New Center : News from Detroit

The small business competition awards grant funding, design and technical support, and landlord-tenant match-making assistance.

For those wondering what bus rapid transit might look like in SE Michigan, look to Cleveland, which has had a BRT line since 2008. 

Technology upgrades are an everyday part of our lives. Cutting edge technology in public infrastructure, not so much. It's why NextEnergy is hosting NextChallenge: Smart Cities.

While not a replacement for a driver's license, municipal IDs will increase access to services for all Detroiters.

The Detroit Narrative Agency will give up to 12 grants for moving image projects for Detroiters telling their story. 

Now in its sixth year, Comerica Hatch Detroit Contest rewards entrepreneurs on the path to opening brick-and-mortar storefronts in either Detroit, Highland Park, or Hamtramck with a $50,000 cash prize and a number of other benefits. 

Detroit Entrepreneur Week (DEW) is a 6-day festival that takes place across three Detroit neighborhoods through events, workshops and seminars.

On April 20, the New Economy Initiative kicked-off the third and final year of the NEIdeas challenge, "a two-tiered challenge awarding $500,000 to existing small businesses in Detroit, Hamtramck, and Highland Park for their ideas to grow."

As recently as 2009, metro Detroit experienced the largest population losses in the country. In 2015, the region grew, albeit modestly.

This 313 Day, two businesses will be celebrating their grand openings, each of them participants in TechTown's SWOT City entrepreneurial training program.

There are four major award categories for which business and property owners can apply for a share of $500,000 in grant funding.

Several of the Motor City's top fellowship programs and incubators are currently taking applications, including Challenge Detroit, TechTown's DTX Launch Detroit, and NextEnergy.

Inventev recently landed a $500,000 federal grant, which represents a large chunk of the TechTown-based startup's upcoming seed round.

Formerly located in the Harmonie Park/Paradise Valley neighborhood, Zarkpa's left downtown because of rising rents. Unfazed, the boutique is optimistic about its future in the North End.

Last year, Motor City Muckraker's Steve Neavling focused his attention on the struggles of the Detroit Fire Department to great effect. This year he's turning his attention to education in Detroit.