Grand Rapids Business Journal 04.19.21

TRANSFORMANDO spring cohort shares lessons.

PAGE 3

APR 19, 2021 VOL. 39, NO. 8

The Business Newspaper of Metro Grand Rapids, Holland, Muskegon & West Michigan

THIS WEEK

EXPOSURE CAN CHANGE A LIFE

Salvador Lopez’s work with KConnect promotes a ‘cradle-to-career’ approach to community impact.

Page 11

Cost of housing far outpaces rise in wages GRAR says first-time homebuyers especially are struggling in a hot market.

Ehren Wynder

ewynder@grbj.com

School daze State superintendent proposes more learning days to combat COVID-19 slippage.

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Wine notes State reports more farms cultivating more acres of wine grapes over last five years.

PAGE 4

WORK INITIATIVE MSF approves $7.5M in Regional Talent Innovation Grants, $1.5M for Michigan STEM Forward internship program.

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THE LISTS

The area’s top breweries and brew pubs. Page 6 The area’s top distilleries.

Page 7 The area’s top wineries and cider mills. Page 7

While workers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming metro area have seen their wages grow by 5.2% over the past six years, the area’s average sale price for a single-family home has increased 64.5% during the same period.

According to the Greater Regional Alliance of Realtors, the average home sales price went from $152,274 in January 2015 to $248,170 this January.

According to GRAR, 99.6% of single-family homes sold above the list price in January 2021 compared to 96% in January 2015. The average number of days a single-family home was on the market in 2015 was 71, compared to 34 this year.

Julie Rietberg, GRAR executive director, said the problem of affordability comes from availability, particularly availability of homes affordable for people who

make lower wages and are just entering the housing market. Primarily, builders are not building houses a first-time homebuyer would consider affordable, she said.

“If you look at how housing has increased in this area, it’s lightning speed compared to salary and wage increases,” Rietberg said. “What’s interesting is if you look at people coming here from other areas, they think it’s affordable. They sell their house elsewhere for $1 million and can buy a house here for half of that.

The difficulty is in the first-time homebuyer range.”

Rietberg said the current market gives builders little motivation to build for that first-time buyer market. These conditions stem partly from the skyrocketing cost of lumber. Lumber prices have risen more than 180% since last spring, driving up new home prices.

Dawn Crandall, political affairs director for the Home Builders Association of Michigan, said the price of shingles has gone up as well, making roofing more expensive.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

According to HBA figures, the median new home price is about $287,000 in the Grand Rapids/Kentwood area, and the income needed to be able to afford such a home is about $67,000 per year.

Photo by iStock

New leader refines The Right Place game plan Randy Thelen reframes the economic development agency’s existing strategy under three new pillars.

Rachel Watson

rwatson@grbj.com

As The Right Place moves through the second year of its three-year strategic plan, the new guy at the helm has some terminology changes he believes will help more effectively describe its plans.

Randy Thelen, president and CEO of The Right Place since March 1, said in a recent meeting with the Business Journal staff

that he celebrates and wants to build on the 33-year legacy of his longtime economic development peer, Birgit Klohs, who retired as top leader of the organization in January.

During the leadership transition period, he said he and Klohs both agreed now is not the time to ease off the gas pedal, because the region’s competitors for talent and investment are not stopping, and West Michigan can’t Thelen afford to lose the ground it’s gained in the past few years rela-

tive to other U.S. metro areas.

“We’ve got a lot of opportunity here, and I think we have stories to tell. We’ve got to get the market to understand this is a unique moment coming out of a pandemic. Do we sit back and let it pass us by, or do we attack and be bold and try to leapfrog some of our competition?” Thelen said. “This pandemic has caused a recession, caused conditions that we’ve never seen globally quite like this before, where it’s universal; it’s everywhere. Communities that have poor strategy and poor leadership are going to do poorly, and communities that have strong leadership and strong vision are going to perform really well. We’ve got the makings of (the latter) here, and we’ve got to take full advantage.”

GRBJ.COM Vol. 39, No. 8 $2.00 a copy. $59 a year © Entire contents copyright 2021 by Gemini Media. All rights reserved.

Inside Track ...... 11 Guest Columns.. 16 Economy for all

CITY’S equity plan moves forward.

Change-Ups ..... 20 Calendar .......... 20 Public Record .... 21 Street Talk ...... 22

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Although, as the Business Journal reported in December, The Right Place performed under plan goals in 2020, attributable largely to the pandemic-induced recession — with job creation and retention numbers, new and retained payroll, and wage goals well below the mark the organization would have liked to hit at the oneyear point — Thelen said when compared to other regions’ capital investments during the same period, Grand Rapids stands out.

He cited Perrigo’s decision to invest $44.7 million to move its North American headquarters from Allegan to downtown Grand Rapids, which will create 170 jobs, as one of the shining examples, CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

ALWAYS OPEN FOR MICHIGAN BUSINESSES. As we move through 2021, Michigan businesses will continue to adapt. And the Michigan Economic Development Corporation will be here, helping to connect businesses to new resources, meet new partners and access the additional capital they need from the start. If your business needs support to reach its new potential, the MEDC is available to help in any way we can.

Find customized business assistance at michiganbusiness.org/pure-partnership

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

3

Transformando spring cohort shares lessons Schools look

to extend learning days

Restaurant and small business owners lean on Hispanic chamber program for guidance, growth and expansion.

Pandemic has wreaked havoc with students, who need to catch up.

Rachel Watson

rwatson@grbj.com

B:14.75"

T:14.5"

S:13.62"

After taking a break during the craziness that was 2020, Transformando West Michigan returned this year with a new round of classes for its participants.

The business training program founded and led by the West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and underwritten this time around by Bank of America and Huntington Bank will graduate its spring 2021 cohort — which began meeting virtually on Feb. 1 — on April 26.

The Hispanic chamber’s Ana Jose, program manager, and Yesenia Bernal, business consultant, recently spoke to the Business Journal about this year’s iteration of the program, along with four of the 18 Latinx business participants: Paola Mendivil, co-owner of El Granjero Mexican Grill in Grand Rapids; Gricelda Mata, owner of Lindo Mexico Restaurant in Wyoming; Ismael Abreu, owner of Ismael Abreu Agency Inc. (a Farmers Insurance agency in Grand Rapids); and Jose Perez, co-owner of Kiko Studio Salon Unisex & Spa in Wyoming.

During a year in which many restaurants and small businesses were closing their doors due to the pandemic-induced economic recession, the chamber helped its members navigate 2020 with trainings on how to apply for Payroll Protection Program grants and other stimulus dollars and grant opportunities to help them stay afloat.

Then, the chamber in December secured a $100,000 grant from Bank of America to be able to hire “top-quality” instructors

Danielle Nelson

dnelson@grbj.com

•A 25-hour pro bono services program to deliver tangible solutions in the areas of marketing, finance, social media development and more from LendGR of Grand Valley State University •Two months of personalized mentoring from BetterUp •A Paycheck Protection Program presentation from Northern Initiatives •A Better Business Bureau presentation Mendivil, who co-owns El Granjero with her mother, Mercedes Lopez Duran, said she was drawn to Transformando back in 2018 because of its emphasis not only on educating entrepreneurs on how to run a better business, but ensuring they apply the lessons learned. This round of classes had her even more excited.

“This time around, this 2021 version, has been incredible,” she

Although the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt its learning process, Kent Intermediate School District is ensuring its students meet grade-level educational standards.

The school district has about 100,300 students in K-12, according to MI School Data, who attend its 20 public school districts, as well as parochial schools and public school academies.

Ron Koehler, interim superintendent for KISD, said the organization will be offering a wide range of assistance to member districts for the summer.

“We will make available to all students and districts virtual high school courses for students who need to make up credits to maintain pace with their peers and remain on track to graduate,” he said. “We will offer summer camps to younger students for enrichment and hands-on-learning at our Tech Center (and) provide direct assistance to districts with summer curriculum to ensure it aligns with state content expectations, which will allow students the opportunity for deeper learning or to approach content that may have been challenging to them in a different way (and) which will prepare them for the school year ahead.”

Koehler said KISD is having discussions with some of its partners, such as Kent District

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

Lindo Mexico owner Gricelda Mata said the class on colorism, as well as coaching on pricing and menu options, proved helpful and will lead to changes at the restaurant. Courtesy Transformando West Michigan

and mentors to lead Transformando classes free of charge in the spring, as well as provide them with assistance to restart their businesses, Jose said.

This particular cohort of Transformando was dubbed “Transformando Nuestras Metas,” or “transforming our goals.”

The sessions helped participants get the tools they need to overcome the current economic challenges. The concepts explored during the three-month program included finances, digital marketing, sustainability, and mentorship through a lens of equity and inclusion.

The cohort included the following components: •A four-week “Colorism” workshop series from AQUME Consulting LLC •A four-week “Growing a Small Business” workshop series from Bank of America •An eight-week training pro-

gram designed to teach restaurants concepts and systems that will make their businesses more efficient from Grand Rapids American Culinary Federation (GGRACF) •A 12-week training program designed to provide financial and strategic planning and one-onone coaching to cohort participants from D’Oleo Analytica •A six-week marketing and sales training program designed to empower growth in sales, revenue and impact through education, connection, leadership and a digital audit from Grow Business Today •A five-week “Social Media Marketing” workshop series from the Michigan Small Business Development Center •A three-week “Sustainability” workshop series from U.S. Green Building Council West Michigan and West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum

City’s equity plan moves forward One year later, office of economic development reports over $1 million in MBE investment.

Ehren Wynder

ewynder@grbj.com

Nearly a year since his appointment as Grand Rapids’ economic development director, Jeremiah Gracia reported his office has made great strides in leading the city’s equitable economic development plan, adopted in January 2020, including a commitment from two developers to invest more than $1 million in minority contractors.

Gracia said every decision his office makes both program- and policy-wise has revolved around the equitable economic development plan.

“When I started in May, one of the reasons that attracted me to this opportunity with this city was that plan itself,’ Gracia said.

“There was a plan that already had been adopted, and it was implementation time. Credit to the team that was here to make sure that plan was adopted so we had common ground to work with businesses and community stakeholders.”

The plan lays out specific short-term, near-term and longterm goals, and the economic development department specifically has been focused on achieving those short-term goals, which Gracia said could take as little as a year.

Some key short-term goals are information — given the recent rebrand of the economic development department’s website courtesy Well Design Studio — incentive, small business support, neighborhood business district development and eco-

nomic growth as it relates to underserved entrepreneurs.

“Now we’re in what I would describe as the testing phase,” Gracia said. “We’ve put a minimum viable product out there (the website), and we’re testing those things in the market and making sure that we get consistent feedback, make some changes and put another product out there.”

Regarding the revamped EDD website, Gracia said the office wanted to ensure it improved its accessibility to its services, be a hub of information, and identify and promote inclusive business practices.

“We needed to make that clear,” Gracia said. “I said this to Well Design and our team, we’ve got to simplify it to where we talk to anyone, we can tell them, ‘if you want to know how the city can support you, you go to this page,’ and those programs are there, and they are written in a plain, concise language, so you don’t get lost.”

Six projects are in the works in Grand Rapids that have completed the equity plan and are ready to begin construction. Courtesy City of GR Economic Development Department

Through the incentive process, developers are expected to have a certain percentage of women-, minority- and micro-local busi-

ness enterprise (WBE, MBE and MLBE) participation through CONTINUED ON PAGE 21

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APR 19, 2021

Wine grapes growing in popularity throughout state There’s also a push to turn the Grand Rapids area into a wine destination.

Danielle Nelson

dnelson@grbj.com

The Michigan Craft Beverage Council released its 2020 Michigan Grape and Hop Inventory report in March, and it revealed the wine grape inventory in Michigan increased by 325 acres.

According to the report, the state has 3,375 acres of wine grapes that are maintained on 257 farms. In 2016, there were 3,050 acres of wine grapes grown on 252 farms.

The type of grape most often planted in the state is Riesling.

There are currently 670 Riesling acres in Michigan, but “other grapes with notable acreage include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc,”

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL the report stated.

Since 2011, there has been a 400-acre increase in grapes on the northwest side of the state, which includes Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties, among others. In that same region, during that nine-year time span, there were eight new farms developed for wine grapes.

In the northern part of the state, including the Upper Peninsula and Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan and Emmett counties, among others, nine grape farms were added since 2016 for a total of 46.

The southwestern side of the state saw a decline in farms and the acreage for grapes, according to the report. In 2011, there were 288 farms, but last year the total number of farms was reduced to 166. In 2011, there were 13,250 acres for grapes but last year that number dwindled to 8,600 acres.

Bob Bonga, owner of Cascade Winery in Kentwood, doesn’t have a vineyard, so he has been buying grapes from vineyards in the southwestern part of the state for a number of years. However, he said his contract with one of his longtime producers of grapes was recently canceled.

“My contract with my biggest producer that I have been buying from for the last few years was canceled after last year because St. Julian pretty much gobbled up his production,” he said, referring to one of the largest wineries in the state. “He had a couple hundred acres. St. Julian is in growth mode and they are definitely tak-

Michigan added another 325 acres of wine grapes to its production capacity over the past five years.

Photo by iStock

ing up a lot of (grape) production.

They are the oldest winery in the state of Michigan.”

St. Julian Winery is based in Paw Paw and is celebrating its 100-year anniversary this year.

Nevertheless, Bonga said he believes the wine grape inventory will continue to grow.

“Hopefully, our state will continue to increase that because the demand is there, consumption of wine and ciders are up and it continues to go up, and I don’t see where that is going to go down anytime soon,” he said.

While the northern and northwestern portions of the state have been steadily increasing wine grape inventory, Dale Flanery and his wife, Mary, are trying to promote the Grand Rapids region so

that more wineries will come to the area.

They are the owners of Stoney Ridge Vineyard in Kent City.

They purchased what was then farmland in 2012 and converted it into a vineyard by planting thousands of grapevines in 2013 and 2017 that cover 4.5 acres of land.

They grow seven varieties of grapes and last June opened a tasting room and winery. Flanery said they plan to open a kitchen next month.

