“I think it's a terrific addition to the street,” said Commissioner Tom McDaniels.

City pursuing land with Brother Rice The city of Birmingham, in conjunction with Brother Rice School, is now working to acquire six acres of land at 2400 Lincoln Road, the Stanley Door land.

Brother Rice has been seeking a location to build full baseball diamonds for their varsity teams, as there will not be room for them to continue to play at their current location, St. James Park in Birmingham, after a long-planned renovation is completed. Brother Rice had proposed donating money, along with Birmingham Little League, to renovate Kenning Park at Lincoln and Eton roads to improve the park and create baseball diamonds for their use.

They were planning on investing $1 million in Kenning Park. Architect Kevin Hart had designed plans to redesign and redevelop Kenning Park, which is a pocket park. However, after lengthy planning meetings and commission meetings, city commissioners determined that it would be too great an investment to spend at this time on the park; a firm commitment failed to materialize from either Brother Rice or Birmingham Little League in the necessary time frame; and commissioners did not want to float another park bond, so they passed on the plans.

The Stanley Door land appears to be a win-win proposition, said Mayor Gordon Rinschler. “It looks like an opportunity that could really work,” he said. “The real estate market is down, so it's a good opportunity to buy. And six acres parcels do not come up in Birmingham too often.”

Tim Horton’s will be in the rear of this former Bennigan’s.

Township approves Tim Horton's

By Lisa Brody

After months of wrangling between a local developer, concerned citizens and Bloomfield Township, site plan and special land use proposals for a Tim Horton's on Woodward were approved by the township board of trustees at its meeting on Monday, Dec. 13.

The vote was 6-1, with only trustee Neal Barnett voting against the proposals.

“It was approved because it met all of the criteria as laid out in the township ordinances and land use provisions,” said township clerk Jan Roncelli.

Once again, as at previous township board meetings, a large contingent of Bloomfield Township residents turned out to express their concerns about the proposed Tim Horton's drive-through in the rear parking lot of the former Bennigan's restaurant at Woodward and Square Lake roads.

According to Roncelli, access to the Tim Horton's would be off of both Woodward and Square Lake. Some residents have concerns about the Square Lake Road access, and the ability they will have to get out of their neighborhoods. Roncelli said the Bennigan's structure is still standing, and another restaurant could presumably be situated on that site in addition to Tim Horton's.

“The project has been reviewed for almost two years. It has been before our design review board and planning commissions multiple times, and this is the third time our board of trustees has reviewed it,” said Roncelli. “The developer, Laith Jonna, has met all the conditions for developing the property with no variances required.”

Trustees at the last township meeting requested that residents of the adjacent neighborhood meet with Jonna and his attorney, and try to work out some of their concerns.

“There was a meeting between them, and they did resolve some things, but not everything,” said township supervisor Dave Payne.

Although many Tim Horton's are 24-hour establishments, the special land use permit for this proposed one is to operate from 5 a.m. to midnight. From 9 p.m until midnight, the operations will only be drivethrough.

The developer will still need to seek signage approvals, which includes menu boards and speaker posts, in addition to the general Tim Horton's signs.

The developer is also mandated to enter into a development agreement with the township, which will contain a temporary restrictive covenant to prohibit construction and operation of any kind of fast food operation on the site for 10 years, and also prohibits fried foods. Tim Horton's bakes all of their foods.

To address the residential access of neighboring streets and safety issues, the township had to present a letter to the Michigan Department of Transportation to study the Square Lake Road corridor as part of the site plan approval. Roncelli said that has been sent. The developer will still have to obtain an easement from the CVS store to construct a right hand traffic lane to gain final site plan approvals.

Despite the township's resolution of this issue, many residents were dissatisfied with the conclusion. Eleven spoke up against the site plan and special land use proposals.

“While I understand their concerns, it met the ordinances of the township,” said Payne. “There were several modifications made for the residents for noise, traffic and the overall appearance of the project.”

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FACES

Linda Solomon inda Solomon, nationally-recognized photojournalist and author, has earned wide-spread recognition for her talent, but her most cherished achievements have been the lives she’s touched through Pictures of Hope. Using photography as a vehicle, Pictures of Hope, a program founded by Solomon, encourages impoverished children to snap photographs of objects representing their dreams. The results have proven remarkable.

“I met a 12 year-old child in Memphis,” Solomon said.

“This little boy wanted to go to college and he photographed the exterior of Rhodes College (in Memphis).” Ultimately, the photograph was shown to the president of Rhodes and the child, who had been living in a shelter, was granted a fouryear scholarship. “For me, it was a life changing experience because it changed one child’s life forever.”

Solomon was merely 5 years-old when she first picked up a camera. When she was 13, her parents bought her a photo album. That would serve as a pivotal moment in her life.

“I always said that the camera was a very important gift, but it was the photo album that changed my life,” she said.

“It showed that my parents had respect for my photography.”

Never allowing herself to be pigeonholed into a particular vocation, Solomon has collaborated on three books with her sister, Jill Rappaport, who is a correspondent for the Today Show. “People We Know, Horses They Love,” earned a spot on the coveted New York Times bestseller list. Included in the book are photographs and stories of celebrities, such as Robert Redford, Richard Gere and Whoopi Goldberg.

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“To do the book on horses was like a dream come true,” Solomon said. “I was able to travel for over two years to all these beautiful ranches and farms. It’s one of the best times I’ve ever had.”

No stranger to the celebrity scene, Solomon has been covering the red carpet at the Oscars (Academy Awards) for 28 years, she said. The experience has been thrilling.

“I have a photo of a darling little 9-year-old girl with her father, Jon Voight. That was, of course, Angelina Jolie. She’s probably one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever photographed.”

Although Solomon has earned remarkable acclaim, she hasn’t wandered far from her Birmingham beginnings, where she enjoys gardening, creating her own line of jewelry, and stopping at estate sales in search of cameras to distribute to children for Pictures of Hope.

By any standards, Solomon has already packed a lifetime of achievement into her career, but she isn’t ready to sit idly back and relax.

“I want to be able to work with people who are going through illness and, through photography, help them capture their own key to strength, hope and courage.”

Solomon has discovered that the most common key to success is working hard and turning criticism into opportunity.

“We get rejected, but I never take that personally for more than a day,” she said. “You’ve just got to give it your all and be passionate.”

Story: Katey Meisner

Photo: Linda Solomon

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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 complete Places To Eat is available at downtownpublications.com and in an optimized format for your smart phone (downtownpublications.com/mobile), where you can actually map out locations and automatically dial a restaurant from our Places To Eat.

220: American. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 220 Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.645.2150.

Andiamo: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 6676 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48301. 248.865.9300.

Beau Jacks: American. Lunch, MondaySaturday; Dinner, daily. No reservations.

Liquor. 4108 W. Maple, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.626.2630.

Beyond Juice: Contemporary. Breakfast & Lunch daily; Dinner, Monday-Saturday. No reservations. 270 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.7078.

Big Boy: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6675 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.642.0717.

Big Rock Chophouse: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations.

Liquor. 245 South Eaton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.7774.

Birmingham Sushi Cafe: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. 377 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.8880.

Bloomfield Deli: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 71 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48304.

248.645.6879.

Boston Market: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. 42983 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.334.5559.

Brandy’s Steakhouse: American. Lunch, Monday-Saturday; Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 1727 South Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.338.4300.

Brooklyn Pizza: Pizza. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations.

111 Henrietta Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6690.

Cafe Via: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 310 East Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.8800 Cameron’s Steakhouse: American. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 115 Willits Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.723.1700.

Chen Chow Brasserie: Japanese. Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 260 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.2469.

China Village: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. 1655 Opdyke, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.758.1221.

Cityscape Deli: Deli. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. No reservations. Beer. 877 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302.

248.540.7220.

Cosi: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & wine. 101 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.203.9200.

Crust Pizza and Wine Bar: Pizza. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 6622 Telegraph, Bloomfield, 48301.

248.855.5855.

Deli Unique of Bloomfield Hills: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 39495 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304.

248.646.7923.

Dick O’Dow’s: Irish. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 160 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.642.1135.

Einstein Bros. Bagels: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 176 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.9888. Also 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. No reservations. 3598 West Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.645.1033.

Flemings Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 323 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.723.0134.

Forest Grill: American. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, Monday-Saturday.

Reservations.

Liquor. 735 Forest Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.9400.

Forte Restaurant: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 201 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.7300.

Fuddrucker’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No Reservations. Beer & wine. 42757 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Township, 48302. 248.333.2400.

Greek Island Coney Restaurant: Greek.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 221 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.1222.

Hogan’s Restaurant: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 6450 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.626.1800.

House of India: Indian. Tuesday-Sunday; Lunch & Dinner. Reservations. 1615 Opdyke Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.451.0201.

Hunter House Hamburgers: American.

Breakfast, Monday-Saturday; Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 35075 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.7121.

IHOP: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2187 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301.

248.333.7522.

Kerby’s Koney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2160 N. Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.333.1166.

Kirk’s Open Pit Bar B Que: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday- Sunday. No reservations.

33766 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.203.7010.

La Feast: Mediterranean. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

297 East Maple, Birmingham, 48009.

248.731.7768.

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, 48301.

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.

Max & Erma’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. Liquor. 250 Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.1188.

Mitchell’s Fish Market: Seafood. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 117 Willits Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.3663.

Mountain King: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. 469 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.2913.

New Bangkok Thai Bistro: Thai. Breakfast, Monday-Thursday; Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. No reservations. 183 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.2181.

Northern Lakes Seafood Co.: Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. No reservations.

Liquor. 39495 North Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.646.7900.

Olga’s Kitchen: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 138 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.2760. Also 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.

Panera Bread: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 100 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.203.7966. Also 2125 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302.

248.253.9877.

Peabody’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 34965 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.5222.

Phoenicia: Middle Eastern. Lunch, Monday-

“neighborhood favorite” - Zagat 2010

Award of Excellence Wine Spectator 2010

273 Pierce Downtown Birmingham 248.645.9123 www.streetsideseafood.com

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.

Call Jill Cesarz for advertising rate information 248.792.6464—Extension 600

TOAST IS NOT JUST FOR BREAKFAST ANYMORE! Toast a neighborhood joint featured a casual yet comfortable elegant bistro atmosphere! Since 2009 Toast has been offering our Fabulous bistro comfort food menus which include great burgers to Salmon and Duck confit from fresh local fare. We serve organic and or free range proteins and we offer fresh seafood weekly flown in from around the world as well.

• Award Winning Chef • Extensive and unique Wine list with over 25 wines by the glass • Great classic and creative Cocktails • Room for private events and or business meetings • Best new location Metro Times PHONE:

248-258-6278 | 203 Pierce Street Birmingham, Michigan 48009 | info@EatAtToast.com |

downtownpublications.com

DOWNTOWN

www.EatAtToast.com 53

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Restaurant Week is almost here. Join us for two fabulous weeks of quality dining.

