LANSING ? The Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund, administered by Ann Arbor SPARK, will get a $6.8 million shot in the arm from the Michigan Economic Development Corp., which did an about face Wednesday and invested in an economic development group, rather than directly in a company. The money was approved by the MEDC?s Strategic Economic
DETROIT - John McCandless has been named National Manager of Field Operations for Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Corporate Communications. A long-time public relations professional on the automotive scene in Detroit, his new responsibilities will include corporate communications and community relations activities for Toyota�??s seven regional public relations field offices located in New York, Detroit, Miami,
ANN ARBOR - Serial entrepreneur, technology investor and University of Michigan graduate Rick Snyder - the former President and COO of Gateway Computer - has formed an exploratory committee to evaluate a run for Michigan governor in 2010. He would run as a Republican. "I will be spending the next several weeks crisscrossing the state,
TROY - High business taxes and training and preparing the workforce are among top issues that confront Michigan's growth industries, according to a Walsh College and EPIC-MRA public opinion survey. The 350 respondents surveyed during the fourth quarter represent advanced automotive materials and manufacturing; life sciences; alternative energy; and defense contracting and homeland security. Respondents
LANSING - Those trying to use stolen logos and false information to trick people into providing credit and other personal information would face stiffer penalties under legislation reported Tuesday by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The committee also began discussions of a new trust code. The bills (SB 149 and SB 150 ) would prohibit so-called
LANSING - Alternative energy could be one of the saviors of the Michigan economy. Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth Director Skip Pruss is working to turn that could into is. In the meantime, he is also working to see that much of the federal stimulus money coming to the state is put to
LANSING - Any tax cuts the Legislature enacts must be paid for in a way that does not slash state revenues, Gov. Jennifer Granholm said Friday. Granholm told reporters cutting revenues at a time when there are critical needs in the state would be irresponsible. Granholm made the comments at the end of a week
WASHINGTON DC - Existing-home sales rebounded in February, climbing above expectations, but prices plunged again. Regionally, sales rose 15.6 percent in the Northeast, 6.1 percent in the South, 2.6 percent in the West and only 1 percent in the Midwest. Home resales climbed to a 4.72 million annual rate, a 5.1 percent increase from January's
ANN ARBOR - Great Lakes Entrepreneur's Quest is offering participants the opportunity to get their questions about the business-plan writing contest answered directly by investors. The deadline to enter the spring contest - where a cash prize of $25,000 is offered - is March 30. The GLEQ Ask-The-Judges Roundtables will let participants learn what they
WASHINGTON DC - Noting that the U.S. financial system "is still working against economic recovery," the Treasury Department Monday revealed details of its plan to address toxic assets weighing on banks' balance sheets. Treasury said one major reason the financial system is still facing challenges is because of "legacy assets" and securities that are compromising