Mary Flanery deems Grand Rapids the “central region” due to its location between Fenn Valley Vineyard and St. Julian to the south and the Traverse City wineries in the north.

“Our goal is to get this center part of Michigan to have its own

AVA, which is American Viticultural Area,” Flanery said. “Once you have that designation you can start branding your wines and wineries in that region, similar to what they do in Old Mission, Leelanau Peninsula and the Lake Michigan Shore AVAs.” Mary Flanery said the demand for more wineries and vineyards will continue to increase in this region because people are becoming more informed and educated about wine and the different flavors of wine, as well as what types of food to pair with them. “(People) no longer have to drive two-and-a-half hours to have a full winery and vineyard experience,” she said. “It is right here locally, 20 minutes from Grand Rapids.”

MEDC launches programs to strengthen state’s workforce MSF approves $7.5M in Regional Talent Innovation Grants, $1.5M for Michigan STEM Forward internship program.

Rachel Watson

rwatson@grbj.com

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation recently committed $9 million to programs that it said will address short- and long-term workforce needs in the state.

The MEDC’s Michigan Strategic Fund last month approved two programs as part of MEDC’s Talent Expansion Signature Initiative helping to strengthen Michigan’s competitive advantage when it comes to talent and workforce — particularly in retraining and upskilling the state’s existing workforce and growing its tech talent.

The two programs — the Regional Talent Innovation Grants and Michigan STEM Forward — will address near- and long-term workforce challenges for Michigan’s economy by supporting job training initiatives tailored to regional workforce demands and helping to retain STEM talent in Michigan.

The MSF approved $7.5 million for the Regional Talent Innovation Grants and $1.5 million for the Michigan STEM Forward program, which will be used over a one-year pilot period. The pro-

grams will then either be scaled up or discontinued based on their results. “(These) actions demonstrate our focus on supporting and strengthening Michigan’s workforce as we continue to implement our Michigan Back to Work plan to get Michiganders back on their feet,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on March 23. “From building on our state’s agricultural strengths to creating vibrant communities, we remain committed to creating the places where people want to live, work, visit and play, and where businesses want to invest and grow.”

Josh Hundt is executive vice president and business development officer at the MEDC. He said the initiatives will help strengthen Michigan’s economy and help the state work toward its goals of 60% of its workforce securing a postsecondary Hundt degree or credential by 2030 and having the largest net gain of talent in the Midwest by 2025.

“Right now, we have a workforce that has the highest concentration of engineers in the country and is a top 10 skilled trades workforce, and we need to ensure that we continue to build that pipeline of talent while also expanding into other areas of leadership, including software development and areas where we can continue

to grow and have our workforce be ready for the jobs of the future,” he said.

“Both (programs) will play a role over the long term to help Michigan overcome three challenges: a shrinking talent pool, a supply/demand mismatch of talent and employment loss for lower income individuals. We want to make sure that we can overcome those challenges by having training programs like these that fill the needs and key industries in the state, that help continue to attract talent to our vibrant communities, and we want to make sure that we continue to retain our talented college graduates here in the state.”

Regional Talent Innovation Grants This program will provide $7.5 million in community development block grant (CDBG) CARES Act funding to local economic development organizations and workforce development partners across the state through proposals for competitive training pilot programs in their regions.

The funds will provide grants of between $500,000 and $950,000 to eligible economic development organizations or other nonprofits, which will administer the training programs and target growth in specific occupations in high demand from regional employers.

A priority will be training programs focused on low- to moderate-income individuals, particularly those living in geographically disadvantaged areas. It is expected that through these efforts, at

least 750 individuals will receive training helping to address the lack of post-secondary credentials and a skills mismatch in occupations related to the MEDC’s strategic focus industries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in large-scale job losses across many industries, with disproportionate impacts on individuals working in low-wage occupations and those with lower educational attainment. Also as a result of COVID-19, businesses now have less capital available to dedicate toward training programs that would enable their workers to obtain industry-recognized, transferable credentials to continue upskilling, increasing their wages and supporting their families. These types of initiatives are designed to result in the upskilling and increased wages that will be required to set Michigan’s workforce on a path toward comprehensive economic recovery, while also safeguarding workers going from low-wage occupations to middle and high-skill occupations from future economic downturns.

Michigan STEM Forward The MEDC will partner with Ann Arbor SPARK to launch the Michigan STEM Forward internship program on a statewide level.

SPARK has run the program on a local level through the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti SmartZone with a decade of positive results.

In scaling the program up, MEDC will work in partnership with SPARK to place 425 to 450 STEM students currently attending Michigan colleges annually

into STEM-focused internships throughout Michigan. With the support of the $1.5 million grant from the MEDC, SPARK will contribute to 50% of the interns’ pay, and participating companies will pay the remaining 50%. SPARK will track the employment status of the interns for at least 12 months to measure their retention in Michigan as well as those remaining in those knowledge positions.

“Ann Arbor SPARK is thrilled to leverage our decade of experience running our own Ann Arbor-based internship program and take the opportunity to administer the Michigan STEM Forward program on behalf of the state,” said Bill Mayer, Ann Arbor SPARK’s vice president of entrepreneurial services. “We have a solid track record of delivering results that help both businesses and job seekers. Of the students that participated in our internship program over the past five years, 84% of them accepted jobs in Michigan upon graduation. It’s vital that we not only attract talent to Michigan but retain young job seekers post-graduation as a strategy to extend the pipeline of workers available to growing companies.”

Hundt added: “These STEM careers are what are going to be important for us, to make sure that we can be successful in our goals of having a resilient, equitable and growing economy. It’s jobs like these with our talent and workforce that will help ensure that Michigan can lead the way in the national economic recovery.”

CORN. RYE. BARLEY. IT’S NOT COMPLICATED. BUT IT’S NOT SIMPLE.

Our Michigan Straight Bourbon is the signature spirit of our distillery — the purest representation of our passion. We started in 2014 to produce premium spirits with Great Lakes pride and to create a bourbon that Michiganders could call their own. When you pour a glass, you’re greeted by the subtle aroma of citrus as hints of dark chocolate and vanilla invite you to taste. Sourced from Great Lakes water, with sweet and light notes that offer a unique flavor profile and a smooth, balanced finish. We’ve created a bourbon to be sipped with the best. Right here in Grand Rapids.

E A S T E R N K I L L E .C O M

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GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

THE LIST

Top Area Breweries & Brew Pubs (RANKED BY NUMBER OF BARRELS PRODUCED 2020)

1

Perrin Brewing Company 5910 Comstock Park Drive Comstock Park 49321 p (616) 551-1957 perrinbrewing.com

2

Brewery Vivant 925 Cherry St. SE Grand Rapids 49506 p (616) 719-1604 breweryvivant.com

3

Pigeon Hill Brewing Co. 500 West Western Ave., Suite 1 Muskegon 49440 p (231) 375-5184 pigeonhillbrew.com

4

Rockford Brewing Co. 12 E. Bridge St. Rockford 49341 p (616) 951-4677 rockfordbrewing.com

5

The Mitten Brewing Co. 527 Leonard St. NW Grand Rapids 49504 p (616) 608-5612 mittenbrewing.com

6

New IPA

Owner(s)

Head brewer

Year established

2020 revenue

No. of barrels produced in 2020

CANarchy Collective

Connor Klopcic

2012

DND

11,500

Full menu

Black, 59-10 IPA, Double Pay IPA, Grapefruit IPA and No Rules

Jason Spaulding Kris Spaulding

Jacob Derylo

2010

DND

4,000

Homemade from scratch menu influenced from European countryside cooking like duck confit nachos, Vivant house ground burger, traditional bone marrow, small producer cheeses, escargot and rotating in season entrées sourced from local farms as much as possible

Wizard Burial Ground - bourbon-aged 145 inside quad, Farm Hand farmhouse ale, Rapid and 60 IPA - modern American style IPA, Grand outside when Lager - crushable beer that tastes like at full beer capacity

Food served

Popular brands

Seating capacity

250

Joel Kamp Chad Doane Michael Brower

Chad Doane

2014

DND

3,730

Snacks

S.C.P. (Salted Caramel Porter), O.C.P. (Oatmeal Creme Pie), No Diggnity, Shifting Sands IPA, Walter BlondAle

100

Seth Rivard Jeff Sheehan

Jeff Sheehan

2012

DND

2,600

Full menu

Hoplust IPA, Rogue River Brown, Sheehan's Irish Stout, Malph's Premium Beer, Bloodlust IPA, Milli Vanilli, Cactus Pear Weisse and a full menu from the restaurant

160+

Jeff Williams Jon VanderPloeg

2012

$3.25M

1,980

Pizzas, sandwiches

Country Strong, Triple Crown Brown, Peanuts and Crackerjack, Mango Gold

250

Ludington Bay Brewing Company 515 S. James St. Ludington 49431 p (231) 239-6690 ludingtonbaybrewing.com

Ted Gedra

Corey Wentworth

2015

DND

1,602

Full menu, traditional/American cuisine

D’Booty, First Curve, Tangelo Dream, Lake Phantom, 9 Wt., S.S. Badger Blue

84 indoor, 84 outdoor (seasonal), 36 private

7

Cedar Springs Brewing Company 95 N. Main St. Cedar Springs 49319 p (616) 696-2337 csbrew.com

David Ringler

Matt Peterson Brian Roeters

2013

$1.6M

500

German, smokehouse, casual dining Küsterer Original Weissbier, Küsterer Märzen

8

Fetch Brewing Co. 100 W. Colby St. Whitehall 49461 p (231) 292-1048 fetchbrewing.com

Dan Hain Jen Hain

Dan Hain

2014

DND

350

No

DND

78

9

Broad Leaf Brewery & Spirits 2885 Lake Eastbrook Blvd.

Kentwood 49512 p (616) 803-0602 broadleafbeer.com

2019

DND

225

Street food style

Cult Pils, Hazy J, Beamed Propulsion

100

Appetizers and snacks, dinner items Porter, Russian Imperial, IPA, Black IPA, Cream Ale, ciders, specialties and seasonal brews

Jaden James Brewery 4665 Broadmoor Ave. SE Kentwood 49512 p (616) 656-4665 jadenjamesbrewery.com

Bob Bonga Rose Bonga

Bob Bonga

2010

DND

12

B.O.B.'s Brewery 20 Monroe Ave. NW Grand Rapids 49503 p (616) 356-2000 f 493-2011 thebobsbrewery.com

Gilmore Collection

John Svoboda

1997

DND

DND

Multiple restaurants, varied menus

IPA, stouts, seasonal, one-offs, barrel aged, Peanut Butter Porter

More to the menu The Mitten Brewing Co. released a new beer called Czech Swing, a Czech Dark Lager with notes of coffee, caramel and chocolate.

Gluten-free

Max Trierweiler Chris Andrus

Jason Spaulding Jacob Derylo Kris Spaulding Terry Lancaster

Brewery Vivant released Rapid IPA, a new extension of its original Belgianinspired style of beers.

150 winter, 220 summer

Jessica Stricklen, founder of Brewery Nyx, will be opening the first gluten-free brewery in Grand Rapids in June.

Beer cans Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales launched its flagship beer Oro de Calabaza in cans earlier this year.

50

2,000

The Grand Rapids Business Journal list of top area breweries/brew pubs, ranked by number of barrels produced in 2020, is the most comprehensive available. This list includes a larger portion of the state. The Business Journal surveyed 39 breweries/brew pubs, 11 responded and 11 are listed. To be considered for future lists, email dnelson@grbj.com. DND = Did not disclose

ListStore

@ GRBJ.com

Download this list now at GRBJ.com in Excel or PDF format.

The Book of Lists and other lists are also available.

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

THE LIST

APR 19, 2021

7

Top Area Distilleries (RANKED BY NUMBER OF PROOF GALLONS PRODUCED IN 2020) Owner(s) 1

Eastern Kille Distillery 700 Ottawa Ave. NW Grand Rapids 49503 p (616) 437-1119 easternkille.com Bier Distillery 5295 West River Drive NE Comstock Park 49321 p (616) 888-9746 bierdistillery.com

Long Road Distillers 537 Leonard St. NW Grand Rapids 49504 p (616) 450-5649 longroaddistillers.com

Distiller(s)

No. of proof gallons Year founded 2020 revenue produced in 2020

Steve Vander Pol Steve Vander Brandon Voorhees Pol Brandon Voorhees

Joel Bierling

Joel Bierling

2014

DND

10,246

2013

DND

DND

Food served

Popular brands

Seating capacity

None

Michigan Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Barrel Finished Gin

49

Full menu

Heart Cut Vodka, Devil's Message Rum, Mum's Ruin Gin, Sole Cry Rye Whiskey, JusttheShine Moonshine, Henry's Absent Absinthe Verte, Crescent Creek Bourbon, Brillari Amaro, Forbidden Apple Brandy, Niagara Brandy

DND

Jon O'Connor Kyle Van Strien

Jordon Muschiana Peter Witkowski

2014

DND

DND

Full menu, appetizers, share Vodka, gin, MICHIGIN, aquavit, wheat plates, soups, salads, sandwiches whiskey, bourbon, malt whiskey, rye whiskey, nocino

DND

Traverse City Whiskey Co. 201 E. 14th St. Traverse City 49684 p (231) 922-8292 tcwhiskey.com

Chris Fredrickson

Curtis Drullinger

2011

DND

DND

Appetizers/snacks

XXX Straight Bourbon, American Cherry Edition, Michigan Apple Whiskey, Barrel Proof Bourbon, Barrel Proof Rye

32

Wonderland Spirits 2217 Lemuel St. Muskegon 49444 p (231) 788-9777 wonderlanddistillilng.com

Mark Gongalski Allen Serio Zack Nolling

DND

2019

DND

DND

Appetizers, snacks, sharables, wraps, pizza

Wonderland Blend of Straight Whiskeys

190

The Grand Rapids Business Journal list of top area distilleries, ranked by number of proof gallons produced in 2020, is the most comprehensive available. This list includes a larger portion of the state. The Business Journal surveyed 13 distilleries, 5 responded and 5 are listed. To be considered for future lists, email dnelson@grbj.com. DND = Did not disclose

Grand celebration Eastern Kille Distillery is celebrating its 5th anniversary.