Many of Birminghamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s finest restaurants will be participating. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an experience youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll never forget. Bon appĂŠtit! For more

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info, visit enjoybirmingham.com or call 248.530.1200. First two hours free in the parking decks. Check us out on Facebook.

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Birmingham Principal Shopping District Š 2010

RELAX&ENJOY

BIG ROCK CHOPHOUSE OFFERS SPECIAL SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS INSPIRED DINNER MENU IN JANUARY Enjoy the following special price fixed, four-course menu for $40 per person January 1, 2011 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; January 28, 2011.

STARTERS Bento Box for Two Tofu Sushi Roll, Chicken Pot stickers, Oriental Shrimp, Vegetable Egg Roll

Â&#x201A; Lunch

FIRST COURSE Choice of One "Â&#x2DC;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x153;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x160;>Â&#x2DC;`Ă&#x160; Â?iĂ&#x160;-Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;ÂŤĂ&#x160;UĂ&#x160;-Ă&#x153;iiĂ&#x152;Ă&#x160;>Â&#x2DC;`Ă&#x160;-Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x20AC;Ă&#x160;-Â&#x153;Ă&#x2022;ÂŤĂ&#x160;UĂ&#x160; Ă&#x192;Â&#x2C6;>Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x160; >LL>}iĂ&#x160;->Â?>`

Â&#x201A; Meetings Â&#x201A; Dinner

SECOND COURSE Togarashi Tuna Basmati Rice, Stir Fry Vegetables, Lemongrass-Yuzu Sauce Or Eight Ounce Filet Mignon Grilled Asparagus, Wild Mushroom Mashed

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30% off your second entrĂŠe

DESSERT Asian To Go Box with Assorted Pastries Price fixed dinner menu is $40 plus tax, tip and valet.

For more information or for dinner reservations, please call 248.647.7774.

Not valid with any other offer

Special is available during dinner hours: Monday - Thursday: 4 p.m. - 10 p.m.

Friday - Saturday: 4 p.m. - 12 a.m.

For more information or to purchase tickets to the upcoming Detroit Shen Yun show at the Detroit Opera House, please visit www.DetShows.com/brch.

34965 Woodward Ave Â&#x201A; Birmingham 248Â&#x201A;644Â&#x201A;5222 Â&#x201A; peabodysrestaurant.com 54

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01.11

AT THE TABLE B, L, D and more at Toast

By Eleanor Heald

mong other tags since opening in Autumn 2008, Birmingham’s Toast has been dubbed hip, cozy, gourmet and boutique. Proprietor Thom Bloom (with his wife Regan) characterizes it as “cozy and accessible.” Executive Chef Jeff Rose believes it has a “distinct American bistro feel.”

Birmingham’s Toast expanded on the Blooms’ Toast eatery concept, introduced in Ferndale in 2001, and added dinner to breakfast and lunch offerings. “Birmingham’s urban style and demographic,” Bloom says, “fit the focus and concept we visioned and the cards lined up. Our concept is five-star fresh food that’s moderately priced. It’s a neighborhood place, playing to the culture of the area and so it has become a destination restaurant, too.”

Before casting his future to the restaurant world, Thom was in the club and concert production business. He and Regan grew up locally, but these two foodies have lived in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Manhattan. Regan designed the decidedly offbeat décor.

Chef Rose has an impressive culinary background, beginning with a hotel and restaurant management degree from Michigan State University.

“Before that though,” he explains, “at 14, I was a pot washer in a New Jersey restaurant and by 18, I was catering weddings solo for 200 people.”

As his mentor, he cites Chef Takashi Yagihashi (formerly of Tribute in Farmington Hills and now proprietor of Takashi, his eponymous Chicago restaurant). “I was his sous chef for six years and this experience brought French cooking skills and a Japanese influence to my cooking style.” After Tribute, Chef Rose ran kitchens at Motor City Casino, Big Rock Chop House in Birmingham and Michael Symon’s Roast restaurant in Detroit, honored as 2009 Restaurant of the Year by the Detroit Free Press.

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New year; new menu Not resting on laurels in this idiosyncratic atmosphere, a revamped menu greets the New Year. As always, though, the challenges at Toast are serving as many as 450 breakfasts on Saturday, then creating a martini bar/dinner atmosphere that evening.

“Also,” Chef Rose notes, “we’d like to attract breakfast people to return that evening for dinner.”

Many people say that breakfast is their favorite meal. The number one day starter is a Breakfast Burrito, $10. A flour tortilla is filled with chorizo sausage, seasoned eggs, black beans and pintos, cheddar, green chili, sour cream and cilantro. TexMex style with ranchero chili is $11.

Gourmet omelets, $8-$10, are the next most popular, followed by Eggs Benedict, $10, and a variety of French toast preparations, $9.

Innovative sandwich ($8-$10) tweaking occurs in the lunch menu. A shaved ham on pretzel bread replaces pulled pork. Turkey Club comes with thickcut bacon and chipotle mayo. Roast Beef is on marble rye with aged cheddar and Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup features grilled jalapeno-cheddar bread.

At dinner, a unique BLT sandwich is added to

appetizers, ranging $8-$14. On Wednesdays, when wine is half off the regular price, Cheese Plank, with an array of artisan cheeses, seasonal fruits, grilled baguette and more can be upgraded with cured meats and olives for $20.

Beet and Chop Salad come small, $7 or $12 large.

Some wintery mains include Braised Lamb Shank with creamy polenta, $26 or Gnocchi & Duck Confit (Takashi’s gnocchi recipe) with butternut squash

or rib steak special. At breakfast and lunch, there’s a hint of southwest influence. Yet overall, Chef Rose likes French style (without heavy sauces) and Japanese clean flavors.

Toast, 203 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 248.258.6278.

Breakfast Monday to Friday 7 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday brunch from 8 a.m. Lunch 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, except Sunday. Dinner Monday-Thursday 5-10 p.m. Until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Parking: street or Pierce Street structure.

QUICK BITES At press time: Tallulah proprietor Mindy VanHellemont had received city commission conceptual approval for her new bistro Bella Piatti, 167 Townsend Street, Birmingham. Menu is her and Corporate Chef Jake Abraham’s take on northern Italian, in particular the Friuli-Venezia-Giulia area.

That region’s wines, along with Italian varietals, will highlight the wine list. Outdoor dining will be available April to November. “Décor,” says VanHellemont, “will be New York style and I am shooting for an April 2011 opening.”

From Beverly Hills Grill: Since 1988, Benson Kent anchored the bar during dinner hour at Beverly Hills Grill (31471 Southfield Road, Beverly Hills). He’s legendary for his ability to recall guest’s regular drinks.

His wife Barbara joined the Grill in 1989 and has been part of the BHG team and the one who created postings for the chalkboards. Their mid-December departure to Florida leaves opening for a new team to keep the BHG dinner spirit going.

Executive Chef Jeff Rose. Downtown photo: Laurie Tennent

and roasted chestnuts, $19. The chestnuts are included with a Butternut Squash Ravioli, $17.

Locally produced home-style desserts are $6.

Wine and craft beer Popular draughts include several Michigan-made craft beers. The wine list is distinctive in that it excludes mega brands and features wines that are not generally on the shelves of your favorite wine shop. If you like diverse wines with unique flavors, even outliers, check out the following new wine list additions: Domaine de Millet 2009 Vin de Pays des Cotes de Gascogne (2010 Paris Medaille D’Or winner); from Burgundy, Bret Brothers 2007 Pouilly-Vinzelles and 2006 Viré-Clessé Climat “La Verchère” (organic and biodynamic); Mauritson 2008 Rockpile Ridge Zinfandel; Tres Sabores 2007 Rutherford Zinfandel; and Hoopes Vineyard 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

Scramble the letters in Amarone and you get close to Enamore, an unusual 2007 Argentine wine from Bodegas Renacer; a blend of malbec, syrah, bonarda and cabernet franc grapes, dried and made in the style of an Italian Amarone.

Last taste It’s easy to recognize that Toast is not complacent and ever reinventing. Often, the Wednesday to Saturday specials focus on fish because Chef Rose hails from the east coast. Then there’s his veal chop

Tasting treat: Wine clubs are the buzz of the times.

Even Zagat, the restaurant rating organization, is in on it. Yet, it and most other clubs are national, although local is the new gold. Madeline (Mad) Triffon, the first female U.S. Master Sommelier and Wine Director for the Matt Prentice Restaurant Group has formed one of the neatest clubs. She and her team of Certified or Advance Sommeliers comb the world for wines that over-deliver at their price point. If you join (and there are many levels), selections will be delivered to your door each month.

Check out Mad-Crush online at mad-crush.com.

Brunch: In Birmingham, Tallulah Wine Bar & Bistro (155 South Bates Street, 248.731.7066) and Zazios (34977 Woodward Ave. at Maple Road 248.530.6400) have added Sunday brunch to their offerings.

Mark your calendar for Birmingham Restaurant Weeks January 31-February 4, 2011 and February 711, 2011. Participating restaurants will offer discounted lunch ($15) and dinners ($30) for two weeks during Birmingham's annual Restaurant Weeks event. As in years past, diners will enjoy special menus created by some of the area's top chefs at extraordinary prices for three-course lunch and dinners. Visit enjoybirmingham.com/rw to review restaurant menus.

Eleanor Heald is a nationally published writer who also writes the wine column in a double byline with her husband Ray for DOWNTOWN. Suggestions for Quick Bites section can be emailed to QuickBites@downtownpublications.com.

FOCUS ON WINE Family producers offer unique wines

By Eleanor and Ray Heald

ew Zealand’s Marlborough region owes a lot to vintner Allan Scott. He planted some of the region’s most famous vineyards and makes his eponymous wines from some of them. After a five-year absence from the Michigan market, the brand has returned through AHD Vintners, Warren, Michigan.

Worldwide the consolidation of wineries has dissolved the once-cherished family connection. When we discover a family still involved in making very good wines at a reasonable price, we want to know more.

Quite possibly, Allan Scott is Marlborough’s most experienced grapegrower. His history stretches back more than 30 years to the earliest years of modern winemaking in Marlborough. Since 1975 Allan and his wife Catherine have been purchasing vineyards in the best areas of the Marlborough region. They started by selling their grapes. It was not until 1990 that they built their winery.

Their son Josh makes the wine.

He has a diploma in Viticulture and Wine Production from Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT) and worked vintages in California’s Napa Valley and in France’s Sancerre region. This latter experience seems to have influenced his style of sauvignon blanc, which is less aggressively grassy than most Marlborough bottlings. Allan Scott 2009 Sauvignon Blanc $15 has grapefruit notes accented by lime and stone fruits. A full palate and good length has made it 90 percent of the brand’s sales in the U.S. An off-dry 2008 Allan Scott Marlborough Riesling $15 has spot on varietal character with floral aromas and crisp apple flavors. Its pleasant finish with good acid-fruit balance makes it a versatile food accompaniment. Allan Scott 2008 Malborough Pinot Noir $23 is also varietally correct with cherry, bright plum and dry rose petal characteristics. Silky and attractive, it’s ripe and juicy.

