Donald Snider, vice president of urban development for the MEDC, has only been on the job a short time, but he’s already completed a guest stint on Detroit Public Television. Snider sat down with the host of “American Black Journal” recently to outline how the MEDC is working to bolster businesses in Michigan’s major urban cores, such as Grand Rapids, Detroit, Saginaw, Flint, Highland Park and Benton Harbor.

Snider, head of the newly created Office of Urban Initiatives, said he’s working with both existing and start-up businesses, meeting with banks to look into creating more lending flexibility, and planning to establish microloan funds.

“Urban populations now have an unprecedented advocate within a gubernatorial administration,” Snider said. “We’ll work to revitalize Michigan cities one neighborhood at a time.”

To watch Snider’s interview on “American Black Journal,” go to www.dptv.org/ondemand/abj/abjvodlg.shtml.

Accuri Cytometers,  one of the original 21^st Century Jobs Fund awardees, is being purchased by one of the world’s leading medical technology companies, Becton Dickinson and Company.  Accuri, the Ann Arbor-based life sciences company, produces affordable, easy to use flow cytometers that are used in blood cell analysis.

In 2006, MEDC awarded a$2 million loan to Accuri in the first 21^st Century Jobs Fund Competition.  In 2007, the company received a ten year high technology MEGA tax credit to create 88 direct jobs.  Since receiving the 21^st Century loan, Accuri has raised over $28 million in funding and created 37 new high-tech jobs through 2009.

Michigan small businesses seeking to grow will be more likely to qualify for loans even in the face of an ongoing credit crunch thanks to an infusion of cash from the federal government that will bolster the state’s small business lending program, Governor Rick Snyder and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) announced. Michigan is the first state to  receive federal funds through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI), part of the Small Business Jobs Act signed into law last October. Michigan will receive approximately $79.1 million to back small business loans. Using the federal funds to insure against default will give banks more confidence and make them more likely to lend, which will spark job growth.” “This is a big boost,” Governor Snyder said.

The MEDC will use the federal funds to operate the Michigan Business Growth Fund and the Capital Access Program. For more information on this initiative, check out the website.

When considering locations for your company, few things are more important than the quality of life for your employees.

Today, we are proud to announce the launch of PureMichiganLiving.com, a new initiative by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) dedicated to covering good news and quality of life stories about our great state. As a part of the launch, they are asking residents of Michigan to share their stories of why they choose to live in Michigan. This “Choose Michigan” campaign seeks to collect 1,000 stories over the next week. Two lucky submissions will be randomly selected and awarded one of two great Michigan getaways donated by Crystal Mountain Resort & Spa of Thompsonville and the Westin Book Cadillac of Detroit.

Follow Pure Michigan Living on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook to show your support and share your stories with them.

We hope you are as excited as we are to see Pure Michigan Living take off.  If you are a Michigan business owner, please consider submitting your story to let other businesses know why they should Choose Michigan.

If you’re a business that’s chosen to invest in Michigan’s commununities by doing business in our state, you can add your name to the Buy Michigan First movement.

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm initiated Buy Michigan First to encourage Michigan businesses, including underrepresented vendor groups, to register with the State as vendors and bid on more more than 1,100 contract opportunities worth billions of dollars. 

In addition to listing your business in the registry, you can meet the Buy Michigan First team at a number of upcoming conferences, and learn the ins and outs of contracting with the state.

There is nothing ’small’ about the impact small businesses and entrepreneurs have on Michigan. They are the job-creating engines that drive our economy, and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) is focused on helping them grow and thrive in our state. Our $2 billion 21st Century Jobs Fund is making capital available for small Michigan companies to commercialize innovative technology that will lead to new jobs in the targeted sectors of life sciences, alternative energy, homeland security/defense and automotive/advanced manufacturing. Initiatives like the Capital Access Program and Charter One Job Creation loan program are assisting hundreds of small companies. Our efforts are being noticed. We have advanced to No. 6 on the Small Business & Entrepreneurship (SBE) Council’s annual ranking of states by their public policy climate for entrepreneurship, up from 10th place a year ago. The SBE Council’s annual report ranks the 50 states and District of Columbia according to 31 major government-imposed or government-related costs affecting small businesses and entrepreneurs across a broad spectrum of industries and business types. This ranking is great news for Michigan and shows we are moving in the right direction. What’s more, it contradicts the negative perceptions about our state’s business climate and shows we are a great state to do business in.