New path Lars Poleski is one of Bier Distillery’s newest distillers and brewers. He recently completed Grand Rapids Community College’s Craft Brewing program after serving 25 years at the Grand Rapids Police Department.

ListStore

@ GRBJ.com

Download this list now at GRBJ.com in Excel or PDF format.

The Book of Lists and other lists are also available.

Top Area Wineries & Cider Mills (RANKED BY NUMBER OF GALLONS PRODUCED IN 2020)

Gold medal

2020 revenue

No. of gallons produced in 2020

1

Cascade Winery 4665 Broadmoor Ave. SE, Suite 135 Grand Rapids 49512 p (616) 656-4665 cascadecellars.com

Bob Bonga Rose Bonga

Roger Bonga

2002

DND

35,000

Appetizers, snacks

Cascade Winery wines and Sierra Rose ciders

DND

2

The Peoples Cider Co. 539 Leonard St. NW Grand Rapids 49504 p (616) 322-7805 thepeoplescider.com

J. Lümmen

J. Lümmen

2012

$400,000

15,000

DND

PCCo, Ginger Adams, Sally Brown, Johnny 3-Landlords, Corporate Overloards

24

3

Stoney Ridge Vineyards & Winery 2255 Indian Lakes Road Kent City 49330 p (616) 498-5468 stoneyridgevineyards

Mary Flanery

Dale Flanery

2012

$150,000

4,700

Appetizers/snacks

DND

80

Kayla Rae Cellars 31 Courtland St. Rockford 49341 p (616) 951-7001 kaylaraecellars.com

Bob Bonga Rose Bonga

Owner(s)

4

Winemaker(s)

Year founded

Food serve

Popular brands

Seating capacity

Roger Bonga

2002

$120,000

2,251

Cheese and crackers. We have menus from most the restaurants in Rockford and they deliver table side

Kayla Rae Cellars

40

Bernd Croissant Kurtis Berry

1974

DND

DND

Small charcuterie plates, wine by the glass, wine flights, hard cider, nonalcoholic beverages

Chateau Grand Traverse, Grand Traverse Select, Traverse Bay Winery, CGT Eclectic, Mich Mash, National Cherry Festival, Wines of the Great Outdoors

75

Chateau Grand Traverse 12239 Center Road Traverse City 49686 p (231) 938-6120 f 223-4105 cgtwines.com

Edward O'Keefe

Hudsonville Winery 3768 Chicago Drive Hudsonville 49426 p (616) 662-4589 f 662-5473 hudsonvillewinery.com

Ron Snider

DND

2009

DND

DND

Full menu

DND

DND

Robinette's 3142 Four Mile Road NE Grand Rapids 49525 p (616) 361-7180 f 361-6445 robinettes.com

Bill Robinette

DND

2006

DND

DND

Sandwiches, soups, donuts, apples, pastries, pies

Ice Cider, Apple Cherry Hard Cider, Hopped Cider

DND

The Grand Rapids Business Journal list of top area wineries and cider mills, ranked by number of gallons produced in 2020, is the most comprehensive available. This list includes a larger portion of the state. The Business Journal surveyed 19 wineries and cider mills, 7 responded and 7 are listed. To be considered for future lists, email dnelson@grbj.com. DND = Did not disclose

Chateau Grand Traverse’s Semidry Riesling won gold at the 2021 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

Wine bar opening Owners Shatawn and Nadia Brigham opened GRNoir Wine & Jazz, a new Grand Rapids wine bar and jazz club located at 35 S. Division Ave.

ListStore

@ GRBJ.com

Download this list now at GRBJ.com in Excel or PDF format.

The Book of Lists and other lists are also available.

8

APR 19, 2021

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

New leader refines The Right Place game plan CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

along with Spectrum Health’s North Monroe administration building that’s underway, and Michigan State University’s Innovation Park that’s nearly finished on the west end of Medical Mile — not to mention progress on the Grand Rapids Whitewater Project and the development goals of the 201 Market Ave. SW property along the riverfront.

“You can go around the country, and frankly you don’t see the kind of major project announcements that we have underway right now,” he said. “I think that’s going to help propel us forward faster.”

Thelen said The Right Place consulted “hundreds and hundreds” of individuals and businesses when developing its three-year strategic plan, and he believes the fundamentals of that strategy remain strong.

“We are not spending our time right now recrafting the objectives or the tactics; we’re full speed ahead. We are reframing it, however. … We needed to have it reframed in a way that people could better understand and relate to it, and then outside of The Right Place, people might see a role for them to help advance our regional economy.”

Thelen and his team devised the three Ps as a way of communicating the plan it’s implementing: people, place and prosperity.

“Every single objective, every single tactic that we’ve had in the existing strategy stays true; we’re just rolling it up under those three pillars so that it invites more people into it. It invites more organizations, it allows (Philomena Mantella) at Grand Valley State or Rick (Pappas) at Davenport or Bill (Pink) over at GRCC to see within their work and all of their staff’s work, that the talent piece — our ‘people’ focus as a regional eco-

nomic development strategy — is paramount.

“It helps inspire and excites communities that are building up our downtowns throughout the region, that we have to be exceptional at ‘place.’ Whether it’s the riverfront redevelopment here in Grand Rapids or redeveloping the Main Street in Newaygo, we have to keep making our place better and a higher quality of life environment for people.

“And then finally is that ‘prosperity’ piece, which is our business developments, our innovation, our technology type of work that we have historically done. Those three pillars represent our comprehensive strategy.”

While Thelen said the reframing likely won’t necessitate restructuring or hiring within The Right Place, the business development “prosperity” piece may include getting its industry councils — especially the Manufacturing Council and the Technology Council — to talk to each other and collaborate more often, to meet a moment in which the automation and global supply chain forces of Industry 4.0 are increasingly making technology and manufacturing “attached at the hip” instead of separate entities.

In order for the region to prosper, Thelen also noted it will be important for state and local governments to use long-term thinking when allocating the record-setting stimulus dollars in the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan that President Joe Biden signed into law a few weeks ago.

“Our view at The Right Place is we want to see those dollars be invested in long-term assets that provide a return on investment rather than one-time expenditures that may provide a short-term stimulus but then are gone,” Thelen said. “I think of it as a little bit like cotton candy. You eat some cotton candy,

Perrigo’s new headquarters in downtown Grand Rapids will be one example of significant growth Right Place officials can use to tout the region. Renderings courtesy Perrigo

you get a sugar rush for a moment, and it feels pretty good, but then 30 minutes later, you’re back down, and you got no nutritional value for long-term health. I think we need to find ways to invest in something that’s going to provide greater return, and that’s a high-level conversation.”

Thelen noted investing in better broadband throughout the region could be one example of a long-term investment that would position West Michigan to be competitive in the tech industry.

On the “people” side of things, Thelen said he believes Grand Rapids is well positioned to be one of the midsized cities that people are looking for as they choose to move away from the expensive and crowded mega-cities on the coasts and into the lower-cost Midwest.

But in order to attract and retain the kind of Fortune 500 companies that people outside the region might want to work for, he said greater Grand Rapids will have to step up when it comes to training and educating its talent to meet to-

day’s workforce needs.

He believes — spurred on by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s talent initiatives such as the Sixty by 30 goal to have 60% of Michigan’s working-age adults attain a degree or skilled credential by 2030, up from the 45% that fit that description today — institutions like Grand Rapids Community College, Davenport University and Grand Valley State University are making huge strides in helping the 24% of Michigan adults who have some college education to finish their degree or certificate program and increase their employability.

Thelen said cities like Omaha and Denver — where he worked in economic development leadership before returning to Michigan — have success stories of institutions coming together to upskill their workforce into the in-demand tech careers of today, from which Grand Rapids can take some pointers. “(In Omaha), we identified how many tech hires were expected over a five-year period. We then analyzed how many tech workers

were going to be produced within the various tech pipelines coming through the high schools, colleges and universities. And there was an enormous gap, and so those employers and the universities and the colleges and the high schools all came together and tried to figure out ways to accelerate and expand that pipeline,” Thelen said.

“We did some things that have happened here, too, but at a bigger scale there — code schools were launched, summer tech camps were launched, university and college programs were dramatically increased, and so suddenly, we were able to see a substantial boost in the tech talent being produced there.”

When he worked in Denver, the city was full of young adults with tech experience who had moved to the city for its lifestyle and culture aspects but were waiting tables due to lack of opportunity during the Great Recession. Having that talent pool in place drew in tech startups.

“As the Denver tech scene grew and more people started to move there, then more tech companies came, and now, it’s just booming to where the downtown economy there … is now 10% tech. Ten years ago, it was about 2%. So it’s really taken off.”

If Grand Rapids can quickly upskill its workforce, Thelen said he sees no reason why it can’t compete for becoming home base for tech companies looking to expand out of Silicon Valley to cities with a lower cost of living and lower wages.

“I think there’s a desire on the part of some companies that they don’t necessarily want to be a small fish in a big pond, but they might choose to be a leader, be a big fish in a pond like the size of greater Grand Rapids,” he said. “I think we’ll start to see more and more of that.”

West Michigan's cost of housing far outpaces rise in wages CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

According to HBA figures, the median new home price is about $287,000 in the Grand Rapids/ Kentwood area, and the income needed to be able to afford such a home is about $67,000 per year.

Additionally, Crandall said home building numbers are not where they should be across the state. In 2005, there were roughly 54,000 single-family homes built, in 2007 the number dropped to 15,000, and in 2009 it dropped to just under 7,000.

HBAM projects the number of homes that will be built in 2021 will jump past 16,000, which still will not meet the demand for new homes statewide, or even in Kent County, Crandall said.

“Kent County has done some assessment of what they’re going to need over the next several years, and it’s about what we would build statewide,” Crandall said.

Both Crandall and Rietberg agreed oversized lots also are a major factor in the cost increase of building a new home.

“If we look at all the elements of cost: land value, lot size, minimum frontage — lot size in several municipalities is 90 feet. Well, who says you can’t build a home on a 50-foot lot? Now I can build two houses on that land and recapture some of that expense as a builder,” Rietberg said.

Rietberg added these restrictive zoning practices fall on local municipalities. Zoning, outdated master plans and outdated landuse regulations can suppress housing supply, drive up housing costs, and widen racial and economic disparities, she said.

Crandall said what’s encouraging for her is there now is a coalition working on a bipartisan package of legislation to allow local municipalities more tools for development opportunities.

The Michigan Housing Coalition consists of over 40 members from a number of different organizations, including Housing Next in Ottawa County, Housing North in the Grand Traverse area, the HBA, the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce and the Michigan Municipal League.

“For the first time in all the years I’ve been engaged in coalitions, we have that cross section of businesses, nonprofits and developers,’ Crandall said. “You need the housing for employers to come here and bring those employees with them.”

Leveraging smart zoning reforms and easing building restrictions can unleash housing supply to help meet the needs of current and future residents, Rietberg said.

GRAR also identified some innovative zoning and land-use reforms that cities and other local governments are using to improve housing affordability and access to opportunity.

Build bigger and smaller Many cities are reforming local land-use regulations to build more housing where it is needed most. This involves both building bigger — lifting height or density restrictions — and smaller — finding opportunities to build on smaller parcels of land.

In December 2018, Minneapolis became the first major U.S. city

to eliminate single-family zoning in an effort to increase housing supply and density, reduce housing costs and create more racially and economically integrated neighborhoods, Rietberg said.

Seattle also recently rezoned several single-family neighborhoods as “residential small lot” areas, which allows smaller, denser multifamily housing that preserves the neighborhood’s look and feel while providing more affordable options.

Cut the red tape Outdated or inefficient requirements can drive up costs or kill projects entirely, Rietberg said.

The cost of development goes directly back to the end user and drives up the price of each newly built home.

Boost affordability Even when land is maximized and bureaucracy minimized, the private market still may not provide housing that is affordable to the low- and moderate-income families who need it most, Rietberg said. One tool to support

long-term, deeper affordability is mandatory inclusionary zoning, which incentivizes developers to set aside a portion of the development for affordable housing at different income levels.

Mandatory inclusionary zoning tends to slow gentrification and create more affordable housing options, Rietberg said. Other local governments have implemented density bonuses, which incentivize the production of affordable housing in exchange for increases in allowable building heights.

“As local governments explore new ways of zoning and regulating land, it is important to remember that not all reforms deliver their intended or desired outcomes, and innovations that work in one context may not easily transfer to another,” Rietberg said. “Sharing data, experiences and outcomes among local governments will be essential to achieving smart zoning reforms that ease affordability pressures, expand housing options and improve access to opportunity for everyone.”

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GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

TALK IS CHEAP. But good advice is priceless.

Sen. Jon Bumstead, Hunter Daniels and Rep. Terry Sabo, from left, celebrate at the Michigan Works! Association Impact Awards.

Courtesy West Michigan Works!

State leaders celebrate Muskegon County resident Hunter Daniels wins Michigan Works!

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Hunter Daniels is a force of nature when it comes to determination and positivity, and he recently was recognized for using his newfound skills to make a difference in others’ lives.

Daniels, 21, moved to Twin Lake from his hometown of Cedar Springs in 2019 after an unsuccessful first year in college at Central Michigan University. Left with a mountain of student debt and no job, Daniels was referred to West Michigan Works! by family. Upon connecting with Amanda DeCaire, a Jobs for Michigan’s Graduates career coach, Daniels received supportive services to resolve transportation issues and develop employability skills.

He said he learned from DeCaire about his strengths and weaknesses, how to develop a resume and how to present himself professionally to hiring managers, and after receiving that and other career and soft skills coaching, he gained enough confidence to land a job in the produce department at Meijer. While employed at Meijer, Daniels continued taking advantage of every West Michigan Works! leadership development opportunity available. He participated in workshops, talent tours and community service projects, and he continued to meet with DeCaire on everything from social skills to budgeting.