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Similar Italian Models Late last summer, figures released by the Italian Wine and Food Institute (IWFI) in New York cited Italy as the leading exporter of wines

to the US. Italy has its share of mega brands in the hands of mega importers and distributors. Yet, if you want unique tastes, it’s the small family producer that you need to discover.

Jerome Smith, who represents the wine portfolio of Bedford International (distributed by Imperial Beverage of Novi, Michigan) says he’s “an Old World wine guy who has always been about Old World imports from small family producers. There are only two kinds of wines: branded and artisanal. I champion the artisanal Italian producers.”

Among them is Umani Ronchi, widely considered the leader of Le Marche wines. Stretching along the eastern Italian coast, the region is ideal for montepulciano and verdicchio grapes. From Umani Ronchi try: 2009 “Exclamation Point” Verdicchio Classico $9 and 2008 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo $8, an easy-drinking red.

At $26, Cumaro Conero Riserva DOCG is a full-bodied, robust and rich montepulciano.

Big names for big bucks dot Tuscany. For more reasonable prices and delicious wines, discover Vignamaggio. Il Morino 2007 Sangiovese $11 showcases berry fruit with brown spice notes. Terre di Prenzano Chianti Classico DOCG $16 is a perfect pasta wine – red sauce with capers and mushrooms. For a super supertuscan, Wine Obsession $90 is a big, fruity and luscious merlot, cabernet sauvignon and syrah blend.

Vineyard selection over centuries has developed indigenous Italian varieties in lesser-known regions such as Apulia. There Rivera has made wines from nero (uva) di Troia, montepulciano, aglianico, bombino and pampanuto. Rivera 2004 Il Falcone Riserva $45 is 70 percent nero di Troia and 30 percent montepulciano in a flavorful combo of black fruits, earthy notes and wild mushrooms. Rich and concentrated, it cries out to winter style food preparations.

From the Veneto, Michele Castellani is a name to know. Its Ca’

del Pipa Collection, 2004 “Seral” Corvina Veronese $20 features very ripe grapes, harvested and dried for up to two months, then aged in large oak casks for one year before bottling. Then it rests in the bottle another six months before release.

Red currants, anise and a spice melange are its highlights.

Wine picks Frequently, chefs say that they offer seasonal menus. For wine then, the question begs, “is wine seasonal?” Crisp, white wines are certainly more refreshing in summer, yet oysters beg for a crisp white. Lighter reds are summer suitable, yet you don’t want a full-bodied, rich red with a pizza anytime of year. Taking this into account, we’ve been tasting for winter and have come up with the following.

Winter whites: 2009 Abadia de San Campio Albarino Rias Baixas, Spain $20 2009 Terras Gauda O Rosal Rias Baixas, Spain (blend of albarino, loureira and caino blanco) $24 2009 J. Lohr White Riesling $10 2009 Peter Lehmann Eden Valley Dry Riesling $17 Winter reds: 2008 Austin Hope Syrah $42 - big, intense and concentrated NV Westside Red “Troublemaker” $20 (syrah, mourvedre, grenache blend) 2007 Greg Norman Limestone Coast Shiraz $15 2009 Tempra Tantrum Tempranillo/Shiraz (Spain) $12 2008 Red Guitar $13 (Spain tempranillo, garnacha blend) 2008 Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel $11 2008 Bonterra Organic Zinfandel $16 – medium body; very drinkable 2008 Murphy–Goode Liar’s Dice Zinfandel $21 2008 Rodney Strong Knotty Vines Zinfandel $19 2008 Cellar No 8 Zinfandel $10 – pizza wine!

2008 Windsor Sonoma Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel $20 2007 Kendall-Jackson Summation $14 (blend of more than 7 varietals) 2008 Terrazas Reserva Malbec $15 2008 Gascon Reserva Malbec $25 Eleanor & Ray Heald are contributing editors for the internationally-respected Quarterly Review of Wines, among other publications. Contact them by e-mail at focusonwine@aol.com.

Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor.

588 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.3122.

Pita Cafe: Middle Eastern. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. 239 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.645.6999.

Qdoba: Mexican. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 795 East Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.988.8941.

Quattro Pizzeria & Wine Bar: Italian. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 203 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.6060.

Quiznos: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 185 N Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.540.7827.

Salvatore Scallopini: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 505 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.8977.

Sandella’s Flatbread Cafe: Deli. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 172 North Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.4200.

South: Mexican. Lunch, Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 210 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.8133.

Steve’s Deli: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6646 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield, 48301. 248.932.0800.

Streetside Seafood: Seafood. Lunch, MondayFriday; Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor.

273 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.645.9123.

Sushi Hana: Japanese. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations.

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 Corner Bar: American. Dinner. WednesdaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 100 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.2958.

The Gallery Restaurant: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. 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 Phat Sammich: Deli. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. 34186 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.723.0860.

The Rugby Grille: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 100 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.642.5999.

Toast: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; Dinner, Monday-Saturday.

Reservations.

Liquor. 203 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6278.

Tokyo Sushi & Grill: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 225 E. Maple Rd., Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6501.

Topz: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 327 Hamilton, Birmingham, 48009.

248.220.1108 Village Coney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 653 S. Adams. Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.7964 Whistle Stop Cafe: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; Dinner, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 501 S. Eton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.5588 Zazios: Italian. Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 34977 Woodward Ave, Birmingham, 48009. Phone: 248.530.6400

SHARE THE GOOD TIMES. COME DINE WITH US FOR FUN, FOOD & SPIRITS!

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Welcome to Brandy’s!

The Restaurant serves fresh, flavorful upscalecasual American-style dishes prepared from the finest ingredients sourced from homegrown local markets & around the country.

An upscale casual cuisine perfect for lunch & dinner.

1727 South Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302 248.338.4300 | brandysofbloomfield.com

CATERING • BANQUET ROOM • EVENT SPECIALS • LIVE ENTERTAINMENT • GIFT CERTIFICATES

PETER E. SCHAFFER, D.P.M. DIPLOMATE, AMERICAN BOARD OF PODIATRIC SURGERY

DMC PHYSICIAN

BOARD CERTIFIED FOOT & ANKLE SURGEON. COMPLETE PODIATRY CARE FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY.

DO YOU HAVE PERSISTENT HEEL PAIN? Until recently, tendon and fascia symptoms, due to plantar fasciosis, has been difficult to treat. The most common treatments include rest, stretching exercises, splints or orthotics. Injections of local anesthetic are also used. However, these treatments tend to address only the symptoms not the cause of pain.

In many cases, this type of supportive care is inadequate. Patients endure months of pain before the underlying disease improves. For those who seek more aggressive care, the only other option has been invasive surgical procedures.

Introducing TOPAZ©, which offers a minimally invasive alternative to surgical procedures for the treatment of tendons and fascia.

Dr. Schaffer is offering the new TOPAZ© treatment for heel pain.

Birmingham FootCare Specialists 600 N. Old Woodward (Maplewood Office Park), Suite 202

248-594-3338

Same Day Appointments Available

BUSINESS MATTERS Schubot Jewellers Schubot, a family-owned jeweler since 1917, has a new storefront at 230 Merrill Street in downtown Birmingham.

Owner Brian Schubot is looking forward to carrying on the family business that grandfather began and his father and mother nurtured. “I pretty much always knew it was what I wanted to do,” he said.

Having previously operated out of Detroit and Troy for over 90 years, Schubot has acquired a large and loyal customer base and is looking forward to serving the Birmingham community. “I just think it’s a great location,” he said. “It’s centrally located to my customers and I thought Birmingham would be the best place.”

Schubot, a Bloomfield Township resident for the last 23 years, will be working alongside his wife, Michele, to sell, appraise and repair jewelry for their patrons.

“My concept is a little different than a classic jewelry store,” Schubot said. “I’m a private jeweler. I’m listed as ‘by appointment only,’ but I’m here all the time. Whatever people need, I will give them personal service.”

Schubot said he is the first U.S. dealer to launch a European watch brand called Raidillon. “I came across the brand, thought it was interesting, and worked with them to bring the brand here. I think my customers will like it.”

Schubot said he is eager to provide additional services to compliment the fine jewelers already established in Birmingham. “The quality of jewelry that’s already here helps to make Birmingham more of a jewelry destination.”

Visage Spa moves After 10 years at the 36880 Woodward Ave. space in Bloomfield Hills, Visage Spa has moved down the street to 36400 Woodward Ave. between Maple and Big Beaver in Bloomfield Hills, and changed its name. “We’re going to be Michael Freedland, M.D. Plastic Surgery and Spa,” said Barbara Jurkins, practice manager.

The move became necessary due to an increase in clientele. “We’re kind of busting out at the seams here,” Jurkins said. The new space offers larger, more spacious offices which are more suitable to Freedland’s growing practice. “It has a very pleasing floor downtownpublications.com

plan and it will be absolutely beautiful,” said Jurkins.

According to Jurkins, the practice caters to clients from all over Michigan, out-of-state and Canada.

Freedland is a board certified plastic surgeon who performs breast augmentations, liposuction, face and neck surgeries and body lifts for extensive weight loss patients. The spa offers chemical peels, massages and facials.

Complex Boutique Complex Boutique, a multi-faceted one-stop shop for fashion, furnishings, music and art, has recently opened at 168 W. Maple Rd. in Birmingham. The 6,000 square foot space,

encompassing six completely different concepts, will include The Lab, an interactive music lounge with unique gifts; The Annex, featuring high-end jewelry, accessories and home décor; Metallic, offering trendy accessories; Garment Society, which will feature contemporary women’s apparel; and David & Davis Home, offering furniture, home décor and interior design. Two additional concepts are in the works and will be launching soon.

“We will also be opening Rococo, which will sell women’s clothing,” said co-owner Doug Schwartz. “It will offer private labels with a $65 price-point.” Rococo is slated to premier Feb. 15, 2011.

Owners Schwartz and Annie Leblanc will also add Pop-Up Retail, a venue which will feature rotating concepts to the mega-boutique. “It will be a venue that allows people to view retail from a week to a month,” Schwartz said. “It will be like an extended trunk show.” Pop-Up Retail will feature anything from art exhibits to retail opportunities. “It gives an opportunity to someone who doesn’t necessarily want to lease a space for three to five years,” he said. The owners will be consistently looking for qualifying concepts to occupy the space. “It’s available now.”

The business duo previously ran The Annex located at 534 N. Old Woodward Ave. in Birmingham, which is now part of Complex. “We closed (The Annex) Thanksgiving weekend and we opened (Complex)

Thanksgiving weekend.” The expansion was a consideration for over two years, but the business partners just recently made their idea a reality.

“We just didn’t have the right space,” said Schwartz. “But we got lucky with the perfect space.”

