The Muskegon Chronicle reports that the construction of new homes in Muskegon County is on the rise and the construction companies that have weathered the storm could benefit. According to excerpts from the story:Amid the gloomy economic news, many might be surprised to learn that new houses are under construction in Muskegon and northwest Ottawa counties. It appears local new home construction has bottomed out and is beginning to rebound. The surviving West Michigan home builders have restructured while others have gone bankrupt, out of business or both. No company tells the survival story in the new home construction industry better than Eastbrook Homes of Grand Rapids.Read the complete story here.

Governor Granholm states that Energetx Composites has the potential to be a major player in the wind turbine industry.   According to excerpts in the story from The Grand Rapids Press Wind turbine blade production at Energetx Composites will grow free of state and local taxes for the next 15 years, after the company won designation as a renewable energy renaissance zone on Friday. A new $6.5 million plant will make utility-scale wind turbine blades, each 150 feet long and weighing up to 28 tons. The company, a spin-off of yacht builder S2 Yachts, said it is also looking at ways to expand into the electric vehicle sector. Read the complete story here: http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2010/10/holland_wind_turbine_maker_ene.html

The Grand Rapids Press reports that the proposed CityFlats Hotel in downtown Grand Rapids broke ground this week. Hotel owners say they'll bring their boutique hotel design concept to the city on the heels of their success with CityFlats in Holland.According to excerpts from the story:Sledgehammer in hand, Mayor George Heartwell on Wednesday is expected to "break ground" on a building renovation that will create a 28-room boutique hotel inside what had become a downtown eyesore. The $3 million to $4 million project to create the CityFlats Hotel inside the five-story former Fox Jewelers building, 83-85 Monroe Center, is on track to be completed by May, said Chuck Reid, president of developer Charter House Innovations. CityFlats' uniquely designed rooms are expected to include environmentally friendly features while embracing the historic nature of the building. Read the complete story here.

Over the past summer, six interns working with Michigan Migrant Legal Assistance Project, Inc (MMLAP) spent time doing outreach in the migrant worker community. What they found was a level of domestic violence much higher than was anticipated.MMLAP, also known as Migrant Legal Aid, is a non-profit organization funded to provide legal assistance to migrant and seasonal farm workers. It is the primary legal service provider for farm workers in the state of Michigan.Using the information discovered by the legal interns, MMLAP was "facing a massive intake of new clients" with an added layer of complexity due to the immigration issues that go beyond family law. To meet the demand, Executive Director Teresa Hendricks began the process to hire a an experienced Spanish-speaking attorney with a background in immigration.According to Hendricks, funding for this new position has been aided by several local foundations including the Grand Rapids Community Foundation (GRCF). Laurie Craft, program director at GRCF, views this a great example of solving a complex problem through collaboration as she identified the Hispanic Center, Legal Aid and the YWCA Domestic Violence Center as playing key roles in this future hire.With the addition of this attorney, MMLAP will have a staff of seven full-time staff who handle anywhere from 500-1100 cases per year.  Source: Teresa Hendricks. Laurie Craft Writer: John Rumery, Innovation and Job News Writer

Two years ago, Kevin Budelmann posted a question on LinkedIn to determine if there was any interest in forming a local chapter of AIGA, a professional organization that supports the interests of design professionals, students and educators throughout the world.  For many years, west Michigan professionals in the design industry participated in AIGA activities sponsored by either the Detroit or Chicago chapter. Although there had been informal discussions on establishing a local chapter, no one actually took the time to begin the process but Budelmann sensed the increasing alignment of many businesses and local initiatives tied to the design industry.  "I was astounded by the response,"  Budelmann recalls about his LinkedIn request. "Within 30 days I had 70-80 people signed up in the group." And that was only the beginning. Within 18 months, AIGA West Michigan had up to 270 paying members and has been recognized by the national organization as one of the fastest growing chapters in the nation.  "We have a very high percentage of design talent for a community this size," Budelmann says. Stressing the benefits of having a local chapter, he cites not only the importance of bringing the values of the national organization to West Michigan, but also the training, networking, and recognition opportunities for local design professionals. He also feels very strongly that having a local organization helps in the retention of design talent and plays a significant role in branding west Michigan as a design hub throughout the country.AIGA not only provides services to professionals, but can be a major influence for students interested in a  design career. Besides providing inexpensive networking and big industry events "people don't always appreciate the breadth of the design industry," he says. Far too often, design is equated with decoration. While design has an artful quality, it is really problem solving." The national organization has a membership of over 22,000 and works on activities and local programs with 64 chapters and 240 student groups. For information on the west Michigan chapter of AIGA you can visit their website. Source: Kevin Budelmann Writer: John Rumery

Brighton-based McKenzie Bay International launched 12 years ago as a mining company, then made the switch in 2004 to alternative energy. The company eventually ran out of money and a major wind turbine project stalled, but President and CEO Kevin Cook says the firm has not only rebounded but has re-launched as an alternative and renewable energy "research and development visionary."McKenzie Bay is the newest tenant of Grand Valley State University's Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center (MAREC), at 200 Viridian Dr., Muskegon. MAREC is a cutting-edge facility created to advance innovations in alternative energy; it dedicates a portion of its 25,000 square feet as an incubator for energy startups. The firm moved into the alternative energy arena with the development of the Windstor Wind Turbine, a three-bladed commercial turbine that rotates on a vertical access and can pick up the breeze from any angle, Cook says. "The turbine prototype is installed at Pioneer Bluff Apartments in Ishpeming (Mich.) and has been built over a five-year period," Cook says. "When the project stalled, Clean Green Energy bought the turbine and they now own it. We are contracted with them to continue its development and they'll manufacture it. An important point is that we received a grant from the Department of Energy to develop it."Other MAREC tenants are Energy Partners, LLC, Logical Lighting Systems, LLC. and Smart Vision Lights."MAREC has multiple spaces for conferences and meetings, a place we can bring our shareholders," Cook says. "We'll be able to collaborate with the other tenants here. I'm excited to see what could happen in the next year or so."Cook says McKenzie Bay is also working on development of Ethereal Logic, a wireless lighting system that could control multiple electrical systems within a building, including HVAC and security. Source: Kevin Cook, McKenzie Bay InternationalWriter: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

The White Lake Beacon reports that a grant for the proposed multi-million-dollar Fred Meijer/Berry Junction Bike Trail could fund construction for the first five miles of the trail.According to excerpts from the story:The on-again, off-again Fred Meijer/Berry Junction Bike Trail projects appears to be once again a go. The bike trail, which planners hope will take bikers and trail users from White Lake Drive, at Blank Road, through Fruitland, Dalton and Muskegon townships, where the plan is to link it up with the Lakeshore at the Causeway, near the Consumers Power plant, seemed to be on track in early 2008 when the trail committee received a $400,000 grant from the Comstock Park-based West Michigan Trails and Greenways Coalition. The Fred Meijer Foundation was to provide a matching grant as well. Alas, that plan died on the vine as the necessary funding match dried up before the project could get off the ground. Now the trail has new life, said Meijer/Berry Junction Bike Trail Committee chairperson and Dalton Township Supervisor, Chris Hall.Read the complete story here.

Anticipating a demand for charging stations and leveraging our automotive and battery manufacturing infrastructure, local leaders plan to help alleviate "range anxiety"  by working together. According to excerpts from the story in www.Mlive.com: A coalition of groups in Grand Rapids, Holland and Muskegon has applied for 98 vehicle charging stations via a federally subsidized program to provide Coulomb Technologies' Chargepoint systems out of California.‚ Read the complete story here: http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2010/10/muskegon_applying_for_charging.html