Daniels said he has always had a passion for helping people and initially thought he would channel it into teaching, but his experience at CMU convinced him the classroom wasn’t the right fit for him.

West Michigan Works! helped him discover a range of other opportunities in the health care field.

After receiving a West Michigan Works! Individual Training Account (ITA) scholarship to attend Muskegon Community College, Daniels earned a certified

nursing assistant (CNA) certificate, graduating as valedictorian of his CNA class after the threemonth program.

Upon graduation, Daniels got a job with the Muskegon-based senior care skilled nursing facility Sanctuary at McAuley, a division of Trinity Health/Mercy Health. Daniels helped Sanctuary at McAuley fill a critical need for CNAs during the pandemic, while the employment, training and leadership skills he gained from West Michigan Works! continue to have a tremendous impact on his life, he said.

“I was able to grow as a person, and it was kind of phenomenal. Amanda always says, ‘Give credit where credit is due — you have grown so much, and it’s not because of me. It is because you wanted to, and you tried, and you worked hard and showed up every single day,’” Daniels said.

He added: “Michigan Works! doesn’t only help you gain employability; they help you build yourself to be a better person each day and be able to prepare yourself for life in the real world and be able to face adversity and conflict and know how to get through it. … It’s just amazing what they did for me. If it wasn’t for them, I don’t even know where I would be.”

Daniels continued to work for Meijer and Sanctuary at McAuley until February, and now he works solely for the latter.

Because of his service as a grocery store and health care frontline worker during the pandemic, Daniels received a Futures for Frontliners Scholarship, which he is using at Muskegon Community College to earn his licensed practical nurse (LPN) credential before eventually transferring to either Grand Valley State University or Michigan State University to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing to become a registered nurse (RN). He said he doesn’t yet know what nursing specialty he will choose, but as of now, he would be interested in channeling his “positivity and high energy” into clinical areas such as rehabilitation, skilled nursing or emergency medicine.

At the Michigan Works! Association Impact Awards on March CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

INSIDE TRACK

APR 19, 2021

11

Exposure can change a life Salvador Lopez’s work with KConnect promotes a ‘cradle-to-career’ approach to community impact.

Ehren Wynder

ewynder@grbj.com

S

alvador Lopez, president of KConnect, has a passion for empowering others. His personal experience with struggle, grit and perseverance motivates him to make a positive impact in his community of Kent County.

Born to a family of farm workers in Salinas, California, Lopez grew up in a bilingual area of low-income residents. He said it was an area very limited in resources, so his family moved to Michigan when he was beginning high school for better opportunities.

At the time, the Grand Rapids area gave Lopez’s family the opportunity to purchase a home and take their son and daughters to a better school.

“They also didn’t want me to grow up in an area where there was a lot of gangs and violence,” Lopez said.

In his freshman year of high school, he transitioned to Northview High School, which had a predominately white student body. Before then, Lopez had only gone to schools that were bilingual and mostly Hispanic.

“It was a big cultural shift for me to go to a school such as Northview at the time,” he said.

“When I was in California, the type of kids that got bullied were kids that were smart – kids that got good grades,” Lopez said. “In Michigan, specifically Northview, kids that got low grades were made fun of, so the shift in terms of education and what education means was something that caught me by surprise.”

Additionally, growing up in a predominately Hispanic community in California, Lopez said he was only made aware of his ethnicity when he went to Northview. Even through his junior year, classmates thought he was a foreign exchange student and would ask him if he was going back to his country after high school.

But his experience at Northview also led him to meet students

and families he otherwise would never have met. One of Lopez’s high school friends was the son of the vice president of radiology at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, who offered Lopez a job at Saint Mary’s in 10th grade.

“One of the things I often say – I don’t believe anybody else has said it – is exposure can change a life,” Lopez said. “I believe who you are exposed to changes your future.”

Lopez’s job at Saint Mary’s was initially to hang films like X-rays, MRIs and CT scans – the hospital wasn’t as digitized as it is now – but by the age of 18, he became the supervisor for film hangers. The experience also exposed him to a group of working professionals who mentored him throughout high school and into college.

Lopez said he’s had numerous mentors – men and women – in the health care and nonprofit sectors who helped shape the way he works and leads others.

“Certainly, my parents’ work ethic and never-ending belief in their children is a big part of me,” Lopez said. “So, I would say having parents that really took chances, made difficult decisions, changed their entire lives so that their children could have a better future has made a big impact on me.”

After working at Saint Mary’s for almost eight years, Lopez transitioned to become director of language services for the Hispanic Center of Western Michigan.

Lopez obtained both his B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies and M.S. in Communications with an emphasis in inclusion and equity management from Grand Valley State University. After three years with the Hispanic Center, he returned to GVSU and became involved in initiatives to help underrepresented students through collective impact and systems work.

While the university had a variety of well-intentioned people working to reach those underrepresented groups, organizationally they were disconnected, Lopez said. Although unintentional at

SALVADOR LOPEZ Organization: KConnect Position: President Age: 35 Birthplace: Salinas, California Residence: Grand Rapids Family: Five-year-old twin daughters Business/Community Involvement: Board chair for Alsame (Advocates for Latino Student Advancement in Michigan Education), co-founder and leader of GVSU Latino Alumni Chapter, co-founder and member of West Michigan Latino Network, and community outreach member of the Garfield Park Neighborhoods Association Biggest Career Break: Helping to create and lead GVSU’s Laker Familia initiative and being a part of a movement that changed the way the institution supports underrepresented students.

Salvador Lopez’s parents moved to Michigan from California in part to provide a better way of life for their children. Courtesy Dreams

by Bell

the time, he was able to bring together people from different departments for the common goal of recruiting and retaining Latinx students.

The initiative, dubbed Laker Familia, became part of a movement that changed the way the university helped underrepresented students. While Lopez’s focus was specifically on Hispanic/Latinx students, it spread more broadly to all underrepresented demographics on campus.

“It was a program that had a domino effect on the way the institution works with underrepresented communities, including the African American community and the Native and Asian American communities, eventually,” Lopez said.

Lopez’s work in collective impact with Laker Familia introduced him to KConnect and its “cradle-to-career” approach to community impact. He found many of the skills he’d developed in the health care and nonprofit sectors, as well as at GVSU, equipped him well to become the next president of the organization.

Lopez said collective impact ultimately is a form of getting people from different sectors to row in the same direction. In his case, the goal with collective impact is racial equity in a given community.

“Collective impact allows us to, one, get to know one another and know one another’s work, and two, find a way to work with each other for a common purpose,” Lopez said. “And you hope the common purpose is equity and stabil-

ity for all.”

KConnect’s main goal is closing the achievement gap for low-income and minority students and also increasing achievement for all students, from pre-natal to college and career, hence its “cradle-to-career” approach.

Lopez said the process is data-driven and has work groups and facilitators who come together on the different areas of the cradle-to-career continuum.

“That is the scope of our work, but it’s also difficult to explain,” Lopez said, laughing. “There’s no easy way to do that, but what we try to do is use collective impact and systems building to do this broad work.”

The three core work groups within KConnect are prenatal to third grade, fourth grade to 12th grade and high school to career.

Each group pools together resources from dozens of community partners, service providers and experts who examine the system of supports and improve results for students.

Specific projects for KConnect include the birth equity initiative, a two-part strategy the prenatal to third grade work group developed in 2018 with the goal of increasing the likelihood for women of color in Kent County to have a baby over five-and-a-half pounds.

Lopez said KConnect found not receiving doula services was related to disparities in prenatal health, which in turn affect a child’s path to economic prosperity. The work group launched the doulas of color equity pilot.

A doula is a nonmedical assistant in childbirth who provides

continuous physical, emotional and informational support to a mother and family before, during and after her birth experience.

The Business Journal previously reported the pilot was developed for more than a year by KConnect with local, state and national partners and addresses birth disparities by ensuring expectant women of color have access to culturally responsive care by doulas of color.

Housing also has been a major component of KConnect’s work for the past couple of years. Lopez said KConnect’s data-driven approach brings to light disparities in housing. The organization found one in six African American children in Kent County were in the homeless system in 2019, compared to one in 130 Caucasian children during the same year.

KConnect convened partners based on those findings and a common agenda to create a road map to diminish those disparities.

The plan, called “Redefining the Path Home: System Building for Housing Stability in Kent County,” was developed over two years of cross-sector engagement, including representatives from the public and private sectors, philanthropy, nonprofits and education.

The plan identifies nine root causes of homelessness, including systemic racism, a lack of a cohesive strategy among providers and the prevalent idea that homelessness is an individual rather than a systemic problem. In addition to data analysis, it brings together community voices and a commitment to make Kent County a more equitable place to live.

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Entrepreneur helps people work from home Sheri Munsell spent years in customer service and now helps others achieve home-based career success.

Rachel Watson

rwatson@grbj.com

Sheri Munsell is a firm believer that working from home can be a blessing for individuals with mental health struggles, and she is on a mission to make it posMunsell sible for more people.

Munsell is founder and CEO of Grand Rapids-based Legit Work from Home Jobs LLC, a job-finding service established in 2019, and the nonprofit Hope Gain Network, founded in 2020, which offers remote career training, advocacy and support, and soon will be launching an online database of companies that are friendly to employees with mental health challenges.

Both enterprises were inspired by Munsell’s own career journey. As she wrote on the “About Us” page at hopegain.org, she struggled to hold down a job for many years because her anxiety and depression made it difficult to leave the house. It wasn’t until 2011 that she found her first paid work-from-home opportunity, which allowed her to work in her own safe space and ultimately reduced the frequency of her de-

pressive episodes over time.

Munsell started Legit Work from Home Jobs as a free Facebook group while she continued to work from home in customer service. She wanted to help others find the peace and joy she was experiencing via remote work.

Ultimately, with the advice and support of a SCORE mentor, she realized she could transform the Facebook group into a business that offers step-by-step help to finding remote work. People can do as many of the individually priced steps as they want to assist them in their career-finding journey.

The steps are as follows: 1. Choosing the right equipment (a free consulting service) 2. Work from home training video ($15 one-time pricing) 3. Resume templates ($10 one time) 4. Monthly job search ($10/ month) 5. Application walkthrough ($20 one time) 6. Interviewing skills video ($10 one time) 7. One-on-one coaching ($150 an hour) Munsell said Legit Work from Home Jobs is different than the plethora of job boards that are out there.

“One of the (differences is) the expertise, but also being able to have everything in one place,” she said. “With the way that we structured our company, you will be able to get a list of equipment that you’ll need, you will be able to get the job search, you’ll be able to get the resume, you’ll be able to get training, you’ll be able to get all of the things you need from start to finish for being able to find work from home, and it really holistically approaches the workfrom-home journey, which many

job boards don’t do. They have a very straight focus on just searching and finding a job, and after that, there’s really no support for you.”

Munsell said so far, she has supported thousands of people in their work-from-home journey. Typical careers people have found include customer service; management; data entry; technical support; medical billing, coding and scheduling; nursing; web development; graphic design; marketing and branding; and the list goes on. Many of the jobs are in the $13-$15 per hour range, but the roles that require specialized skills can pay anywhere from $30,000-$80,000 and up in annual salaries.

The Legit Work from Home Facebook groups — there’s a main page plus several subgroups — currently have tens of thousands of members in total. Munsell said while the online community was growing at about 1,500 members a week before the pandemic, it is now adding about 2,300 members per week.

Munsell, who recently quit her customer service job to manage the business and the nonprofit, gets help from 14 volunteer moderators who offered to be part of the effort out of a passion for the work. “It’s by choice, surprisingly enough, and I’m grateful and thankful for the support,” she said of her helpers.

After starting her Legit Work from Home Jobs Facebook group in 2018 and incorporating the LLC in 2019, Munsell was hearing from more and more people with a similar story of living with mental illness and needing support, so eight months ago, in addition to her business, she launched Hope Gain Network. Through a volunteer board of directors who have training in the fields of psychology, psychiatry and counseling, the nonprofit offers support and training for individuals, both in their mental health journey and as they look for the best remote work fit. Some clients struggle

APR 19, 2021

with mental illness, while others are parents or caregivers of children who have mental illnesses.

Currently, the nonprofit is working to develop a mentorship program and a Companies That Care Database of workplaces that are “champions” for employees with mental health issues. Fundraising for those services is underway, and people can donate at hopegain.org. Hope Gain also receives support from United Way, as well as government grant funding, and Munsell puts 20% of the profits from Legit Work from Home Jobs LLC into the nonprofit, as well.

Currently, Hope Gain operates from Munsell’s home, but she is working to secure office space in downtown Grand Rapids. She said a name change and an expansion is in the works, with the eventual goal of opening branches in multiple cities. She is currently looking for social media and project management volunteers to help manage Hope Gain’s growth.

Munsell said it’s difficult to express how lifechanging it has been to help people through Hope Gain and Legit Work from Home Jobs LLC. “We’re just really amazed by all the people who have come to us who have used one of the services and have said they felt like, before they used the service, that they were completely helpless and that they were never going to be able to find work. Those are the kind of stories that really mean the most to us, when we see people who just really have been completely down and out (find hope).

“I know for me, when I was feeling like I couldn’t work, my

13

only option was to attempt suicide, and I did that three times. I talk to people every day who are in that same boat, where they really feel like they have no hope, and they have no other option.

When we tell them that we can work with you, we can walk you through this, you can get back to work, you can find a long-lasting career, because we have all of these examples of people that can, it just gives them so much energy, and it gives them so much hope that they didn’t have before, and so we know that the work that we’re doing is extremely important and vital.”

People can learn more about the business by emailing sheri@ legitwahjobs.com and more about the nonprofit by contacting info@ hopegain.org.

Join us for our

Schools look to build a diverse teaching workforce State funding will help with funneling students into the education profession.

Danielle Nelson

dnelson@grbj.com

School districts in the region are looking to the future by exposing their students to a familiar profession.

Grand Rapids Public Schools, Kalamazoo Public Schools, Kent Intermediate School District and North Muskegon Public Schools were among 44 school districts in the state to receive $10,000 in federal Title IIA funding to provide opportunities for students in grades 6-12 to explore a pathway to a career in the education field through the state’s Future Proud Michigan Explore program.