While the new store requires much more work and attention, Schwartz said it’s also a lot more fun. “It’s something that hasn’t been done in Michigan.” Schwartz and Leblanc were able to connect several concepts into one, cohesive space while maintaining the uniqueness of each individual shop. “Everyone has their own spin on how they aesthetically arrange their space, but it’s all tied together.” A signature feature in the store which the owners created is a 50-foot chandelier that hangs in the center of the stores. “We made it out of 1,000 light bulbs,” said Schwartz.

“There are three different shades of light bulbs, and we strung and intermixed them through the grid we had built that hangs from the ceiling.”

According to Schwartz, Complex has been well-received by Birmingham shoppers. “People are super excited,” he said. “We really have the best gift ideas, and they’re all unique. We’re different from the mall because we’re not intimidating.

But we’re a mini version of that with all unique items. We have name brands, but we try to think a little bit forward and we pick things you can’t get anywhere else.”

scratch chocolate chip cookies.”

The owners originally chose Bloomfield Township due to demographics. “We love our clientele,” said Egeland. “They’re upscale, educated ,and they eat out often, so they’re familiar with the apathetic, sketchy service they get at other restaurants, chain restaurants in particular. We’re thankful that they spend their money at the Moose Preserve.” Having survived 20 years of economic ups and downs, Egeland said that customers have been very loyal. “As everyone else, we wish there were better times, but we’re thankful for our customers.” Looking ahead, Egeland is hoping to celebrate their 50th anniversary one day. “We believe in being consistent,” she said. “We don’t believe in reducing quality or customer service in down times. We will be here in another 20 or 30 years, and that has always been our intention.”

Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel has consolidated their offices from 298 S. Old Woodward and 500 S. Old Woodward in Birmingham to a much larger space at 294 E. Brown St. in Birmingham. “It was designed by an

The Moose Preserve The Moose Preserve, recipient of the Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber of Commerce Blue Chip Award, recently celebrated 20 years in business at its 43034 Woodward Ave. location in Bloomfield Township. The upscale bar and grill, located on the northeast corner of Woodward Ave. and Square Lake Road, is owned by Linda Egeland, Victor Dzenowagis, Steve Hazergian and John Driggers, and credits much of its longevity to a carefully chosen staff. “We select our staff based on outgoing, warm and caring personalities. That’s not something you can train,” said Egeland. “We’d rather train a less experienced worker.”

The Moose Preserve features a hunting atmosphere with warm, pine walls. The grill offers a menu with casual fare that includes everything from basic burgers and grilled cheese to steak and wild game. “We’re famous for our barbecue ribs, and we’re also famous for our baked-from-

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incredible architect, Victor Saroki,” said marketing director Kim Pollack.

“The finishes are really very pretty and the overall look of it is wonderful. The most exciting part is that it’s the final transition to create synergy.”

Last year, Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel expanded to 11 tri-county area offices and had been operating out of three separate offices in Birmingham.

“In doing this we created a redundancy. They were too close, but we had too many agents to fit in either facility.” According to Pollack, the 500 S. Old Woodward building will be retained and become corporate headquarters. The 294 E. Brown St. offices have been completely revamped and now embrace a modern milieu. “They put in a state-of-the-art training center and an agent underground (located on the lower floor),” said Pollack. “It’s a fun, young vibrant area. There are couch areas where people can go to collaborate.

We’re going to have Wii bowling 59

Construction Loans Great Rates New Homes Renovations Jumbo or Non-Jumbo Loans

Baker Furniture closes

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tournaments.” The two upper levels will be more traditional.

The company is aiming to bridge the gap between generations of agents and clients. “We’ll have agents of all ages in that atmosphere. We’re trying to make it fun, where there’s idea sharing.” The new building will house 111 agents, Pollack said. In addition to changes in the Birmingham offices, Kelly Sweeney, CEO of Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel, has announced that the company will be acquiring Coldwell Banker Hoppough & Associates. The brokerage is headquartered in Ionia, Michigan, with a total of six offices throughout the Greater Grand Rapids area. “The Hoppough offices, with their award-winning associates, will be outstanding additions to the Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel family,” said Sweeney.

™

After 10 years at the 34500 Woodward Ave. space in Birmingham, Baker Furniture has closed its doors at that location. “It was, frankly, a decision the company made rather reluctantly,” said Lee Russ, business development manager for corporate parent company Kohler Interiors. “The Birmingham location was chosen and designed as a true flagship for the company-owned Baker Store strategy, and it really was a great place to experience Baker. With that said, however, the depth and duration of the recession, particularly for luxury goods, have forced every company to make difficult decisions.”According to Russ, Baker had a much larger and more established presence at the Michigan Design Center, located at 1700 Stutz Dr. in Troy. “Our lease in Birmingham had expired, and the opportunity to create a single, larger, better destination was in Troy.”

With an extensive assortment of lighting, accessories, and textiles, Russ said that Baker is committed to continuing to bring a more complete high-fashion package to its patrons.

Baker first opened in Allegan, Mich. in 1891 and Russ calls the company one of America’s oldest and most prestigious furniture-makers.

Real Ryder Revolution Real Ryder Revolution is celebrating its one year anniversary at 555 S. Old Woodward in Birmingham. According to owner Traci Raitt, the first year has been very successful. “It has been received so well,” said Raitt. “All our marketing has been word-of-mouth, and we have people who have never worked out before next to professional athletes. You get a great workout and you don’t have to feel like you don’t fit in. That’s the greatest thing about our studio.”

According to Raitt, her facility DOWNTOWN

discovered Real Ryder bikes and was the first to bring the bike to Michigan from California. “Our facility is unique because we have the exclusive rights to the Real Ryder bikes,” Raitt said.

“The entire bike rotates from side-toside, working your core and upper body. You burn 30 to 40 percent more calories than if you were on a regular bike.” The studio houses 20 bikes and classes fill up quickly. “The first ride is always complimentary,” she said.

The spinning studio focuses on exercise enthusiasts, ranging from individuals looking to lose excessive weight to athletic competitors. “I’ve been in this industry for over 15 years, and my personal style is to cater to those who are really focused on getting in shape.” Raitt owns the Birmingham and West Bloomfield studios with business partners Leslee Blatnikoff and Dan Barish.

Sweet Things Birmingham shoppers will be able to satisfy their sweet tooth with the new addition of Sweet Things candy store at 215 N. Old Woodward Ave. The shop features wrapped and retro candy, varieties of M&M’s and frozen sodas. “We’re also going to provide the service of candy buffets for events and candy cakes,” said owner Stacy Stone. Stone said her candy cakes are elaborately created entirely out of wrapped candy and range in size from a single layer to four-and-a-half feet tall. “We have all different themes for birthdays, engagements, new babies, Bar Mitzvahs and Bat Mitzvahs,” Stone said. “And, my biggest customers are actually adults.”

Stone currently owns a sundries shop in Detroit and has been in the candy business for the last 15 years.

“It seemed like there was a need to have something fun like this in Birmingham,” she said. “We’re right near the theater (Uptown Palladium), and who doesn’t like candy?”

Masri Clinic If you are in need of a pick-me-up after the holidays, you’re in luck.

Masri Clinic recently opened at 373 S. Old Woodward Ave. in Birmingham, celebrating their official ribbon cutting ceremony on Dec. 7. The clinic, which is geared toward laser and cosmetic surgery, has been in business for more than 20 years, with their other offices operating out of Dearborn. Owner Dr. Fatina Masri calls Birmingham “the place to be.”

Masri Clinic offers a broad range of plastic surgery, including Smartlipo, rhinoplasty, facelifts, tummy tucks and breast augmentation. Cosmetic procedures include Botox, Restylane, Thermage (the non-surgical facelift), chemical peels and Photo Facials.

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THE COMMUNITY HOUSE

MICHAEL ACHO CORDIALLY INVITES YOU TO ATTEND AN EXCLUSIVE WORKSHOP:

anuary is a tough time in Michigan unless you love winter and winter sports.

Unfortunately, I love neither. Born in the south, I never learned to ski or ice skate. On a trip up north in 1979 with our close friends the Schafers, I spent a day on the bunny hill--a very unsuccessful day, I might add. The children who got in my way were lucky to survive, and to this day, Steve Schafer still calls me “Bunny.”

Of course, when I’m not at home in front of a crackling and cozy fire, I’m happy to spend my Januarys at The Community House where it is warm in every way. Our new catalog is out, and we have old and new classes to pique everyone’s interest. Our new classes that begin in January include: On Friday, January 7 and Saturday, January 8, we will hold auditions for ages 8-18 years for The Music Man Junior.

On Saturday, January 8, we have a “Reach for the Moon” art class for students in grades K-2.

Shelley Roberts If You Can Write It, You Can Shoot it! “A Beginner’s Guide to Video Storytelling,” with acclaimed instructor Harvey Ovshinsky.

Our Quarterly Financial Book Series begins on January 12 with The Zeroes: My Misadventures in the Decade Wall Street Went Insane by Randall Lane and presented by William Whitehouse of Huntington National Bank Impressionism: The Art of Seeing is a series of three lectures which begin on January 20 with “The Roots” and continues on January 27 with “The Works.”

On January 19, join us for Adventures in Plants: Exploring Vegetarian Dishes.

Girls and boys and their parents shouldn’t miss Assertiveness Boot Camp on January 26 and 27.

If you want to be warm and pretend that you are in the tropics, take our Classic Style Floral Design Workshop at Goldner Walsh Garden & Home Studio on Saturday, January 29.

A very special and inspiring annual January event at The Community House occurs on Martin Luther King Day. It is presented by our sponsored group, the Race Relations & Diversity Task Force, and is always standing room only. This year promises to be no exception, with a keynote address by Dr. Carlyle Fielding Stewart III, Pastor of Hope United Methodist Church titled, “Dr King’s Dream: Are we Moving Forward or Accepting the Status Quo?” General tickets are $25; student tickets are $15, and both include plated breakfasts.

Advance reservations are advised.

It’s not too soon to make reservations for an early February event that will surely take away the winter blues. On Saturday, February 5, the Children’s Charities Coalition will hold its second annual karaoke night, “Sing Out for Kids,” at The Community House. This event, chaired by Karla Sherry, was considered by many to be their favorite event of 2009—it’s a great time to let your hair down and have fun! Tickets are $50, and dinner and pop is included.

There will be a cash bar. Please call 248.332.7173 to reserve your spot or table.

If you want to venture out, we have wonderful day and extended trips for you. Join us on Wednesday, January 12 when we go to the DIA and hear Salvador Solort -Pons, Curator of European Painting, speak about how professionals determine fakes and forgeries through scientific analysis, and on Saturday, January 22 when we travel to the Detroit Opera House to see Shen Yun Performing Arts. Come to The Community House on January 11 for a presentation about our May trip to Sicily. This trip includes two nights in Palermo, one night in Agrigento, and four nights in Taormina—the trip of a lifetime for a very reasonable price with a Community House escort and an experienced Italian guide.

For additional information about our programs, events and trips please visit www.communityhouse.com or call 248.644.5832.

