Western Michigan and southeast suburbs are growing gangbusters, but Detroit, the U.P. and Thumb continue to lose residents. ‘It’s a trend that can’t continue,’ says one.
Paula Gardner
Paula directs the business reporting on Bridge, writing much of it and setting the strategy for how statewide business coverage fits into Bridge’s nonpartisan policy-driven editorial mix. Paula came to Bridge in 2020 after several years at MLive.com, where she covered the state on both business and environmental teams. Prior to that, she was editor of the Ann Arbor News and news director of online startup AnnArbor,com, and also focused on business news as an editor and reporter at Michigan Business Review. Born and raised in metro Detroit, Paula moved to Ann Arbor to attend the University of Michigan, and has lived in the city for 20 years with her husband, who grew up in their neighborhood. Paula also regularly visits East Lansing and Grand Rapids to visit her college-aged children. She can be reached at pgardner@bridgemi.com
Posted inMichigan Government
Michigan recommends masks for businesses, as fears rise of fourth COVID wave
Two months after the state’s workplace safety regulators dropped most COVID-19 restrictions, they’re once “strongly’ encouraging masks but not mandating them.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Most Michigan restaurants cut hours this summer due to staff shortages
Customers are ready to spend, but the state’s hospitality businesses can’t operate at 100 percent, according to a new industry survey. They’re ‘leaving money on the table’ instead of rebuilding lost revenue.
Posted inBusiness Watch
West Michigan reverses Chicago exodus, gaining residents as state stagnates
For the first time in decades, Kent County is luring more residents from Chicago than it is losing. That helps explain why it’s one of few areas of Michigan that is gaining population.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Michigan buyers ask: Where are the cars? Microchip shortage decimates inventory.
Maintain the car you have, experts say. Production slowdowns are picking up this summer as the global microchip shortage keeps squeezing the auto industry.
Posted inBusiness Watch
From empty offices to housing? Michigan leaders support bill to fund shift
Cities statewide have sought to increase the number of people living in their downtowns. They see a new option now that empty office space is increasing due to the pandemic.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Michigan tourism needs foreign workers. Visa woes make hiring them tough
Federal H-2B visas make tourism possible for visitors in summer, business leaders say. But every year is a question mark about who will get workers and how many will be allowed. They say it’s time to solve that.
Posted inBusiness Watch
5 things to know about buying a house in Michigan in real estate 'crisis'
‘Try not to freak out,’ says one new homeowner who navigated the extreme lack of inventory and rapidly rising prices. Easier said than done.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Michigan unemployment benefits secure for those who ‘followed the rules’
The 648,000 Michigan residents who received federal pandemic relief benefits in error will not have to repay the funds if they applied in good faith. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said waivers will be awarded if payments were the state’s error.
Posted inBusiness Watch
What to do if you are asked to re-certify for Michigan unemployment benefits
The deadline is looming for those who’ve been flagged for receiving pandemic unemployment benefits. Step one: Don’t panic. Step two: Complete the process and be ready to appeal.