The program is designed to grow and diversify the educator workforce and reduce an educator shortage.

According to MI School Data,

there are approximately 110,800 K-12 teachers in the state for the 2020-21 school year. Approximately 90.9% of those teachers are white; 6.4% are African American; 1.1% are Hispanic; and 1% are Asian.

Kalamazoo Public Schools is made up of 24 schools: 17 elementary, four middle and three high schools.

Sheila Dorsey-Smith, assistant superintendent for Kalamazoo Public Schools, said 13% of the district’s teachers are African American; however, 38% of its student body is African American, according to MI School Data.

To ensure that there will be a diverse teacher workforce in the future, Dorsey-Smith said they will use the funding for teachers to write curricula and to start an extracurricular activity called Young Educator Society (YES), which will be a club that introduces students to all aspects of teaching, promotes leadership and provides experience for older students mentoring young students during their afterschool programs.

“It gives them a safe space to learn and talk about teaching and the teaching profession,” she said.

Prior to receiving the funding, Dorsey-Smith said district officials started working with colleges and formed partnerships to get their high school students interested in the profession, but realized they needed to start much earlier, preferably with students in middle school.

“When you go to a school from kindergarten to 12th grade and you never have a teacher who looks like you, it does something to you on the inside,” she said.

“For our students to believe that they can do this, they must see mirrors of themselves before them. In order to change the data that we have, we must encourage young people to become teachers so that others want to become teachers. They want to do it so they can impact entire families.

If you can change a child, you can change a whole family dynamic.

If a child can become successful through teaching, then their famCONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

Transformando spring cohort shares lessons CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

said. “The (program) name says it all — Transformando. We’re truly transforming our businesses into better places to work and better providers of goods and services.

We’re just being enriched with all this information, but also (given) the opportunity to apply it and take action steps.”

She said Lopez Duran thought a workshop led by Chef Oscar Moreno from MeXo Tequila & Mezcal Bar and Restaurant in downtown Grand Rapids was especially eye-opening, as it taught her to review her menu item by item, evaluating where she was losing money, how to more competitively price the dishes and how to innovate with her food offerings. Lopez Duran also is passionate about implementing some of the environmentally sound practices she learned in the sustainability workshop series. Mendivil said she especially appreciated the webinars from virtual business mentor Jonathan D’Oleo, who is managing director at D’Oleo Analytica in Miami. His stories of businesses that have executed new processes inspired her, she said.

When the class graduates, Mendivil said she wants to keep in touch with the cohort members for accountability, especially the other restaurants, which she doesn’t view as competitors but as peers, supporters and fellow learners. She said it has been a

difficult time for everyone in the business, from keeping staff to dealing with rising food prices, low revenue and finding PPE, but she is grateful to the chamber for its help.

Mata, owner of the 20-year-old restaurant Lindo Mexico, said she has always been a lifelong learner, and Transformando has positively impacted not only her business but her quality of life. She said the class on colorism — or discrimination based on skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group — opened her eyes to areas of bias and benefited her employees as well as her family. She said she also appreciated Moreno’s coaching on pricing and recipe revisions and D’Oleo’s insights on implementing new strategies.

“The best part of it is that (D’Oleo) is available outside of class, so we have a phone call with him, and we share things with him, and he gives us feedback. So what I’m working on right now is having more processes. I already had some, but now I’m doing more of the standard operating processes, which is going to take me awhile, but I’m already on it and starting it,” Mata said, adding she recently decided to close the restaurant two days a week so she could focus on improving her business.

She said if there’s any advice she could give other entrepreneurs, it would be to take advantage of any resources or classes

offered, even if doing so feels like a risk.

“It might not work, but we don’t know unless we try,” she said.

Abreu, owner of the Ismael Abreu Agency Farmers Insurance branch, said this three-month session was his first experience with Transformando, and he has learned a lot. As one of the non-restaurant businesses in the program, he said COVID-19 was hard in a different way for him, as the business clients coming through his doors looking for insurance often said they had been deemed ineligible for PPP loans due to not having their ducks in a row with accounting and finances, and it made him sad.

When Abreu joined Transformando, he wasn’t sure what to expect, but his “mind was blown” with all of the information the instructors provided — practical knowledge he never learned in college.

“Entrepreneurs, they don’t need to be motivated, because they already are, but discipline is what we do need,” he said. “To be able to take information and have the discipline to put it into place.”

Abreu said when he started his business, he was a one-man show, doing accounting, marketing, sales and service, but now that he has employees, he finds his role is to be a motivator and mentor to others. He believes Transformando gave him the tools to be that kind of leader, and the cham-

ber provided it at no cost to him.

Abreu said he is so grateful that he wants to invest in the program in the future to pay it forward to others.

Perez is co-owner of Kiko Studio Salon, which offers services including haircuts, styling and coloring; lashes; and acrylic nails.

He spoke to the Business Journal through an interpreter who works with the Hispanic Center of Western Michigan, Maria de los Angeles Munoz.

Although he has 32 years of experience as a barber, Perez was a first-time participant in Transformando this spring. He said the information he learned was too important to ignore, and he is already improving his business, including customer service, understanding and meeting expectations, and marketing and advertising his business on social media, which has resulted in a 20% increase in clients and plans in motion to open a new location in the near future.

He said he would recommend other entrepreneurs try to keep an open mind and continue learning and growing through opportunities such as Transformando.

Bernal said it’s worth noting all of the participating businesses threw themselves wholeheartedly into the work of improving and growing, and she would love for the community to take the time to get to know them (see list of business names in the pullout box).

“These businesses have over-

come so many (barriers) just to be able to be on Zoom — it was an accomplishment just for them to be here. These 18 businesses are dedicated, and they’re here to serve people,” she said.

Jose said the chamber has a goal of doing several dozen more business assists this year, and she is looking for additional organizations to sponsor and support the chamber’s programs such as Transformando.

She said the chamber has not determined when the next Transformando cohort will be, as the staff need a breather, but some of her goals for the next round include securing more funding; doing better at closing the language gap with bilingual teachers and interpreters so nothing is lost in translation; repeating the cultural sensitivity and implicit bias training in the classes; and continuing to provide wraparound services after graduation.

“We want to make sure none of our small businesses close, and in order for us to do that, we need to continue to provide them the services that they need, the information that they need, and we also need to make sure that we provide that training, but most importantly, that wraparound service that can really change their lives,” she said.

More information about the Transformando West Michigan program is at westmihcc.org/ transformando.

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Library and Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, to provide continued extended day learning after the 2021-22 school year begins.

Those discussions complement a proposal State Superintendent Michael Rice made earlier this year.

He shared with state legislators that the state’s nearly 1.5 million K-12 students will need additional instruction time next school year because of the pandemic. He also said, “home technology is not a substitute for in-person instruction for most children but can be a valuable support to in-person instruction.”

Rice’s solution is to increase the minimum number of classroom instruction days.

“The current minimum number of days — 180 — was too low before the pandemic,” Rice said.

“It isn’t close to that of high-performing nations. Students and staff need more days next year coming out of the pandemic. The state legislature should raise the minimum number of days to underscore the need for more time.”

While he did not recommend his preferred number of additional days, he did say additional instruction is needed to “meet specific student needs — especially vulnerable groups of students, including children with profound special needs, begin-

ning English learners, and fledgling readers, among others.”

“Child by child, group by group, districts will have to reflect on what is needed and how to meet these needs,” Rice said.

“More time is the clearest need.

Most have foregone it. Many will need to recoup it.”

Curriculum Associates, a developer of curriculum and diagnostic assessments, released an analysis of diagnostic testing data for students who returned to school in fall 2020.

The data showed more students who entered school in fall 2020 were unprepared for grade-level work, especially for students in grades 2–4, and the results were worse in mathematics than in reading, nationally.

While the analysis differs based on a range of variables, including age, race and income level, some of the key findings showed that 25% of second graders in the U.S. were placed in the fall at least two grade levels below in reading. That percentage is an increase from the historical average of 19% nationwide.

Also, 30% of second graders in the U.S. were more than two grade levels below in mathematics, 10% higher than the historical average. Students in grades 1-5 who sat for assessments in mathematics and reading at home in fall 2020 scored higher than students who returned to school and also higher than historical trends.

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APR 19, 2021

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

COMMENT & OPINION

GUEST COLUMN Lou Glazer

State needs economy that benefits all T

he Michigan Association of United Ways recently reported that in Michigan’s strong pre-pandemic (2019) economy, 38% of the state’s households were unable to pay for basic necessities.

So, in what many called the best U.S. and Michigan economy ever, nearly four in 10 Michigan households (1.5 million) did not earn enough to pay for housing, child care, food, transportation, health care and a smartphone plan, plus taxes and a miscellaneous contingency fund equal to 10% of the budget.

The United Way’s definition of basic necessities does not include savings, auto repairs, cable service, travel, laundry costs, or amenities such as holiday gifts or dinner at a restaurant that many families take for granted.

What the United Way data makes clear is that Michigan’s two-tier economy predates the pandemic. Even when our economy was strong, those at the top were doing well but way too many Michiganders were struggling.

The United Way data also demonstrates that this is an all-Michigan problem: urban, suburban and rural. Only four Michigan counties have less than 30% of households unable to pay for the basics: Livingston, Barry, Midland and Eaton, with Livingston

in the best shape at 24%. Five weighed in with more than 50%: Lake, Alger, Clare, Gogebic and Ontonagan.

In Kent County, 35% of households (86,000) were unable to pay for the basics. That number sat at 30% in Ottawa County (32,000).

And it is a problem across race as well as geography with 60% of Black households, 48% of Latino households, 34% of white households and 28% of Asian households unable to pay for the basics.

The reality is that the 2019 Michigan economy was not one of our best ever. It was a two-tier economy. It is far past time that we agree that when 1.5 million Michigan households cannot pay for the basics, we do not have a good economy, no matter how low the unemployment rate or how high the stock market. The economy that we should all want is an economy that as it grows benefits all.

The pre-eminent reason for our two-tier economy is that the economy is producing way too many low-wage jobs. In the “strong” 2019 Michigan economy, 58% of jobs paid less than $20 an hour.

Clearly the pandemic has made things worse. As low-wage workers and low-income households have borne the brunt of the pain

from the economic lockdown, they are almost certainly going to have the slowest recovery as the economy reopens.

The pandemic has made crystal clear that there simply are lots

GUEST COLUMN

systems — for both manufacturers as well as distributors. It’s clear that both the manufacturer as well as the distributor involved in this situation had to change the way they thought about their sales forces and had to transform the way their salespeople went about their jobs.

It’s also clear that an essential component of this win/win situation was both companies’ ability to field a directable sales force.

Let’s define the term. The key word here is directable. It means that your sales force can be counted on to quickly, thoroughly and positively carry out your directions.

Such a sales force is both rare and incredibly valuable to the company. In fact, a directable sales force is one of the greatest strategic advantages your company can have.

Why is it important? Here are three reasons.

and suppliers is a growing trend in the New Normal economy.

Consider for a moment why you want to distinguish yourself in the first place. Isn’t it to build your business? To acquire new customers and to expand the business with your current customers?

If you can no longer count on attracting business through the old principles, what can you use to acquire good customers, expand the business with them and solidify relationships with key channel partners? A directable sales force.

Dave Kahle

Fielding a directable sales force

N

ot long ago I was speaking at a national sales meeting for a large regional distributor. The regional vice president for the company’s primary manufacturer was at the meeting, supporting the efforts of his big distributor. At the coffee break, we struck up a conversation.

“Three years ago, I was the regional vice-president of sales for my company,” he told me. “At the time, I had 56 people in my organization — nine sales managers, and the balance outside salespeople.

Today, I’m still the regional VP. My sales are up and my gross margins are up. But, I have only 11 outside salespeople reporting to me.”

“There has to be a story there,” I replied.

“Yes,” he said. “We worked very closely with this distributor to turn over much more of the sales function to them. Since the distributor is doing more of the sales job, I didn’t need a duplicate sales force.

We’ve increased our sales for both organizations and taken sales costs out of the channel. It’s a win/ win for everyone.”

What a great example of one of the benefits of thinking differently and transforming your sales

It’s a means of distinguishing your company in a competitive marketplace. There once was a time, not so long ago, that you could distinguish yourself by providing good service, competitive prices and good quality. Unfortunately, in recent years the bar has been raised, and those no longer are sufficient. They are necessary, but no longer enough to distinguish yourself from anyone. It’s likely that your customer thinks of your competitors as being just as capable of providing good service, quality products and competitive prices as you. I understand that you think you’re better, but, frankly, that doesn’t count. What is important is what your customer thinks. And the tendency to blur the differences between products

of tasks that need to get done that are structurally low-wage work.

Every day, in every community in Michigan, we are confronted CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

GRBJ.COM EDITOR

Tim Gortsema: tgortsema@grbj.com DIGITAL EDITOR

Tom Mitsos: tmitsos@grbj.com ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR

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MI VIEW WEST Garth Kriewall

Michigan journalist, kriewall@hotmail.com

STAFF REPORTERS

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Michelle VanArman: mvanarman@hour-media.com

As the superintendant of your public schools, please know I’m committed to doing the right thing.

Also, know ‘the right thing’ these days is a moving target.

A directable sales force can be your primary means of implementing your strategy. In our competitive environment, an environment that is moving faster than images on an MTV music video, you need to be able to create effective strategic plans and then implement them. As your strategy shifts in response to the changes in your environment, you need to harness and focus the energy of your entire organization on constantly changing strategic goals and initiatives. Today it’s “grow market share,” tomorrow it’s “increase GP percentage,” next year it’s “penetrate key accounts.” Your ability to survive and prosper in the new environment will depend on your ability to get your company to do what you want them to do — to carry out these new directions.

And what is the primary group of

people charged with implementing company directives? The sales force.