Finally, thank you very much if you supported The Community House Annual Fund Drive. Without your help, The Community House would not be here to meet the social, educational and cultural needs of our community. I am sincerely grateful for your generosity.

I look forward to seeing you at The Community House.

J

Wealth Strategies

Wednesday, January 12, 2011 6:00 – 8:00 pm Baldwin Public Librar y 300 W. Merrill Birmingham, MI 480 09

Presented by Michae l Acho of Lincoln Financial Adv isors and Tom Kotcher of First Tru st Portfolios

You should consider a trust’s investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before investing. A prospectus, which contains this and other information about the trust will be available at this event. Read it carefully before you invest. First Trust Portfolios L.P./Member SIPC/FINRA/Sponsor of First Trust.

Topics include: • Knowing what to buy, when to buy and when to sell • Re-evaluating your risk tolerance and return expectations • Being properly diversified • How to stay focused on long term goals Reservations will be taken on a first come, first served basis. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.

Call Mike 248.948.5100

Michael J. Acho, MBA, CFP® Lincoln Financial Advisors 1000 Town Center, 26th Floor Southfield, MI 48075 248 948-5100 direct 248 933-4339 cell Michael.Acho@LFG.com

© 2008 Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. Securities and investment advisory services offered through Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. a broker/dealer, member SIPC, registered investment advisor and an insurance agency. Insurance offered through Lincoln affiliates and other fine companies. Lincoln Financial Group is the marketing name for Lincoln National Corporation and its affiliates. CRN201011-2048084.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Here is the update on the social scene from the past month. Many more photos from each event appear online each week at downtownpublications.com where readers can sign up for an e-mail notice when the latest social scene column is posted. Past columns and photos are also archived at the website for Downtown.

A Haunted Night at the Museum

A Haunted Night at the Museum Henry Ford’s SandCastles grief support program for children was a perfect beneficiary for a party that gave carte blanche to lots of big people to Sally Gerak dress up and act like kids at the Detroit Institute of Arts. The costume party attracted 165, many of whom, like HF West Bloomfield CEO Gerard VanGrinsven, were not even recognizable. Given the nature of the beneficiary, instead of gingerbread houses, eight talented chefs created confectionery sand castles for the silent auction, which raised $1,200. Three humanitarian awards, named in honor of the late Dr. Jo Magno whose son was in the crowd, were presented. Comerica Bank’s foundation president Caroline Chambers accepted one for her company. When longtime HFHS board member Walt Douglas accepted his award (“When Walt offers ideas, we all listen,” declared presenter Bob Riney), he praised Dr. Magno and introduced his family. The third award went to Dr. John Popovich, the first M.D. in many years to lead the flagship Henry Ford Hospital. He also recalled Magno, especially “…her ability to inspire and to change radically the way we treat patients…cure sometimes, relieve often, comfort always.” Two young SandCastles alumni then spoke convincingly of the benefits of participating in the program, which is available to all children who have lost a loved one. They motivated guests to pledge nearly $10,000 for SandCastles’ camperships. In all the haunting evening raised $70,000 for SandCastles.

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1. HFNHS CEO Nancy Schlichting (left) of Bloomfield with honoree Dr. John Popovich, his wife, Beth & daughter Christina of Birmingham. 2. Event chair Claire Chambers (left) and committee members Val McCammon and Millie Pastor of Bloomfield. 3. Maggie Allesee with honoree Walter Douglas of Bloomfield. 4.

Tess & Dr. Manny Magno of Bloomfield Hills. 5. Kathy Breech of Bloomfield and George Medved of Royal Oak. 6. Norman (left) & Nicole Yatooma of Bloomfield and Renee & Michael Acho of Birmingham. 7. Elspeth & Henry Ford W. Bloomfield CEO Gerard VanGrinsven of Franklin. 8. Committee member Harriett & Mort Freedman of Orchard Lake. 9. Bloomfield attorney John Mucha of W. Bloomfield and committee member Doug Glazier of Rochester. 10. Emcee WDIV-TV’s Steve Garagiola of Brighton.

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A FangTastic Private Party Cobwebs, a mummy, bones and splendid hospitality abounded throughout Linda Orlans’ Birmingham home on the night some 150 costumed friends had a “howling good time” at her annual Halloween party. Guests ranged from some of Orlans’ colleagues in the legal, mortgage, title and banking industry to friends from her philanthropies like Cranbrook Art Academy & Museum, Beyond Basics and the Michigan Parade Company. In fact, former Parade Company president Joan LeMahieu and her husband Tom came from California, where she now manages The Mountain Winery, to attend the spooky soiree dressed as a Sommelier (Tom) and a grapevine (Joan). We spotted Lady Gagas, Elmo with Kate Perry, Bonnie & Clyde and a pulchritudinous pirate, to name just a few of the fun costumed characters roaming the spirited scene at the home of the generous and decidedly successful entrepreneur ( 2009 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award winner).

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The Uptown Group Boo Blast The Community House-sponsored group of young professionals staged its annual Halloween road rally and 22 teams revved up for the fun. The Show Us Your Ghoulies team of Jessica Perlman, Corey Perlman, Theresia Radtke and Jerry Perez were the winners. All convened with more non-roadies, 120 total, to party afterwards at the House. Funds raised ($6,000) were earmarked for both TCH and Judson Center.

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Nutcracker Luncheon & Boutique For the 28th year, the Volunteer Council supporters of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra socialized and shopped before the holidays and for the second year they did so at the Birmingham Athletic Club. Some of the 170 guests also bought raffle tickets ($1,195). It seemed appropriate that event chair Barb Diles, who also performed at the luncheon with the Classic Voices choral group, was one of the prize winners. Among those applauding her good luck were other past VC chairs Alice Haidostian, Marjorie Saulson, Kelly Hayes, Debra Partrich, Gloria Nycek and Mado Lie and current chair Janet Ankers.

All dined at tables where each delightful centerpiece was a nutcracker from the personal collection of John Young. The seasonal event netted more than $9,222.

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CCS 29th Detroit International Wine Auction The 29th Detroit International Wine Auction (DIWA) for the College for Creative Studies attracted 415 to the GM Wintergarden for auction bidding, fine dining and, what else, fine wines. Before joining the throng, 150 guests at the prelude VIP reception exercised their bidding moves during a mini auction of six items that raised $9,300. When the final cork was popped, the silent auction of 75 lots and the live auction of 55 lots, combined with tickets and the sponsorship of GM and others, raised an astounding $1 million plus. This included the $26,000 winning bid for Featured Vinter Duckhorn Wine Company’s Alex Ryan’s donation that included a trip for four through Napa Valley. Proceeds from the annual event support the scholarship fund, which currently aids 100 percent of the students, and the Community Arts Partnerships (CAP) programs, which last year provided free art and design education to more than 4,000 Detroit school children.

Shelter’s Dancing with the Stars The crowd gathered at The Reserve for South Oakland Shelter’s second Dancing with the Stars fundraiser was in a good mood even before the dancing started. But once the celebrity dancers - Jackie Paige, Johnny Maalouf, Amy Cremen, Monica Del Signore and John Gottsacker - and their partners started making their moves, the decibels really ramped up. And when Bacco Ristorante coowner Del Signore, who was absolutely stunning in a sparkling dress, was center stage, celebrity judge Lauren Podell asked, ”How does she own an Italian restaurant and look that good?” Fitness consultant Gottsacker’s huge popularity was also evident as his groupies squealed their approval and celebrity judge L. Brooks Patterson opined, “This boy can move!” Following the judges’ assignment of points, the voting was close across the board, but a tie existed at the top between Del Signore and Gottsacker. Emcee Guy Gordon called for crowd applause to break the tie.

That was also a draw. So event chairs Bill and Jennie Cook invited the audience to vote with their dollars, all of which will help SOS and its congregation partners reduce the impact of homelessness in the community. After the judging, guests crowded the dance floor until midnight. Counting the silent auction the spirited event, which was produced with flair by Gail & Rice, raised well over $45,000, not counting some matching funds from the Community Foundation.

Cattle Baron’s Ball The same night as SOS’s Dancing With the Stars, the eighth annual American Cancer Society’s Cattle Baron’s Ball attracted 600 cancer fighters to Oakland University’s Shotwell-Gustafson Pavilion, a perfect, barnlike venue for the country-casual soiree predowntownpublications.com

A FangTastic Private Party

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1. Party hostess Linda Orlans (left) of Birmingham with Paul Welday and his wife Valerie Knol of Farmington Hills. 2. Leslie Craigie (as Kate Perry) & her husband John Henke (as Elmo) of Birmingham. 3. Gerhardt Knodel (left) and Ken Gross of Bloomfield. 4. Tavi Fulkerson (left) and her husband Bill Hampton of Bloomfield with former Bloomfielders Tom & Joan LeMahieu now of Los Gatos, CA. 5. Nan (left) & Murray Wikol and Brian & Beth Henry of Bloomfield. 6. Pierre Corriveau of Birmingham. 7. Ladies Gaga Susan Lundin (left) and Pamela Gerber of Bloomfield. 8. Sharyl & Alan Ackerman of Bloomfield.

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The Uptown Group Boo Blast

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1. Fox-2’s Jason Carr (left) & Taryn Asher with TUG co-chairs Jenna Buchanan and Dennis Uhnavy of Birmingham. 2. Lauren Eaton (left) of Bloomfield, Colleen Galacz of Sylvan Lake, Stephanie Ashley of Bloomfield and Anne Hall of Birmingham.

3. Costume Contest Winners: Lori Shannon (left) of Birmingham, Robert Bourbonnais of Oakland Twp. John Armstrong of Huntington Woods and Rhonda Marvar of Pleasant Ridge.

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Nutcracker Luncheon & Boutique

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1. Volunteer Council president Janet Ankers (left) of Beverly Hills and event chair Barbara Diles of Bloomfield. 2. Past presidents Debra Partrich (seated left) and Kelly Hayes of Royal Oak with Vickie Pochron and committee member Ellie Tholen of Birmingham and committee. member Deb Savoie of Bloomfield. 3. Vogue Vintage Jewels’ artist Robin Stone of Bloomfield. 4. Klassics by Kurtis’ Curtis Posuniak (left) and John Booth of Bloomfield. 5. Janice Nichols (left) and Lucia Zurkowski of Bloomfield.

CCS 29th Detroit International Wine Auction 1. Irma Elder of Bloomfield and CCS Trustee Frank Campanale of Orchard Lake. 2. K.C. Crain (left) of Birmingham and CCS Trustee GM’s Ed Welburn of Detroit. 3. Al Lucarelli (left) of Grosse Pointe and Gretchen & Ethan Davidson of Bloomfield.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK sented by Chevrolet. In addition to the auctions, dancing, mechanical bull and games, the chow stations were a big attraction. It’s estimated that the 23 contributors donated more than $50,000 in food, beverages and services. John Forte’s kitchen even created a CBB branding iron to brand the handmade chips and slider buns served at his Forte Belanger chuck wagon. The special events caterer, who has been on the executive committee for all eight balls and was the honored volunteer in 2005, recently had a personal cancer encounter and is quick to tout the value of early detection. This year, Lear’s Mel Stephens was the honored volunteer (Cowger Leadership Award). Before the crowd enjoyed line dancing, they bid $40,000 in the silent auction and $62,000 in the brief live auction. The latter was topped with the bid for a dinner party at GM Heritage Center with ball honorary chair / GM North America president Mark Reuss and GM vice president Bob Socia and their wives Kim and Beth.

