Blaming growing loan losses, Chemical Financial Corp. expects to post a loss when it reports quarterly results later this month.

The Midland-based parent corporation of Chemical Bank said today it expects to charge off $5 million in nonperforming loans and add $7 million to its loan-loss reserve for the third quarter.

Coupled with a prior $10 million charge the bank linked to a fraudulent commercial loan, the actions will result in Chemical Financial [Nasdaq: CHFC] reporting a net loss of 4 cents to 6 cents per diluted share, which compares to net income of 40 cents per diluted share in the second quarter.

Continue reading "Chemical Financial expects third-quarter loss" »

After 14 years as the Managing Principal at The Rehmann Group in Saginaw, Heidi Bolger's title has changed slightly, but the difference means Bolger gets to spend more time doing what she loves best; working with clients.

Bolger, who started out with The Rehmann Group 30 years ago after graduating from Central Michigan University with an accounting degree, found out very quickly she wanted to do more with her career than just prepare taxes and perform audits.

Continue reading "Executive profile: Heidi Bolger, consulting principal at The Rehmann Group" »

When mid-Michigan businesses turn toward the sun, the economy grows.
Fulcrum Composites Inc., 1407 E. Grove in Midland, is among 17 state businesses that will receive money from the 21st Century Jobs Fund, joining a list of mid-Michigan companies hoping to shine in a solar-based future.

The company will receive a $450,000 low-interest loan to develop, for example, large and accurate reflective panels to concentrate solar rays so they heat fluid to drive turbines and provide electricity, company President Chris Edwards said.

It is the only company north of the Interstate 69 corridor to win in the fund's 2008 Business Plan Competition, company President Chris Edwards said.

Continue reading "Fulcrum Composites ready to shine with grant" »

The little runts are pushing the road hogs out of the spotlight.

America's obsession with SUVs has faded in face of high fuel costs; so small cars will take center stage during the Northwood University International Auto Show this weekend.

Continue reading "Runts outshine road hogs at Northwood car show" »

As the University of Michigan/Urban Land Institute Real Estate Forum comes to West Michigan for the first time since the event began 22 years ago, organizers have a lot to tell newcomers about the region.

The forum will be held Wednesday, Oct. 15, through Thursday, Oct. 16, at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids. An estimated 250 to 300 people will attend presentations, panel discussions and roundtables led by community and business leaders. (For a complete schedule, see October's Square Footage.)

Continue reading "West Michigan's DNA: Regionalism" »

Freshness may be in bloom for Dot&Cross and others in the film industry looking to capitalize on Michigan's aggressive tax breaks aimed to court the film industry, but not everyone's smelling the roses.

Critics of what Gov. Jennifer Granholm called the most-aggressive film-incentive program in the country say the up-to 42 percent refundable tax credit offered to film companies that work in Michigan is too costly.

Continue reading "Should there be an alternate ending for Michigan's film incentives?" »

The Tri-City area has shed more than half of its automobile manufacturing jobs since 2000, a review of state labor data shows.

Eight years ago, about 12,300 people worked in transportation equipment
manufacturing in Bay, Midland and Saginaw counties. That compares to
6,000 at the end of 2007, the most recent figures available.

Continue reading "Auto manufacturing declines in Tri-cities, but other sectors hold steady" »

The markets have opened sharply lower this morning as the markets deal with the overnight sell off in the foreign markets. The concern in the foreign markets is fear that the credit and banking crisis is worsening, particularly in Europe.

Our stock market opened to a backlog of sell orders coming from the foreign markets. This can be verified by looking at the stock market volume, which spiked at 9:31 a.m. as the market opened.

Continue reading "Try to take emotion out of financial decisions - Tri-Star Capital Markets report" »

As the general chair of the 45th Annual Northwood University International Auto Show, there is little doubt that Nicole Paparella is organized.

After all, the Grand Haven senior is responsible for overseeing the 900 students who volunteered to put on the three-day show, which attracts 55,000 visitors each year.
"For the students it's the most real life experience they can get," said Paparella, who will receive her degree in May 2009 from the Midland school with a triple major in automotive marketing, advertising and business management.