A directable sales force is the primary means of implementing key partners’ strategy. Carrying out your own strategic initiatives is only one part of this issue. If you’re a distributor, you need to have the ability to carry out your key vendors’ strategy. For example, if one of your key manufacturers decides to focus on increasing a certain product line, or penetrating a certain market segment, you need to be able to respond to that initiative and be a reliable means of implementing those initiatives. In the example I discussed above, it was the distributor’s ability to implement the manufacturer’s strategy that gave rise to the opportunity for both companies.

A RARE AND PRECIOUS COMMODITY Unfortunately, a directable sales force is the exception, not the rule.

Particularly among distributors, salespeople often give lip service to directions from above and then go out and produce only minimum results. You can make all the commitments to key vendors you want, but if your sales force doesn’t do it, you’re not viewed as a reliable partner. Your relationship is in CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

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GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

17

GUEST COLUMN Beth L. O’Laughlin

What the new administration’s tax reform may mean for you

A

s with any new administration, experts are speculating about what President Biden’s proposed tax law changes may be — and what they may mean for you.

The president has made his priorities reasonably clear: raise taxes on those earning more than $400,000 per year, increase capital gains taxes and tax more of the wealth transferred after someone dies.

Some of these changes could have a significant impact on your current tax strategy and estate plan. These potential changes include: Payroll and income taxes •Increasing payroll and income taxes for those earning more than $400,000 by:

•Raising the tax rate on income above $400,000 from 37% to 39.6%.

•Adding a 12.4% Social Security tax on income above $400,000 — to be split evenly between employer and employee.

•Limiting itemized deductions, including charitable write-offs, for those with income over $400,000.

•Expanding tax credits for those with children by: •Expanding the child and dependent care tax credit from a maximum of $3,000 in qualified expenses to $8,000, or $16,000 for multiple dependents, and increasing the maximum reimbursement rate from 35% to 50%.

•Increasing the child tax credit from a maximum value of $2,000 to $3,000 for children younger than 18, with a $600 bonus credit

for children younger than 6.

Capital gains taxes •Raising the long-term capital gains tax rate on those with income above $1 million from 20% to the new ordinary income tax rate — expected to be 39.6%. The 3.8% net investment income tax would still apply, making the total tax rate on this income 43.4%.

•Taxing qualified dividends at the new ordinary income tax rate for those with income above $1 million.

•Eliminating 1031 exchanges on investment property for high earners — possibly the $1 million threshold or a lower one — subjecting the investor to capital gains.

Business taxes •Raising the corporate tax rate

Schools look to build a diverse teaching workforce CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13

ily changes, so I am hoping they can become teachers and change the narrative.”

Dorsey-Smith said the goal is to keep students from entering low-wage jobs just to survive after high school.

“They can be leaders in their community. They can become strong and respected,” she said.

“They can mentor others. They can help pull up others who look

like them.”

Kent Intermediate School District (KISD) is made up of 20 public school districts, as well as parochial schools and public-school academies.

According to MI School Data, the school district is educating more than 100,300 K-12 students for the 2020-21 school year. Approximately 94.5% of KISD teachers are white, with about 2.1% Black and 1.7% Hispanic.

Ron Koehler, KISD interim

superintendent, said they will be using the grant to provide a new program for student exploration of teaching as a career.

“We began working on that project a little more than a year ago and this fall we will offer through our Tech Center a program that will provide for students who may aspire to be a teacher the same type of exposure to the field and its requirements as we offer in fields ranging from agriscience to health careers.”

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from 21% to 28%.

•Creating a 15% minimum tax on corporations with income above $100 million.

•Raising the tax rate on global intangible low-taxed income earned by foreign subsidiaries of U.S. firms from 10.5% to 21%.

•Establishing or expanding several tax credits, including a “manufacturing communities tax credit” to reduce the tax liability of businesses that experience workforce layoffs, credits to small businesses for establishing retirement savings plans and renewable energy-related tax credits.

Wealth transfer taxes •Reducing the estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption amounts from $11.7 million to $5.58 million or $3.5 million per person.

•Increasing the estate and gift tax rate from 40% to 45%.

•Eliminating step-up in basis for assets passing at death. It is unclear whether this would result in heirs taking assets with basis carrying over from the decedent or if death would be a realization event resulting in tax being assessed on capital gains at that time.

•Restricting the use of grantor-retained annuity trusts by increasing the minimum term to 10 years or requiring the remainder interest to have a value that equals 25% of the original assets or a dollar amount, such as $500,000, whichever is higher.

•Limiting the term of dynasty trusts

by eliminating generation-skipping transfer tax exempt status after a certain number of years.

•Restricting the use of valuation discounts, including discounts for lack of marketability or lack of control, when transferring interests in family businesses.

•Capping annual exclusion gifts to $50,000 per year per donor.

Currently, a person can gift up to $15,000 per year to an unlimited number of individuals.

•Eliminating the ability of trust creators to pass assets to their children through trust while retaining the income tax burden.

Considering the administration’s focus on the pandemic during the first half of 2021, it’s unlikely new tax legislation would be passed before the third, or possibly fourth, quarter. This makes it unlikely the tax law changes would be retroactive to Jan. 1. Still, retroactive application of legislation is constitutional, and at a time when the government has an increased need for tax revenue, we can’t count out the possibility. Amid this uncertainty, it’s important to consider now how these proposed changes may affect you and whether certain planning strategies are needed sooner rather than later.

Beth O’Laughlin is a partner in the law firm Warner Norcross + Judd LLP who concentrates her practice in trust and estate planning and administration, succession planning, tax matters and wealth preservation. She can be reached at bolaughlin@wnj.com.

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GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

State needs economy that benefits all CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16

with the vast number of low-wage workers in the leisure, hospitality and personal services industries who have lost their jobs and no longer can make ends meet. That also includes those who get us food and prescription drugs and who care for us and are not only putting their lives on the line to serve us but also are struggling to

pay for the necessities.

These workers live paycheck to paycheck not because they are irresponsibly buying “unnecessary” luxuries, but because they are in low-wage jobs that leave them struggling to pay for the necessities. The reality is that most of those struggling economically in good times and bad are hard-working Michiganders who get up every day to earn a living.

That the prime reason for so many struggling is not irresponsible adults coddled by a too-generous public safety net, but rather an economy — even when it is booming — that has too few jobs that pay family-sustaining wages and provide health coverage and paid leave.

This is structural. We are not growing our way out of too many low-wage jobs. The 2019 Michigan economy demonstrated that a low unemployment rate will not drive wages, benefits and hours worked up enough to substantially dent the proportion of struggling Michigan households.

This is the prime economic challenge of our times: having

Award winners included employers, workers, Michigan Works! organizations and partners from across the state.

“The dedication West Michigan Works! has for helping our residents overcome significant barriers makes them a huge asset to our community,” said state Sen. Jon Bumstead, R-Newaygo.

“Certified nursing assistants are in high demand across our state,” said state Rep. Terry Sabo, D-Laketon Township. “The CNA program offered through Muskegon Community College, coupled with the ITA scholarship offered by West Michigan Works!, not only helps get individuals working quickly, but also puts them on a path to a career opportunity in health care.”

State Rep. Greg VanWoerkom, R-Norton Shores, commended Daniels for his hard work.

“Congratulations to Hunter on winning this prestigious award,” VanWoerkom said. “Hunter’s dedication and pursuit of a career to create a better life for him and others is an inspiring story. He used the resources available to him through West Michigan Works! and now has a rewarding careering in front of him.”

Daniels said he is proud to be self-sufficient and career-bound after a whirlwind two years.

“I am confident in myself and my future because of Jobs for Michigan’s Graduates,” he said. “I was a kid with a dream; now I am a kid with a plan.”

an economy that provides family-sustaining jobs — not just any job — so that all working Michigan households can raise a family and pass on a better opportunity to their children.

We can — and should — debate how to achieve an economy that benefits all. What we should not and cannot ignore is that our economy structurally is leaving too many behind. The first step in solving this problem is to recog-

Fielding a directable State leaders tout Muskegon County resident sales force CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

31, Daniels was recognized with an award for his hard work and determination. West Michigan Works! also received an award for aiding front-line workers with the training needed to be successful in high-demand career fields.

The Michigan Works! Association is a nonprofit membership organization that provides services and support to Michigan’s talent ecosystem. The association’s Impact Awards recognize the economic development successes being achieved in communities across Michigan.

During the event, local lawmakers presented tributes to dozens of honorees from across the state.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16

jeopardy. You can engage in strategic planning meetings and retreats monthly, but if your sales force doesn’t carry out the directions bubbling up through those meetings, you’re wasting your time.

Too often, salespeople are stuck in the ruts of outmoded images of their jobs, reinforced by deeply ingrained habits. Many salespeople see themselves as “route salespeople,” making the same sales calls over and over again for years. Ask them to view their jobs differently and you’re liable to be frustrated with the lack of results. The habit is just too deeply ingrained to change overnight.

DO YOU HAVE

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE? A People on the Move article is the perfect opportunity for your organization to announce new hires, promotions and board members, as well as employees being named to external boards.

Each article is also featured in our People on the Move newsletter, which is delivered every other Tuesday, as well as on our home page and our social channels.

Submit your information online at: grbj.com/people-on-the-move/ Questions: Contact office manager and coordinator 616.459.4545 reception@geminipub.com

nize that this is a problem that will not be fixed when the economy starts to grow again. The second step is to change our definition of economic success from a low unemployment rate to a rising household income for all. And then get to work on developing policies and programming explicitly designed to achieve that mission.

Lou Glazer is president of Michigan Future Inc.

Of course, you often are part of the problem. It’s likely that you’ve relied on hands-off, laisse faire sales management. “Go forth and sell a lot!” may have been the extent of your direction to them.

Coupled with a compensation program heavily weighted to sales or gross margin incentives, that sales management approach is a vestige of days gone by. Ask your sales force to do something differently and they’ll go out and do what your pay plan rewards them for doing, regardless of your request. In that case, the problem is your system.

You ask them to do one thing but pay them to do something else.

If you’re going to rise above the pack and survive and prosper in this economy, you need to overcome these issues and field a directable sales force.

Dave Kahle is an author, consultant and speaker who has presented in 47 states and 11 countries, improved the performance of thousands of B2B salespeople and authored 13 books.

Receive his insights on a regular basis here: https://www.davekahle.com/ subscribe-daves-e-zines/.

03 OF 11

touching many areas, including mission integration, spiritual care, ethics and community benefit.

Early in Brad’s tenure with the health care system,

on the southeast side of Grand Rapids. The patients

therapy, support groups, spiritual direction and other

needs with them, including education, employment and housing. Brad purchased and demolished the

dilapidated homes across the street from the center, building an affordable housing development in their place, the first of several such projects he would spearhead.

At the intersection of health care and homelessness,

Brad Mathis saw the opportunity to make a difference.

The Grand Rapids native was working at Mercy

Health Saint Mary’s when he was first introduced to Guiding Light and its work in Heartside. His

background introduced him early on to the needs and challenges of the population being served –

particularly those struggling with substance abuse and mental health issues, which often go hand in hand.

“I knew Guiding Light was making a difference, and I

thought I could contribute and make a difference, too,”

says Mathis, who serves on the Board of the nonprofit.

“I love the fact that faith is such a significant part of the mission and essential to the foundation of what we do.

Faith is really the essence of Guiding Light.”

Faith also lies at the center of Brad’s life. After graduating from Catholic Central, he studied economics and

Through that project, Brad first met and worked with

the team at Rockford Construction. Today, he serves as the company’s Vice President of Community

resources to equip men to stay sober and approach life in a different way. Men who enroll are provided with educational classes based in principles of

behavioral therapy. Each week, men attend group and individual therapy sessions with a licensed

counselor specializing in addiction. They also have weekly sessions with a life coach and a spiritual

director, as well as daily personal contact with outside community support groups who are all committed to their recovery.

Men who successfully complete this first phase

takes a holistic approach to community development.

sober-living apartments that provide a safe and secure

urban development projects, such as Amplify GR, which

So, too, does Guiding Light through its Recovery

have the option to move to Iron House, Guiding Light’s environment in a residential area outside the inner city.

addiction treatment program, Iron House sober-

At Iron House, they can live more independently and

development program. Faith takes center stage in

transition back into the mainstream of society.

living communities and its Back to Work workforce each of these programs, which resonates with Brad.

“I’ve always believed in the integration of social

determinants that impact our health and well-being,”

Brad explains. “From a faith perspective, Guiding Light has been open about meeting people where they are.

Spirituality really does have a significant impact on recovery and behavioral health as a whole.

‘‘

Being able to approach faith in a healthy way is critical for the individual and all the relationships they will have.”

The men served by Guiding Light’s Recovery program

Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, Missouri. He spent 18

before finding their way to 255 Division Ave. S.

years at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, his work and faith

combines evidence-based practices, life-coaching,

Development and Inclusion, where he focuses on

health care administration at the University of

Michigan before completing a master’s in theology at

permanent change.

The four- to six-month peer-led residential program

who came for medical treatment brought many other

SEES FAITH AS THE ESSENCE OF GUIDING LIGHT

give men the structure – and opportunity – to affect

he helped develop and manage the Browning Claytor Health Center, which served lower-income residents

Board Member Brad Mathis

alcohol addiction recovery program, it is designed to

will have failed an average of five other programs

Recognized on the streets as a “no-joke” drug and

still remain supported in their sobriety journeys as they

“The impact Recovery and Iron House have is nothing short of life-changing,” Brad noted. “The testimonials that come from family members explaining how their

loved ones have benefited from the Recovery program always give me a lot of joy.

“Iron House has been a tremendous opportunity for

so many of the guys. Affordable housing is so difficult to find in West Michigan. At Iron House, they are part

of a community, which is always a good, healthy next step in their journeys.”

There’s no charge to the men enrolled in Recovery

program nor to their families. The costs are borne by donors, many of whom have had a family member

stolen by addiction. Other donors tell Guiding Light they support the work because it speaks to their Christian values, as it does with Brad.

“Your values are essentially what drives you,” Brad

said. “We get them from recognizing the importance of human dignity, love and graciousness. Every one

of us in some way, shape or form needs to be able to feel we are contributing to society.”