Inspired by Reuss’ brief remarks and Annabelle Road vocalist Amanda Bailey’s western-style rendition of “Happy Birthday” to cancer survivors in attendance, guests pledged $35,000 to help ACS create a world with more birthdays. In all, the event and two pre-events (golf and clay shooting) raised $625,000 for ACS patient programs and services.

Shelter’s Dancing with the Stars

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1. Event chairs Jennie & Bill Cook of Birmingham. 2. Board president Tawnya Bender (left) of Bloomfield with celebrity judge Magic 105.1’s Kevin O’Neill of Farmington and celebrity dancer Fox-2’s Jackie Paige of Bloomfield. 3. Pam (left) & board member Ed Boutrous of Bloomfield with Julie & board member Paul Lyons of Birmingham. 4. Tony (left) & Jennifer Cook of Birmingham, Elizabeth & Drew Cook of Beverly Hills, Jessica Cook of Birmingham and Ryan Cook of Royal Oak. 5. Hank Wineman (left) of Birmingham and Jimmy Pollack of Bloomfield. 6. Rod & Tammy Alberts of Bloomfield. 7. Immediate past board president Larry Murphy & his wife Jeanette of Orchard Lake with Sue Brochert & Mike Toutant of Bloomfield. 8. Emcee WDIV’s Guy Gordon of Bloomfield with celebrity dancer Birmingham salon owner Johnny Maloouf of Royal Oak and Elegance in Motion’s Kristina Rogers of Auburn Hills. 9. Board member Bob Doyle & his wife Sara of Northville with celebrity judge Lauren Rakolta and her husband Mike Fitzgerald of Birmingham. 10. Dancers tied for first place: John Gottsacker and Blaire Miller of Beverly Hills and Monica Del Signore of Bloomfield and Edwin Torres of Las Vegas, NV.

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Academy of Art’s Studio 2010 The same night as the preceding two events, more than 200 supporters of Cranbrook’s Art Academy flocked to the Science Institute’s parking structure. That’s right. The parking structure. As you might expect, the talented academy hands made it look like a bona fide party place, and it was only utilized for the festive cocktail reception.

From there, guests followed academy students to the school buses that transported all to one of the 10 department studios for strolling dinner and conversations about the creative process with students and faculty.

The event, for which tickets were $450 or $250, was the most successful since the studio tour format replaced the Guy Fawkes Ball as a fundraiser for academy scholarships.

Ladies of Charity‘s Christmas Luncheon “We didn’t have a fundraiser this year and I just thought we needed a social,” said LoC president Dorothy Perrotta. More than half the membership agreed as 175 attended the event at the Radisson Kingsley. They did have a Chinese Auction of 12 packages that was popular enough to bring in $2,300 to support the organization’s good works. It just concluded a Thanksgiving turkey project, and the next welcomes the community to help provide Christmas boxes for 250 needy families.

(To get involved, contact Michele Royer at 248- 594-2224 or Kelly Monahan at 248-203-

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0393 by Dec. 6.) Before luncheon speaker Colleen Burcar entertained the crowd with stories from her book “Michigan Curiosities,” she related a personal story of Perrotta’s thoughtfulness and declared that “…my most recent accomplishment was to join the Ladies of Charity.” Others interested in providing loving aid and care to those in need may call Perrotta at (248) 217-7222.

John H. Wineman Memorial Turkey Bowl In 1987, John Wineman started a neighborhood Thanksgiving morning football game on a street near his and Duffy’s home in Bloomfield Village. In 1990, the game had grown so big it was moved to the Cranbrook Oval where it continued to grow because Wineman welcomed all who wanted to play in the Turkey Bowl. Even when he was undergoing chemotherapy in 1998, he was on the sidelines to watch the event he cherished. Since his passing in 2000, the Turkey Bowl has continued. This year Parker Lynch, Jamal Robertson, Austin Marks and Wineman’s son Jamie decided to make the tradition an “official” memorial to its founder.

They involved the Cranbrook Alumni Association to make t-shirts, ordered Franklin Cider Mill goodies and welcomed donations to the radiation oncology research fund named for John at the University of Michigan. The Thanksgiving morning weather did not encourage a record turnout, but there were nearly 25 players and that many spectators who braved the wind and mud for the First Annual Wineman Memorial Turkey Bowl. Among the players home from Chicago for turkey day was Jon Imerman, himself a testicular cancer survivor. He started Imerman’s Angels. It makes personalized connections for cancer fighters, survivors and caregivers. Check it out at . John Wineman would surely be proud of his son’s classmate.

St. John Providence Oktoberfest Two hundred-plus supporters of St. John Providence Hospice, including the Walk with Me pediatric and palliative care program, strolled around the vast silent auction (230 items) set up at the Detroit Athletic Club.

When the bidding closed, it had raised $23,000-plus, including the $2,600 someone paid for the use of the donated three bedroom villa in the Dominican Republic. In addition to the auction and strolling buffet, another highlight was honorary co-chairs Tammy and Ray Scodeller’s touching story of their 16month-old son Tommy. At three months of age he was diagnosed with severe cerebral palsy and spastic quadriplegia. Their account, told with good humor and slides, was a tribute to the Walk with Me program. It garnered a standing ovation led by event cochairs Patti Koval and Rose Fenster. The annual Oktoberfest raised more than $65,000. downtownpublications.com

Cattle Baron’s Ball

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1. Kim & event honorary chair GM’s Mark Reuss of Bloomfield. 2. Vicki(left) & event co-chairs KPMG’s Rick Siebert of Birmingham and Betsy Meter with her husband Terry of Bloomfield. 3. 2010 Cowger Leadership Award winner Lear’s Mel Stephens (center) with presenters Kay & Gary Cowger of Bloomfield (photo by Oxygen Photos). 4. Executive committee member Forte Belanger’s John Forte of Oxford. 5. Maureen Nagle (left) & Barry Brink of Beverly Hills and Wendy & Bill Powers of Bloomfield. 6. Brian Bedwell (left) and Birmingham Realtor Dave Busch of Metamora.

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Ladies of Charity‘s Christmas Luncheon

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1. Event chair / LoC president Dorothy Perrotta (left) and Bob Kendell (Emergency Food Pantry chair) of Bloomfield with Sally Houck ( Clothes Closet chair) of Birmingham. 2. Janie DePorre (left) of Troy, event speaker Colleen Burcar, Tammy Alberts and Lisa Shephard of Bloomfield. 3. Raffle chairs Martha Vanelli (left) of Bloomfield, Martha Whiting of Birmingham and Carol Hearrell of Farmington Hills. 4. Christmas Project chairs Michelle Royer (left) and Kelly Monahan of Bloomfield. 5. Mary Jo Meso (left) and Joann Baughman of Birmingham with Bev Stenger of Bloomfield.

6. Mary Platto (left) and Brenda Conway of Troy, Nichola Hendry and Gabrielle Eschrich of Bloomfield.

John H. Wineman Memorial Turkey Bowl

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1. Parker Lynch (left) of Bloomfield, Jamie Wineman of Chicago, Jamal Robertson of Boston, MA and Austin Mark of Bloomfield. 2. Bloomfield natives Jon Imerman (left) and Jamie Wineman now of Chicago.

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St. John Providence Oktoberfest

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1. Event co-chairs Patti Koval (left) of Troy and Rose Fenster of Huntington Woods. 2. Adrienne & Dr. Jamal Zarghami of Birmingham.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Angel’s Place 18th Annual Dinner Guest speaker Ford CEO Alan Mulally attracted a crowd of 800 to Angel’s Place’s 18th annual dinner at the Hyatt Regency. He happily posed with patrons during their private reception where Jo Navin was smiling because she got a shot of Mulally kissing car dealer Hoot McInerney. When event co-chair Doug Van Dagens welcomed all at the beginning of the dinner program, he revealed that Mulally had also written a substantial personal check for the organization that provides developmentally disabled adults a home for life. During his speech, Mulally noted a number of recent Ford accomplishments. This prompted Kathleen McInerney to ask if he would consider coaching the Lions, to which Mulally quickly responded “No.” He also admitted that he could not give the ETA (estimated time of arrival) for stock dividends, but vowed, “It will be sooner rather than later.” He concluded by declaring, “I love Michigan, I love Ford and I love being here with you tonight.” Following a standing ovation for the “Business Person of the Year”, car dealer Doug North pulled the winning raffle ticket for his donation of a two-year lease on a 2011 Ford Fiesta. It was won by Terry Nagel, Jr. who donated it back to Angel’s Place, of which his mother was a cofounder. Another highlight of the evening was Mark Tisdale’s acceptance of the Touched

by An Angel Award for staging 16 annual benefit concerts for AP. He confided that it all developed because 18 years ago his wife gave him voice lessons for a Christmas gift. The very congenial evening raised $200,000, including the $40,000 raised by the raffle.

Angel’s Place 18th Annual Dinner

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1. Guest speaker Ford’s Alan Mulally of Dearborn with probate judge-elect Kathy Ryan of Bloomfield. 2. Event co-chairs Connie Hudas (left) of Orchard Lake, Bridget VanDagens of Beverly Hills and Kendra Cassidy and Judy Hildebrand of Bloomfield. 3. Cousins Ryan (left) and Jack McInerney of Birmingham with honorary co-chairs Gwen and Doug North of Bloomfield. 4. Honorary co-chairs Irma Elder (left) and Sarah & Tony Earley of Bloomfield.

5. Tammy Lawrence (left) of Lake Orion and Brian Simon of Grosse Pointe with brothers Tom and Hoot McInerney of Bloomfield. 6. Bobby McInerney (left) of Bloomfield and his brother Jim McInerney of Birmingham with their cousin Tom & his wife Sue McInerney of Dearborn and Tom’s mother Jackie McInerney of Bloomfield. 7. Award recipient Mark Tisdel of Rochester Hills with his wife Susan (left) and Angels’ Place’s Barbara Urbiel of Dearborn. 8.

Fred Minturn (left) of Grosse Pointe & Charlie Streeter of Beverly Hills with past chairs Bob & Mary Clare Pulte of Bloomfield. 9. Birmingham native Katie Rourke Peterson (left) of Troy and her mother Madeline Rourke of Birmingham. 10. Mary & Birmingham native/event sponsor Jay Joliat of Troy.

