Ann Arbor Spark

Four months after taking office, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer painted a not-so-pretty picture of Michigan’s infrastructure and education system, while speaking to a group of Ann Arbor area business and community leaders on the Eastern Michigan University campus.

There was a groundbreaking ceremony Monday at the former Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ypsilanti Township which will soon be a center for driverless vehicle testing, the American Center for Mobility.

Among the elected officials on hand for the ceremony was 12th District Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.  She says the facility will be a great step forward for Michigan and the auto industry.

Voters in Washtenaw and three other counties will decide the Regional Transit Authority proposal  that, if approved, would create a mass transit system in Southeast Michigan.  Their goal is to make the region more connected and accessible. Whether that is of benefit to local businesses is a matter of opinion. 

The former Willow Run Powertrain Plant in Ypsilanti Township will soon be the site of a new autonomous vehicle testing facility. The project took a step forward Friday with the creation of a non-profit to manage the site.

The former president and CEO of Ann Arbor Spark has a new position now-- finding jobs for the mostly unemployable.

To help attract new companies to Ypsilanti, the city partnered with the Ann Arbor economic development organization, SPARK for a special real estate tour.