Through the guiding light of God’s Spirit, Guiding Light partners with individuals to fulfill their God-given potential through rescue, recovery and re-engagement in the community.

GIVE SECURELY ONLINE AT GuidingLightWorks.org/Give

20

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

ACCOUNTING

Rehmann announced the promotions of the following associates from its Grand Rapids office: Kari Gerber, principal; Amy Rottman, principal; Dave Cook, client relationship manager; Jimmy Crusoe, advisory and tax senior; Ryan Terpstra, senior retirement plan specialist; Aaron Thimm, assurance manager; Stacy Tilstra, accounting specialist III; Michael Wilks, assurance senior; and in Grandville, Justin Ward, managed services manager.

ADVERTISING & MARKETING

1 Bold Step added Rob Costie and Kort Rantala to its team as digital campaign manager and account manager, respectively.

ARTS

The Board of Library Commissioners of the Grand Rapids Public Library elected Rachel S. Anderson as president and Kelly Boston as vice president/secretary.

ASSOCIATIONS

Joseph L. Rivet, Rivet Health Law PLC in Norton Shores, recently was named to the National Small Business Association Leadership Council, the nation’s oldest small-business advocacy organization that operates on a staunchly nonpartisan basis.

The director of Wedgwood’s Autism Center for Child Development, Candice Lake, was appointed president of the Michigan Behavior Analysis Providers Association.

BANKING

MaxWealth Management, located at Lake Michigan Credit Union, announced the promotion of Tevin Lake Shakelford to LPL financial adviser for the Greater Grand Rapids area.

tor of talent and organizational development; Tony Mandarino to director of commercial operations; Laura Mock to director of enterprise project and process management; Brianne Schmidke to director of marketing; and Frank Witucki to director of compliance.

CONSTRUCTION

Holland-based Lakewood Construction celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Established in 1971 by two Holland locals working out of their homes, the company has since grown to over 40 employees serving all of West Michigan.

EDUCATION

Grand Valley State University vice president and general counsel Tom Butcher and vice president for university development Karen Loth announced they will retire. Patricia Smith, associate vice president and deputy general counsel, will be appointed the university’s general counsel at the end of June.

Allen

United Federal Credit Union in St. Joseph announced the promotion of the following employees: Kellie Dolezan to director of total rewards; Brenda Kamph to direc-

John R. Allen, chief of the Melvindale Police Department, has been named Big Rapids-based Ferris State University’s

APR 19 West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum Webinar. Topic: Leveraging Design Thinking as a Strategy for Sustainability.

Noon-1:30 p.m. Information/registration: bit.ly/DesignThinkingWebinar2021.

APR 20 The Van Andel Institute Virtual Public Lecture. Topic: Clinical Trials and Collaboration In Parkinson’s Disease.

Noon-1 p.m. Cost: free. Information/registration: bit.ly/ParkinsonsLecture.

APR 19 World Affairs Council of Western Michigan KDL Community Resilience Series. Topic: Empowered People = Community Resilience, by Tarah Carnahan (Treetops Collective), Willie Patterson III (LINC Up) and Carlos Sanchez (Latino Business Center). 6:307:30 p.m. Cost: free. Information/registration: worldmichigan.org/kdl2021.

APR 21 Michigan Women Forward Virtual WomanUp And Celebrate Awards and Networking Event. Honorees are Tasha Blackmon, Sue Jandernoa and Kelly Springer. 12:30 p.m. Suggested donation: $50. Information/registration: miwf.org.

APR 19-24 Lakeshore Museum Center Quilt Exhibit.

Displaying the work of the late Rosie Lee Wilkins in Who is Rosie Lee Wilkins: Piecing Together Her History. Cost: free/ members and those living in the area, $5/non-Muskegon County residents.

Information/registration: (231) 722-0278 or lakeshoremuseum.org.

APR 19-JUN 6 Krasl Art Center New Exhibitions.

Boom Bloom, featuring Nikki Renee Anderson and Renee Robbins, in KAC’s main gallery, and The Undetectable Presence: A Selection of Sculpture, by Mike Slaski, in the artlab. Cost: free and open to public. 707 Lake Blvd., St. Joseph.

Information/registration: (269) 983-0271 or krasl.org.

APR 20 Disability Advocates of Kent County 3rd Annual Absolutely Accessible Kent Technical Virtual Workshop. Speakers include award-winning architect and advocate Karen Braitmayer and Rosemarie Rossetti, founder, Universal Design Living Laboratory in Columbus, Ohio. 9-11:30 a.m. Cost: $35. Information/ registration: bit.ly/ 30xTdDt.

its newest trustee.

Sanchez serves as the director of the Latino Business and Economic Development Center at Ferris State University.

Grooters joins Bradley Company Kyle Grooters has joined Bradley Company as an adviser within the brokerage department. Grooters brings several years of sales experience to the team. Prior to joining Bradley Company, Grooters worked with Robert Grooters Development Co. where he focused on leasing and land acquisitions among several clients generating millions in lease and sales transactions. Prior to this, he served as a commercial real estate adviser with Icon Realty Group Commercial and RE/MAX Commercial, selling over $4.31 million of commercial property, and generating nearly $1 million in lease transactions.

APR 22 Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce Policy Tap Via Zoom. Mingle with elected officials across the political spectrum over drinks. 4:30-6 p.m. Cost: free/members, $25/nonmembers. Information/registration: bit.ly/PolicyOnTap. APR 22 Grand Rapids Public Schools Foundation Mask*Quer*Aid. A virtual masked gala in support of GRPSF. 6-7 p.m. Information/ registration: grpsf.org.

APR 22 Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce Network Live Zoom Happy Hour. 4-4:45 p.m. Information/registration: (616) 392-9720 or keegan@west coastchamber.org.

APR 26 Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce Virtual Meeting with Congressman Fred Upton. An opportunity to discuss issues that affect business.

9-9:45 a.m. Cost: free/members, $30/ nonmembers. Information/registration: (616) 928-9101 or Colleen@westcoast chamber.org.

APR 26 World Affairs Council of Western Michigan KDL Community Resilience

CHANGE-UPS & CALENDAR

Michigan State University professor of neuroMorgan science David Morgan is the recipient of the Alzheimer’s Association Excellence in Neuroscience Mentoring Award from the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference Neuroscience Next.

new Department of Public Safety director.

Spectrum Health West Michigan hired James Moses, MD, MPH, as senior vice president of quality, safety and patient experience.

ENERGY

HOSPITALITY

M-Industries made a major step toward energy independence by having 419 solar panels installed on its factory roof, officially transferring its primary source of energy to solar power for its entire Ada plant and offices.

GRANTS

Friends of Grand Rapids Parks is the recipient of a $250,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

The grant is part of the NFWF Sustain Our Great Lakes program, which funds projects that restore key habitats for wildlife, improve water quality and enhance urban greenspace throughout the Great Lakes basin in 2021 and beyond.

The Grand Rapids Police Department announced its Police K-9 Program has been awarded a $20,000 grant from the Mary P. Dolciani Halloran Foundation.

The grant will be used, in part, to train K-9 teams in high-risk deployments and tactical operations, and for the purchase of specialized equipment and training aids.

HEALTH

Mercy Health Saint Mary’s board of trustees announced Carlos Sanchez as

Series. Topic: Responsive Government = Community Resilience, by Nicole Hofert (city planner, Wyoming), Stephen Kepley (mayor, Kentwood) and Melinda Ysasi (Grand Rapids 2nd Ward commissioner). 6:30-7:30 p.m. Cost: free. Information/ registration: worldmichigan.org/kdl2021.

APR 27 Family Business Alliance Seminar. Topic: Avoiding an Entitlement Mentality.

8-10a.m.,GVSU L. William Seidman Center, 50 Front Ave. SW. Cost: $25-$100.

Registration: members.fbagr.org/events APR 27 GVSU Family Owned Business Institute NextGen Series. Topic: Avoiding An Entitlement Mentality, by Kimberly A. Eddleston, Schulze Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship, D’AmoreMcKim School of Business, Northeastern University. 8-10 a.m., GVSU LV Eberhard Center, 301 W. Fulton St. Cost: $100/ in-person, $25/virtual, free/members an underwriter registration. Information/registration: bit.ly/3rdwatt.

APR 26 Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce Virtual Coffee With Congressman Fred Upton. 9-9:45 a.m.

Cost: free/members, $30/nonmembers.

Information/registration: (616) 392-2389 or info@westcoastchamber.org.

APR 27 Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce Zoom Meeting. Topic: Inclusive Leadership, by Darryl Shelton, experienced facilitator and teacher with expertise in sales, leadership training, high-level creative thinking and curriculum development. 10-11 a.m. Cost: free/ members, $30/nonmembers. Registration: Colleen@westcoastchamber.org.

APR 27 Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of

AHC Hospitality promoted Ross Bartlett to regional general manager of Amway Grand Plaza, Curio Collection by Hilton and Morton Hotel.

LEGAL

Kent County Legal Assistance Center executive director Deborah Hughes and State Bar of Michigan President and Grand Rapids attorney Rob Buchanan have been appointed by order of the Michigan Supreme Court to the newly created Justice for All Commission that will work toward the goal of 100% access to the civil justice system.

Thomas Flickinger joined The Brown Law Firm PLLC as a partner. The law firm also has opened its second office and now has offices in Grand Rapids and Belmont.

MANUFACTURING

ounced the appointment of Cheryl Kern to vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion.

NONPROFITS

Frank Acosta Jr. recently was appointed to a marketing and communications co-chair board position for the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network of Grand Rapids.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

Digital public relations firm DYS Media opened a Grand Rapids office at 2424 Burton St. SE. DYS Media will continue to maintain an office in Holland.

REAL ESTATE

Despite the pandemic challenges and a six-week shutdown of in-person real estate tours and agent events last March and April, local and family-owned Greenridge Realty celebrated the close of its 40th year with record sales — well over $1 billion in closed sales volume for the third consecutive year — and surpassing $1 million in donations through its nonprofit arm, The Dream Team Foundation.

Greenridge Realty announced the promotion of real estate agent Stephen Stuckey to branch manager of the company’s Grandville office.

RETAIL

The Woods Cultivation and Processing, a cannabis minority-owned facility in Kalamazoo, recently opened for business after constructing a 30,000-square-foot grow facility.

TECHNOLOGY

Ben Visser joined Fusion IT LLC as director of operations.

Zeeland-based Herman Miller ann-

CHANGE-UPS POLICY: The Business Journal welcomes submissions to the Change-Ups section. Send announcements concerning personnel changes, new businesses, changes of address etc. to Change-Ups Editor, Grand Rapids Business Journal, 401 Hall St. SW, Suite 331, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 or email bjchangeups@grbj.com.

Commerce Business Leaders Meeting.

8-9 a.m., Marge’s Donut Den, 1751 28th St. SW, Wyoming. Information/registration: (616) 261-4500 or d.kuba@instantcashmi. com.

tizers and drinks provided. 4-7 p.m., Watermark Country Club, 1600 Galbraith Ave. SE. Available to peer group members only. Information/registration: bit.ly/3wiE 5IA.

APR 28 Grand Rapids Young Professionals Online Event. Topic: Adulting 101: Launching Your Next Career Move. Noon.

Cost: free. Information/registration: bit.ly/ GRYPAdulting101.

MAY 7 West Michigan Clean Air Coalition Annual Clean Air Action Virtual Luncheon. Noon. Information/registration: wmcac.org.

Bill Manns, president and CEO of Bronson Healthcare, joined Cascade Engineering’s board of directors.

Haviland Enterprises Inc. recently hired Laurel Flythe as director of health, safety and environmental.

APR 28 The Institute for Supply Management Greater Grand Rapids Webinar. Topic: Cost Containment: Even More Important In A Post COVID-19 World. 1-2 p.m. Cost: free/members, students, $35/nonmembers. Information/registration: ismggr.org.

APR 29 Love N Grace Healing Centers Seminar.

Topic: Helping Them Heal, with keynote speaker Neil T. Anderson, founder and president emeritus, Freedom In Christ Ministries. 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Fellowship Church, 4200 E. Apple Ave., Muskegon.

Cost: free. RSVP required at bit.ly/loven graceheals/ MAY 1 28TH Street Metro Cruise Dust Off. 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Moose Lodge #763, 2630 Burlingame Ave. SW, Wyoming.

Registration: 28thstreetmetrocruise.com.

MAY 5 Comprehensive Therapy Center Virtual 16th Annual Read To Me Tea. Celebrating the artistic accomplishments of West Michigan children with developmental disabilities and delays. 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Information/registration: therapycenter. org.

MAY 6 Family Business Alliance Peer Group Cocktails and Connection. Light appe-

MAY 10 Wyoming-Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce Government Matters Zoom Meeting - with Elected Officials. 8-9 a.m.

Information/registration: (616) 531-5990 or michelle@southkent.org.

MAY 11 The Employers’ Association Virtual Annual Meeting. Noon-1:30 p.m. Speaker: Lindsey M. Piegza, managing director, chief economist, Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. Inc. Noon1:30 p.m. Information/registration: (616) 698-1167 or teagr.org/teaimis.

MEETINGS & CONVENTIONS Information: Stephanie Bradley, (616) 233-3577 or sbradley@experiencegr. com.

CALENDAR POLICY: The Business Journal welcomes submissions to the calendar section. Send items to Calendar Editor, Grand Rapids Business Journal, 401 Hall St. SW, Suite 331, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 or email bjcal endar@grbj.com. Submissions must be received at least three weeks prior to the event.

The Business Journal calendar posted on the publication’s website (grbj.com) includes listings for events extended beyond those printed in the weekly publication that are limited by space restrictions.

PUBLIC RECORD MORTGAGES

Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds MUILENBERG, David M. et al, Mercantile Bank, Ada Twp., $500,000 WENZEL, Todd, Mercantile Bank, Cascade Twp., $1,140,000 SINGH, Sukhwinder, Fifth Third Bank, Cascade Twp., $643,500 FSV III 2155 LLC, Independent Bank, Parcel: 411811240047, $8,698,560 BAINES, Daniel L., MMS Mortgage Services, Cannon Twp., $380,000 VALLEY SITE FARMS LLC, James Randall Development Co. LLC, Caledonia,

Equity plan moves ahead CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

contractors, service providers and the like.