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Heart to Heart de Mode

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1. Honorary chair Florine Ministrelli (left) of W. Bloomfield with co-chairs Lois Shaevsky of Bloomfield and Marion Ginopolis of W. Bloomfield. 2. Linda O’Brien (left) of Orchard Lake with event co-chair Harriett Fuller of Bloomfield. 3. Heart center director Dr. Pamela Marcovitz of Ann Arbor (center) with Julie (left) and Sally Marx of Bloomfield. 4. Committee member Maureen D’Avanzo and Mary Beth MacGuidwin of Bloomfield. 5. Julie Schubot Haimon (left) of Tel Aviv with committee members Sydell Schubot of Franklin and Rosemary Bannon of Beverly Hills. 6.

Roz Jacobson (left) of Birmingham and Monica Del Signore of Bloomfield. 7. Committee member Barbra Bloch (left) of Bloomfield and Danialle Karamos of Orchard Lake. 8. Sis Fisher (left) and her daughter Yvonne McCready of Bloomfield. 9.

Joann Colliver (left) of Birmingham with committee member Alice Belfie of Troy and Jeanne Heyner of Bloomfield.

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Heart to Heart de Mode The 12 Chinese raffle items on display at the pre-luncheon reception of Beaumont’s Ministrelli Women’s Heart Center’s event competed with the socializing that is de rigueur for ladies who lunch. However, by the time the 160 guests strolled from Saks Fifth Avenue’s east court to Brio Tuscan Grill for lunch, they had managed to buy $2,500 worth of raffle tickets. After a superb lunch they strolled back to Saks. Before the runway fashion show, Ministrelli Women’s Heart Center director Dr. Pamela Marcovitz told guests, “You have my heart-felt thanks, pun intended.” Beaumont Foundation’s Margaret Cooney Casey noted that Florine Ministrelli was a woman with a mission when she established the heart center and praised the event leadership. SFA’s Cheryl Hall Lindsay, whose commentary of the show was fun and enlightening, acknowledged that the red dress segment in the show was a Ministrellii request. After the show many of the guests used their gift cards, quite a few of them selecting items from the show. The popular event netted nearly $20,000 for the heart center.

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Madonna University’s Consular Reception Madonna University’s Director of International Relations Dr. Jonathan Swift hosted a reception at his Bloomfield Township home so consul generals serving the region could meet each other as well as the type of people who impact the international scene, which is the subject of Swift’s Bloomfield Cable Television show “Global Connections.” The newest member of the consular corps, Louay Al-Saidi, heads up the first Iraqi Consulate-General in the U.S. He serves the largest Arab community in the nation. The warm hospitality was equaled by the cuisine. It was catered by Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital’s chef. Such offerings as the succulent mini crab cakes gave guests a whole new conception of “hospital food.” The congenial evening ended around the bar with guests sampling an impressive international selection of cordials.

Crittenton Foundation’s Annual Gourmet Gala Before the 715 Crittenton Hospital supporters began grazing at the 34th Annual Gourmet Gala, Frank Beckman and Olympian Peter Vabnderkaay led a champagne toast to the medical center’s Cornerstone Campaign, which will raise funds for a new five-story patient tower. The ceremony concluded with the Notre Dame Prep Honors Ensemble singing “Celebrate the Good Times,” and then people headed to the food stations. There guests devoured such savories as The Holly Hotel’s lobster banger with artichoke crème and Kruse & Muer’s lobster macaroni & cheese and roasted sirloin sliders. The event committee, which was headed by Gail Rink and Patricia Sottile, did not presume to judge the cuisine donated by 43 generous restaurants and vintners, but they did judge the presentation creativity. This award went to Great Oaks Country Club, which was serving Thanksgiving dinner on a sweet potato chip.

The event at the Troy Marriott netted $266,300. It‘s earmarked for the Cornerstone Campaign which Boyd Farnam and John Gaber are chairing.

Elmore Leonard Festival Gala Award winning producer Harvey Ovshinsky, who conducts workshops at The Community House, attended the inaugural meeting called to brainstorm ideas for a filmrelated event. As the discussion seemed to be lacking focus he provided it by noting, “You’ve got a Michigan legend right here.” Thus began many months of pulling together from all over the country the elements that became the Elmore Leonard Literary Arts & Film Festival.

It generated entries in teen short story and screenplay contests and drew nearly 325 people to TCH for panel discussions with national experts and film screenings on each of the two nights preceding the Saturday night Gala. downtownpublications.com

Madonna University’s Consular Reception

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2. Murray Wikol (center) of Bloomfield with Butzel Long interns Helena Stigmark (left) of Sweden and Jakub Walkowocz of Poland and Julie & Madonna Art Department chair Doug Semivan of Royal Oak. 3. Consul General of Chile Mariela Griffor (left) of Grosse Pointe, Consul of Mexico Vincente Sanchez Ventura (left) of Birmingham and Deputy Consul General of Japan Midori Takeuchi of Huntington Woods.

4. Consul General of Macedonia Igor Dukoski (left) of Novi, Madonna’s Sherif Afifi of Ann Arbor and Fatima Salemassi of Dearborn Hgts, with Consul General of Lebanon Bachir Eawk of Troy and Nicole Mator of Trenton. 5. Irene Sarrington (left) of the UK with author/architect Tom and Kathy Grace of Dexter. 6. Martha (left) and film advisor Ed Stencel of Royal Oak with Joe Knollenberg of Bloomfield.

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Crittenton Foundation’s Annual Gourmet Gala

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1. Hospital board chair Robert Lenihan (left) of Bloomfield; foundation CEO Katy Olsen and hospital CEO Lynn Orfgen of Rochester Hills with Sandi Seyferth of Rochester.

2. Peter & committee member Chris de Steiger of Rochester Hills. 3. Chef Randy Emert (2nd from the left) and the staff of Great Oaks Country Club, winner of the 2010 Creative Presentation Award. 4. Steve Kirksey (left), Linda Davis-Kirksey and Judge Lisa Asadoorian of Rochester Hills. 5. Ted Teeter (right) of P.F. Chang’s China Bistro in Troy and his children. 6. Frank Beckmann (left) of Rochester, hospital CEO Lynn Orfgen of Rochester Hills, Olympic Gold Medalist / Rochester native Peter Vanderkaay of Ann Arbor and foundation board chair Dr. Anthony Nehra of Rochester.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Elmore Leonard Festival Gala

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1. Elmore Leonard (center) of Bloomfield with his son Chris (left) of Ann Arbor and author/sports columnist/festival panelist Mike Lupica of New Canaan, CT. 2. Event chairs Jackie Sefferman (left) of Bloomfield and Kathy Wilson of Birmingham. 3. Cindy & filmmaker Steven Karageanes of Plymouth with sponsor Greenleaf Trust’s Molly Shor & her husband Dan Asmus of Bloomfield.

4. TCH president Shelley Roberts (left) of Birmingham with host committee members Eileen & Michigan Film Office’s Richard Jewell Detroit. 5. Festival panelists attorney Steve Enright (left) with his wife Joann of Birmingham and producer/director/cinematographer Ed Stencel with his wife Martha of Royal Oak. 6. Committee member Katy Leonard Dudley & her husband Jim of Birmingham with their sons Luke (left front), Nick & Joe. 7. Gary (left) & committee member Jane Leonard Jones (right) of Bloomfield with their daughters Shannon Belmont of Chicago and Megan Freels of Los Angelus. 8. Gala emcee Ken Calvert & his wife Ann of Birmingham. 9.

Host committee members Brad & Meg Ferron of Bloomfield. 10. Bill Cline with his wife Kay (left) and sister Bev Leonard Decker of Bloomfield. 11. Festival panelist Kip Williams (left) of NYC & LA with his aunt / committee member Wendy Williams Powers of Bloomfield, Liz Wilson of Birmingham (the co-chair’s daughter) and former Birminghamer Judy Keating, now of Lexington, KY. 12. Meg Diehl Butzier (left) & Kevin Volckaert and host committee members Anne & Archie Damman of Bloomfield.

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The Gala was an extraordinary celebration of talent and family. It attracted 190, including 100 for the VIP reception where we met one Leonard fan from Canada, whose VIP Gala ticket was a 50th birthday present from his wife.

The Gala program emcee was Ken Calvert, who mentioned he has been in three Elmore Leonard books. Writer/sports columnist Mike Lupica began his tribute by admitting “I’m Elmore Leonard’s biggest fan.” He then declared that regardless of genre “…Leonard is the greatest living American writer ….there will never be another career like his...Elmore Leonard is as unique at what he does as Frank Sinatra was…. The only thing better than reading Elmore Leonard is knowing Elmore Leonard.”

The Gala program also featured humorous memories shared by Leonard’s sons and two compelling films - a personal tribute by grandson Tim Leonard and a professional tribute by DMC’s Dr. Steve Karageanes, who is also a writer/director/producer (). The former about “Goppa” included footage from the days when Leonard and his wife had five young children who are all still really close and were all at the Gala. It was laced with observations like the irony of the macho crime writer being “…the only man I know who smokes Virginia Slims.”

The latter contained dramatic clips from Leonard films. It focused on the vital elements like dialogue, character, action, Detroit and the women. For the clips, Karageanes said he had to watch 25 movies, which he was able to do thanks to Netflix.

When the 85-year—old “National Literary Treasure” and “The Dickens of Detroit” spoke, he mentioned some specifics: “Be Cool was a terrible movie…I like to introduce bad girls. Bad girls are fun.” But mostly he conveyed the notion that he really likes what he does. “You don’t want to work; that’s why you write…Why not have fun…I can’t think of a better way to make a living…I’ve no idea of my next book, but we’ll find out,” he concluded.

Following the program, many danced to Johnny Trudell’s music. Huel Perkins’ evaluation of the evening as “Fabulous!” was echoed by all we interviewed.

DIA @125 Gala On the same night as the Elmore Leonard Festival Gala, the Detroit Institute of Arts celebrated its 125th birthday with a gala event that people are still talking about. It honored Marianne and Alan Schwartz and attracted 650 for the sit down dinners and another 115 for the late night party. Both the end of the evening and the beginning reception were staged in a “new room” created just for the milestone soiree. It was actually the outdoor loggia (on the east side of the museum), enclosed in a clear tent floored for dancing, lighted with klieg lights and sparkling reflections from a disco ball hanging two stories high. Other wow factors were the human chandeliers/wall sconces and

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a human candelabra. There was also a live version of ‘The Thinker’ on top of the bar.

SKY Foundation Brunch for Cancer Research “I’m very lucky to be standing here. I’m alive.

I’m well, thanks to Ann Silverman and Henry Ford Hospital,” said Sheila Sky Kasselman. She was speaking to the 200 guests gathered for brunch at The Village Club. They were there because Kasselman is on a mission – to fund research into what saved her life - the early detection of pancreatic cancer. Thanks to the nearly $200,000 her foundation has already raised, research began early this year. The speakers - Silverman, director of GI research at HFHS; Steve Dudas, researcher at Karmanos and Wayne State University; and Michael Tainsky, WSU professor of oncology – spoke about the challenges. Kasselman thanked lots of people, including Lucy Benham and Carol Quiggley and the other table sponsors who invited friends to learn about the project. In addition to the information and delicious brunch, there was a silent auction and much socializing. The event raised more than $25,000.