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Michigan's life sciences industry is lobbying hard for a ballot proposal that would repeal the state's ban on the destruction of embryos in stem cell research, but opponents say the state's economy wouldn't benefit from the proposal's approval.

The moral issues with embryonic stem cell research have turned Proposal 2 into a debate over which political stance is more pro-life. Meanwhile, experts on both sides are debating the issue's impact on the state's suffocating economy.

Continue reading "Michigan's life sciences industry lobbies for Proposal 2 and repeal of stem cell ban" »

What's the best course of action when the financial world is imploding?

After watching Wall Street for the past month, we don't have an answer.

The uncertainty can be distracting - even paralyzing.

And now we're now hearing colleagues admit that they're postponing regular business activities because they're transfixed by the daily horrors in the financial sector.

It's understandable. And it even helps to hear that others are just as affected by the hourly dose of bad news and scary predictions.

But it's also not healthy.

Continue reading "In Our Opinion: Uncertainty calls for plan of action" »

In response to the guest opinion by Gary Glenn, President of the American Family Association of Michigan, regarding Right-to-Work (Ann Arbor Business Review Aug. 14):

An opinion filled with misperception and deceit, the Right-to-Work amendment to the NLRA in 1947 is a term inaccurate in nature, a contradiction. Doesn't Mr. Glen, while misleading the public and feigning concern for workers' rights and their union dues, know that federal law protects nonmembers from paying for union activities that violate their religious or political beliefs?

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The Ann Arbor area cleaned up big with 11 companies included in a list of 17 recipients that will split nearly $30 million in funding this year from the Michigan 21st Century Jobs Fund.

The recipients were selected by the Michigan Economic Development Corp.'s Strategic Economic and Investment Commercialization board today in Lansing and are to be formally announced later. The entrepreneurial companies were whittled from a list of 109 applicants for the latest round of funding.

The 11 Ann Arbor companies comprised more than $19 million of the total $29.67 million in funds approved. By contrast, just two companies from Kalamazoo were approved for funding totaling about $4.5 million, while the remaining recipients are located in Midland, Farmington Hills, Williamston and Deerfield.

Continue reading "11 Ann Arbor firms among 17 winners of $30M in 21st Century Jobs funding" »

As lawmakers in Lansing weigh changes to the Michigan Business Tax, a new report shows the state has improved but is still near the middle nationally in the overall tax burden and near the bottom for business taxes.

Michigan ranks 20th out of the 50 states in the overall tax climate, improving from 25th last year, according to the annual State Business Tax Climate Index released this week by the Washington, D.C.-based, non-partisan Tax Foundation.

In business taxes, the state ranks among the worst five states in the nation in two areas: corporate taxes and unemployment-insurance taxes.

Continue reading "Report: Michigan still ranks poorly in business-tax climate" »

Fleis & VandenBrink Engineering Inc., headquartered in Grand Rapids with offices throughout Michigan and Indiana, today announced its merger with Bartow and King Engineers in Midland.

Fleis & VandenBrink provides professional consulting engineering services, with specialties including civil and environmental engineering, transportation and homeland security, among others. Bartow and King provides civil engineering and surveying services for municipal, commercial and residential development projects.

"Our two firms already serve a number of clients in this area," Fleis & VandenBrink President Larry J. Fleis said in a prepared statement. "Clients already served by Bartow and King will have the support of a larger company, and our clients in central Michigan will have enhanced personal service from an office even closer to them."

The Midland location will carry the Fleis & VandenBrink banner. Terms of the merger were not disclosed.

Sweeping new energy legislation is likely to spur more commercial and
industrial businesses in mid-Michigan to manage their utility costs
through energy "auditing."

The legislation awaiting Gov. Jennifer Granholm's signature requires big
power providers to take steps to cut customer usage through new
efficiency programs.

The programs will be funded through surcharges to all customer classes,
from households to large industries.

Continue reading "Commercial, industrial power customers turning to energy audits after new legislation" »