While the EDD puts the expectation on the contractor – and the business – to on-board WBE, MBE and MLBE subcontractors, legally, the office can’t enforce a certain percentage of participation in these areas for any incentives to be available. It is, however, highly encouraged, because the EDD will report those levels of participation in its evaluation and public presentation.

“It’s a good indicator of saying, ‘look you really need to think about this,’” Gracia said. “When we rolled this out in January of 2021, saying this is now going to be part of our application process, we already had people and projects committing to it.”

Gracia counted six projects in the works that have completed the

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

21

$619,000 MALY, Patrick et al, Nations Direct Mortgage LLC, Gaines Twp., $358,900 CLARK, Landon, JPMorgan Chase Bank, East Grand Rapids, $343,998 YI, Kyong N. et al, Fifth Third Bank, Ada Twp., $580,000 FRUIT RIDGE ASSEMBLY LC, Whitehawk Capital Partners LP, Parcel: 411305176015, $116,300,000 HOLM, Matthew W. et al, Lake Michigan Credit Union, Cannon Twp., $412,500 EYER, Jordan M. et al, Benchmark Mortgage, Nelson Twp., $342,000 WILLEY, Thomas E. et al, Allegan Community

Federal Credit Union, Ada Twp., $377,000 GOTCH, Beau A. et al, Macatawa Bank, Byron Twp., $416,700 BRUGGER, David et al, Mercantile Bank, Cannon Twp., $387,000 MORGAN, Brian et al, Union Home Mortgage Corp., Byron Twp., $364,000 KOBER, Matthew et al, PNC Bank, Algoma Twp., $379,200 3501 RIVERTOWN LLC, Horizon Bank, Parcel: 411729204025, $1,660,000 KARADSHEH, Elias et al, Quicken Loans, Byron Twp., $436,500 SMITH, Chadd et al, MSU Federal Credit Union, East Grand Rapids, $462,650

WEBER, Ty et al, Quicken Loans, Cannon Twp., $453,054 PETERS, Bradley A. et al, United Bank, Byron Twp., $489,328 MIMG LXXXVII CASTLE BLUFF LLC, Berkadia Commercial Mortgage LLC, Kentwood, $6,950,000 EDWARDS, Jeremy et al, Lake Michigan Credit Union, Plainfield Twp., $472,150 BRIGGS, Alexander et al, United Wholesale Mortgage, Courtland Twp., $403,450 ZAHM, Cody et al, Lake Michigan Credit Union, Spencer Twp., $504,000 HOWARD, Jessica et al, Neighborhood Loans, Wyoming, $367,650

PUBLIC RECORD AVAILABLE ONLINE: For the full version of this week’s Public Record, visit the Grand Rapids Business Journal’s website at grbj.com.

equity plan and are ready to begin construction. One of them, Blackmer in Grand Rapids, plans to demolish an idle, 48,000-square-foot foundry and put in its place a $7.4 million, 55,000-square-foot manufacturing facility.

Blackmer’s aspirational goal is to commit $750,000, or about 10% of the overall construction cost, to recruiting MBEs, WBEs or MLBEs. Outside of the EDD, the Grand Rapids Office of Equity and Engagement also is implementing a program to help MLBEs register with the city for city-specific projects. Because the office of equity and engagement already keeps a list of MLBEs, the EDD can use the list to help developers locate these subcontractors for their own projects.

“We’re not endorsing anyone, but these are the folks that have registered with the city and meet the requirements we are asking you to seek out in the bidding process,” Gracia said. “What’s important about the inclusion plan is there is some accountability, because we’re going to ask up front, ‘who do you plan to reach out to?’

And then we’re going to check in

with you … let us know, and we’re going to help you along the way.”

The same focus extends down to smaller-scale projects in neighborhoods of focus, Gracia said.

Isaac V. Norris and Associates, an architecture firm located in Southtown, is working on a project to create three separate business storefronts from a 3,400-squarefoot property on 1002 Hall St. SE. Norris plans to utilize the city’s obsolete property rehabilitation exemption to create space for affordable business fronts for women- and minority-owned businesses that offer products to the Boston Square district.

While it’s a little bit of a smaller development – the overall project estimate was $331,000 – Norris committed to 100% MBE, WBE and MLBE support for the project, Gracia said.

Perrigo late last year announced it is moving its North American corporate headquarters to Medical Mile in downtown Grand Rapids in a move that will create 170 jobs, according to a previous Business Journal report.

Gracia said while that’s great news for the area, it’s the smaller-scale projects in high volume that will

lead to greater and more equitable development for Grand Rapids in the long run.

“How we show the greatest success – I love baseball – is hitting a lot of singles and doubles,” Gracia said. “I can show you a lot of home runs. Perrigo is a great home run … but the only reason we got to bat with that project is because of all the singles and doubles we’ve been hitting for all these years that made Grand Rapids competitive in that site-selection process.”

If both the Blackmer project and the Boston Square project come to fruition, those projects by themselves will equal over $1 million in MLBE, MBE and WBE investment.

Even through the economic slowdown brought on by COVID-19 and government shutdowns, Gracia said there is a positive side, because businesses are more actively seeking assistance and desiring to learn more about what the EDD can do for them.

“We want to make sure we establish trust with key multipliers in business and in the community,” Gracia said. “If I inform you really well about what these programs are, you’re our greatest advocate to

share that message in the community and with other stakeholders who may not be aware or interested at this time in talking to our office.”

Restaurants have indisputably been hit hardest because of COVID-19, but through programming and funding from different offices, the EDD is deploying outdoor seating units to 10 restaurants across the city in key neighborhood business districts.

Restaurants include Daddy Pete’s BBQ in West Millbrook, Rising Grinds Café in Madison Square, One Bourbon in Stockbridge, Putt-Putt’s Bar and Grill in West Fulton, El Granjero Mexican Grill in Stockbridge, Tamales El Kora in South Division, Tacos El Cuñado in Burton Heights and Harmony Brewing Co. in Eastown.

“What I instructed our partners was, ‘I need you to really focus on those neighborhood business areas,” Gracia said. “We love downtown, don’t get me wrong, but downtown also has great support mechanisms … if we’re going to deploy these and make this investment, let’s go put these out in the neighborhoods.”

KAMINSKI, Bradley et al, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Ada Twp., $523,500 ADAMS, Gregory II et al, Quicken Loans, Parcel: 411412276012, $422,800 MCCONKEY, James S. et al, United Wholesale Mortgage, Algoma Twp., $375,000

22

GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL

APR 19, 2021

Shopping trends revealed Love letter.

T

hink your shopping choices haven’t changed much during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Think again. Because everybody needs firewood and hand weights, right?

As the one-year mark into pandemic living has officially passed, West Michigan-based grocer and retailer Meijer Inc. revealed some surprising shopping trends from the height of the shutdown to the ongoing changes in home and work lifestyles across the Midwest.

While home delivery and pickup services doubled at Meijer stores over the last 12 months, customers used the retailer’s Shop & Scan technology more than 100 million times as they shopped and bagged while practicing social distancing to shorten time spent in the store.

Additionally, customers also ate more grab n’ go sushi, purchased more citrus produce and supplements, added hand weights to home gyms and purchased decorative pillows to enhance backgrounds for video calls or to work more comfortably from home while in bed.

“We continue to applaud our store teams that worked diligently throughout the pandemic to find solutions that would help our customers find the products they needed while keeping their fam-

BUSINESS JOURNAL STAFF

ilies safe. It was a year rife with challenge, and although it’s not yet over, we see a light at the end of the tunnel,” said Peter Whitsett, Meijer executive vice president of merchandising and marketing.

“As communities have begun to re-open, we’re continuing to find new ways to be flexible as customers reshape their shopping habits for the warmer weather of a new year.”

As shutdowns continued, customers turned to new video game hardware and accessories, board games and puzzles to keep themselves busy and entertained. Notably, Meijer sold more bikes, pools and grills than past years and saw more than a 60% increase in fishing pole and gear sales as an estimated 9 million new anglers picked up the hobby to fill their time.

As wait times for restaurant takeout increased, stores saw a dramatic increase in grab n’ go and easy meal offerings for families to eat together at home. Some of the most popular choices continue to include rotisserie chicken, with more the 500,000 sold over the last month. Premade meals from local restaurants that Meijer partners with has been another quick meal option during the pandemic for some local communities.

Thermal curtains and weighted blankets grew more than 50% compared to last year as shoppers

sought to keep heating bills down and block light in their home offices. Adding a variety of scents and ambiance to workspaces, spa-themed candles increased in popularity as the year progressed, resulting in a 160% increase since the beginning of the pandemic.

Finally, Meijer Express locations, which saw an expected decrease in gas sales due to less commuting, became de facto destinations for customers seeking quick trips as shutdowns reduced retailer hours.

In addition to late-night snacks and beverages, 24-hour Meijer Express locations saw double-digit growth in firewood and propane sales for backyard gatherings and camping trips.

In celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week May 3-7, Momma’s Home, an e-commerce natural skincare and body care company in Zeeland, is seeking nominations from parents, students, friends, family and co-workers of outstanding K-12 teachers who will receive a gift basket.

“Teachers have had an especially rough school year, and we wanted to find a way for parents to show their appreciation and reward teachers with a little pampering with our skincare products,” said Amy Furman, Momma’s Home founder.

STREET TALK

Participants can nominate their favorite K-12 teacher using the form at mommashome.com/ school. During Teacher Appreciation Week, one teacher per weekday — five total — will be randomly selected to receive a Momma’s Home products gift basket. Nominations opened April 18 and close May 2.

During the pandemic, Momma’s Home has donated products to several groups of essential workers. The most recent was to fire personnel and emergency medical technicians in Grandville and Walker.

“This time, instead of choosing a worthy organization ourselves, we decided to let our community tell us who needs some pampering. Our educators have spent hundreds of hours in-person and online teaching our children, and we wanted to show our appreciation to them for their dedication,” Furman said.

Michigan’s leading business associations representing thousands of employers have issued a call to government leaders: use federal stimulus dollars to transform the state. The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan (ARP) signed by President Joe Biden allows leeway for how state government, municipalities and school districts can spend the one-time funding over the next several years. Instead of simply spending the funding quickly, the business community is asking for strategic investments that will help Michigan grow for years to come.

Business Leaders for Michigan, the Detroit Regional Chamber, the

Grand Rapids Chamber, the Lansing Regional Chamber, the Michigan Manufacturers Association (MMA), and the Small Business Association of Michigan joined together to encourage leaders to work together across party and jurisdictional lines to assure these funds have lasting impact. The letter was sent to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, legislative leadership and municipal leaders outlining several key principles to guide potentially transformational investments.

“It can be easy to find ways to spend one-time funding on shortterm needs, but far harder to find investments that will transform our state in the next decade,” said Jeff Donofrio, president and CEO of Business Leaders for Michigan.

“Michigan’s goal shouldn’t just be returning to pre-pandemic status; this is an opportunity to both help our state recover from COVID-19 and advance long-term, widely shared prosperity. We know states and regions across the country are planning strategic investments that will give them even more of a competitive edge for jobs and economic growth in the coming years – Michigan can’t be left behind.”

“Policymakers must use these one-time funds to crush the virus, mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on our businesses and communities and set the stage for future success,” added Rick Baker, president and CEO of the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce. “Expenditures should be carefully considered for maximum, measurable and long-term impact, while avoiding the creation of unfunded, ongoing obligations or liabilities.”

HOME REPAIR SERVICES

OF KENT COUNTY

would like to thank this year’s Resourceful Homeowner Celebration sponsors for their support of this unique event that celebrates the power of DIY through Home Repair Services’ kitchen Remodeling Together Program.

MICHIGAN PACESETTER SPONSOR $5,000 and above River City Foundation CITY HERO SPONSOR $1,000 and above Anonymous Eikenhout, Inc. Heartland Builders Lake Michigan Credit Union Mercantile Bank Modern Hardware National Nail Corporation PNC Bank Solutions for Energy Efficient Logistics Universal Forest Products VanderKodde Construction David & Jodi VanWingerden, Morgan Stanley Cascade Group Warner Norcross + Judd LLP

Congratulations to José Capelas the 2021 Resourceful Homeowner Award recipient.

METRO CHAMPION SPONSOR $2,500 and above Benchmark Mortgage Eastbrook Homes, Inc. Fence Consultants of West Michigan NSF Foundation Pro-Tech Heating & Cooling Standale Lumber & Supply TCF Bank NEIGHBORHOOD STAR SPONSOR $500 and above Andrews, Hooper & Pavlik, CPA Anonymous Apex Spring & Stamping Cara Oosterhouse & Jacqueline Kaiser ChoiceOne Bank Dominican Sisters – Grand Rapids Integrated Architecture Level One Bank Lanning Electric Standard Lumber & Supply Company Team Logic IT Williams Kitchen and Baths Herm and Laurie Witte

For more information about the mission and work of Home Repair Services of Kent County and to see videos of this year’s “final four” of DIY kitchens, visit www.homerepairservices.org or find us on Facebook

You know where you’re going; we’ll help you get there.

Financial decisions carry great responsibility.

Grow, sustain and share your wealth more confidently with the holistic financial guidance of Plante Moran Wealth Management with you every step of the way. plantemoran.com/WealthManagement

Applauding the power of understanding.

BRENT GEERS Founder of Geers Law

Grand Rapids Community Foundation knows West Michigan’s most dedicated professional advisors don’t have just one role. In their personal and professional lives, they are activators who create informed impact.

Brent sees the possibility of what can be. He believes in asking openended questions to draw out fruitful conversation and understanding, and sees estate planning as an avenue to empower and provide for those you love.

Please join Grand Rapids Community Foundation in celebrating Brent Geers, founder of Geers Law and a member of the Community Foundation’s One Hundred New Philanthropists. Find more passionate advisors making a difference in our community at grfoundation.org/advisors.