The next fundraiser will be 1–3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 13 at Leon & Lulu’s, the eclectic emporium in a former Clawson roller skating rink.

DIA @125 Gala

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1. Honorees Marianne & Alan E. Schwartz of Bloomfield. 2. Gala co-chair Fair Radom of Bloomfield. 3. Gala co-chair Gayle Camden (left) and Deborah Cracchiola of Grosse Pointe with Janis Wetsman of Birmingham. 4. Gala co-chair Yvette Bing of Detroit and Linda Gillum of Bloomfield. 5. Alfred & Judith Taubman of Bloomfield. 6. Marcia & Eugene Applebaum of Bloomfield. 7. Ethan Davidson of Bloomfield. 8. Tim Sullivan, Shital Patel and Elizabeth Mezzacappo, of Royal Oak, Jeff Antaya of Birmingham, Vivian Broom of Southfield.

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SKY Foundation Brunch for Cancer Research Detroit Zoological Society’s Celebration More than 120 Detroit Zoological Society Renaissance Circle members ($1,200-$15,000 annual donation) and zoo events corporate sponsors attended the DZS annual Holiday Celebration at the Ford Educational Center. A superb exhibition of contemporary Inuit art commanded much attention during the reception that preceded a showing of “Planet Earth Pole to Pole” in the 3-D/40-D theatre.

A bountiful buffet of international holiday fare followed the showing. When he wasn’t devouring crab claws, young Alex Burnstein let it be known that he was not fooled by the special effects in the theatre. “That water came from the back of seat in front of you,” he announced. The Inuit exhibition closes Jan. 16. Go to to find out about enjoying the zoo during the winter.

Stanton benefit for Orchards Children’s Services Kudos to Drew Stanton and his High Five Foundation, Pizzeria Biga owners Monica and Luciano Del Signore, and the 15 Detroit Lions and two Red Wings who served some 1,000 diners at the Southfield eatery one evening last month. Counting the auction of such treasures as a Ndammukong Suh - signed football and Stanton’s pink cleats from Breast Cancer Awareness Month, plus a percentage of the dinner’s donated by Pizzeria Biga, the event raised more than $15,000. This will enable the Lions to take 100 Orchards Children’s Services kids Christmas shopping.

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1. Foundation founder Sheila Sky Kasselman (left) of W. Bloomfield and committee member/table sponsor Judy McClelland of Birmingham. 2. Table sponsors / foundation board chair Dave Weir (left) and Bob Kupfer of Bloomfield. 3.

Committee member /table sponsor Janice Steinhardt of Birmingham with her brother Dan & Elayne Steinhardt of Southfield. 4. Bob (left) & Jane Barrett of Beverly Hills with table sponsors Barbara & Dennis De Clerk of Bloomfield.

5. Jan Bird (left) of Birmingham and Doug & Gale Colwell of Bloomfield.

6. Susan Foley (left) of Birmingham with Doug & Linda Ebert of Bloomfield.

7. Jeanne Towar (center) of Bloomfield with Pam & Tim Doyle of Birmingham.

8. Millicent Worrell (left) of Beverly Hills, Carol Peck of Bloomfield, Julie Fries of Beverly Hills & Ray Guidos Bloomfield.

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Detroit Zoological Society’s Celebration

1 Send ideas for this column to Sally Gerak, 28 Barbour Lane, Bloomfield Hills, 48304; email samgerak@aol.com or call 248.646.6390.

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1. GM’s Fred Fromm & his wife Kathy of Bloomfield with Wendy & Alesha Beistlime of Shelby Twp. 2. Tracey, Alex and Dr. Mark Burnstein of Bloomfield.

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1. Detroit Lion Drew Stanton (back left) of Northville with Drew (front left), Scoot and Sara Simon of Birmingham. 2.

Detroit Lion Ndamukong Suh (back right) with Brett Sutherland (left) of Rochester, Christian Wohler of Bloomfield and Blake Sutherland of Rochester.

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ENDNOTE

An Open Letter to City Manager Robert Bruner elcome to Birmingham. As the new city manager, filling the position held for over two decades by Tom Markus, this will certainly be an exciting and busy time once you start Feb. 14.

You no doubt will have a litany of suggestions from elected and appointed officials, as well as staff in city hall, so we thought we would pass along some observations and concerns, all against the background of what you told city officials when you were applying that your style is one of “listening, rather than talking.”

First, we are pleased that your management style recognizes that the “staff are the experts.”

Tom Markus developed a good staff, starting with Assistant City Manager Joe Valentine who has been with the city for 14 years. Frankly, a number of city officials were surprised when Valentine did not throw his hat in the ring for the city manager vacancy, so obviously many think he is knowledgeable, with much to offer the city, so make sure you tap his potential. It's important to have allies.

Yet, while the rest of the staff remains strong, we also caution that a strong staff can also have its limitations and will need a strong hand of moderation at the till to steer them from time to time. Take the recent push by some in planning to put vendors in city alleyways and parks. The concept got a poor reception from the general public and the business community, and we have

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to assume that Markus used his skills to redirect and refocus this effort. There will be other similar challenges in the coming years, so using the “orchestra” and “conductor” analogy you offered during your interviews, be prepared to tell the players when the tune you hear is off-key.

Also be prepared to be a facilitator, as Markus often was, as various factions can become stalemated on issues. Anyone in city government can give you examples of how Markus was able to break logjams in the past. Your constituency in Birmingham is educated, involved and passionate.

So, as a “conductor” you must be prepared to lead the way once you have listened to all sides and render a carefully adjudicated opinion.

Second, another of the things Markus accomplished during his tenure was to make sure the business community understood and was not reticent about proclaiming its value to the city. All too often in the past decade the business community, which really is what defines this city in many ways, became the whipping boy of special interest groups in Birmingham. Markus understood the value to the overall community of having a strong, vibrant and varied business community, be it retail or commercial, and he helped bring the Principal Shopping District board to its rightful position as an important voice in the community on various issues of importance to the city. Please work to make sure this tradition continues.

Third, stay true to the Downtown Birmingham

2016 Master Plan. Your predecessor helped usher in this blueprint for development, and considerable talent and energy has been put into making sure the Central Business District has the right mix of retail, business and residential to populate it, zoning to allow it to develop and grow with a sustainable plan, and defined green space. At the same time, recognize that the Rail District may well be the next area of new vibrancy in the city, even without the on-again, off-again new transit center, the verdict on which we still think is out. There appears to be some talent and excitement in that portion of the city, so make sure this opportunity is not lost.

Lastly, pick up the gauntlet of consolidation and sharing of city services with neighboring communities. We assume your municipal financial background has already alerted you to the future challenges all communities are facing. The city had a study done in the last couple of years on what possible services could be shared with Birmingham's neighbors. It should be bedtime reading for any new manager. Markus was already working with Bloomfield Township on possible service sharing possibilities in some areas, like dispatching, and we think that there is willingness on the part of many to explore this further. We know you will have many things on your plate in the coming months, but this should be a top priority, so please don't waste the opportunity.

Resolve the retention basin dispute he municipalities of Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills have been at odds with the Oakland County Water Resources Commission for months regarding management costs, lease agreement schedules and the question of whether some neighboring communities leased or purchased on a permanent basis capacity in three storm water retention basins built in the late 1990s.

The Water Resources Commission, which represents 15 Oakland County communities, convened a work group with representatives from these communities to try to come to a consensus.

Yet, despite meeting over an 18-month period, they disbanded this summer without coming to a resolution. It is now incumbent upon Water Commissioner John McCullough to render a decision, and to do it quickly, before more time passes and greater animosity between communities and the commission grows.

In the late 1990s, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) told the Water Resources Commission that improvements would have to be made to the Evergreen-Farmington Sewage Disposal System to decrease the number of sanitary sewer overflows, especially during storms.

The water commission proposed diversions through retention treatment basins, freeing capacity in the

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Evergreen Interceptor.

A retention treatment basin is a large underground concrete storage tank and treatment facility used to hold combined sewage and storm water when the sewage disposal system reaches its maximum capacity during wet weather. It is typically 95 percent storm water, and the rest wastewater. The water is either held until there is adequate capacity in the sewer system, or it will be treated through a settling, screening and disinfection process before it is released into local lakes and streams. Discharges of this nature are authorized by a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit that is issued and regulated by the state.

Based on past practices with the water commission, local communities acquired capacity in the interceptor based on changing municipal conditions and needs. Birmingham, for example, has excess capacity, while other communities have less capacity than needed and added capacity was supposedly leased to such communities.

The debate now centers on when the actual 10year leasing arrangement began and whether the additional capacity was a temporary lease situation or an outright purchase of added capacity for the future, particularly as it applies to Farmington.

Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills contend the capacity usage of the retention basins has been on a ten-year lease, and they have been seeking to determine when that lease took effect, and when it expires. Farmington and Southfield assert that it should be a permanent purchase, and that other communities, like Birmingham and Bloomfield Township, should not receive any further compensation.

McCullough told Downtown that he has made a decision, and that Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Beverly Hills should receive appropriate reimbursement for operation and maintenance costs for the retention treatment basins, and that it is a lease situation, not a purchase, which will expire in 2015. He needs to put this verdict in writing and communicate it to his constituent communities, and the sooner the better because it has taken too long to reach a conclusion on this important issue.

By finalizing and committing to his resolution on this topic, it will stop the sniping and backbiting between local communities, who need to work together in an era when shared services are going to become more and more common place. It will also allow McCullough to step forward as the leader he was elected to be.

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City of Bloomfield Hills waterfront on rolling acreage. Private cul-de-sac setting. Ranch style with open floor plan and walkout lower level. Separate guest accommodations. $949,000

All Sports Pine Lake

Neutral décor with granite kitchen that opens to 2 story great room. Judge’s library. Large bedrooms and master suite. 4 car garage.

Lakefront home with walkout lower level.

Southwest facing. Long deep lot. Ideal recreational opportunity or build your dream home. A great destination location.

$599,900

$599,000

KATHY@MAXBROOCKHOMES.COM

MAX BROOCK REALTORS 275 S. Old Woodward Ave. Birmingham, MI 48009

G N I D

N E P

D

L O S

Franklin Community

Beverly Hills Home

Completely Rebuilt

Oakland Hills Country Club

Build your own estate home in the heart of Franklin on 1.73 acres corner lot.

Surrounded by multi-million dollar homes.

Walk to town.

With over 5,194 square feet of living.

Apartment with full kitchen and living quarters. Three car garage. Birmingham schools.

Soft contemporary with stainless steel kitchen. Master suite with dual closets, Euro bath, fireplace and sitting area/office. Great room with bar and fireplace.

South course frontage. Quaint ranch with formal living room and dining room.

Charming street. Birmingham schools.

$399,000

$319,000

$299,000

$250,000

KATHYBROOCKHOMES.COM