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DOWNTOWN10.12

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Feds forcing changes in school lunches Public schools have had to adopt a new approach to school lunches thanks to a federal push to add more nutritional value to the meals.

CRIME LOCATOR

15

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37: Nina Davenport

CITY/TOWNSHIP

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Alleys are new city focus; Bistro Joe's transfer okayed; elections moved to November; downtown street paving 2013; restaurant regs; and more

For those not residing in the free mail distribution area, paid subscriptions are available for a $12 annual fee.

Phone 248.792.6464 and request the Distribution department or go to our website (downtownpublications.com) and click on “subscriptions” in the top index and place your order on-line or scan the QR Code here.

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Franklin Cider Mill, Bloomfield Township.

Downtown photo/Hayley Beitman.

DOWNTOWN P

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DOWNTOWN BIRMINGHAM/BLOOMFIELD 124 WEST MAPLE ROAD BIRMINGHAM MI 48009 P: 248.792.6464 downtownpublications.com facebook.com/downtownpublications • twitter.com/downtownpubs

Publisher: David Hohendorf Ad Manager: Jill Cesarz Sales Staff: Leo Calhoun Graphics/IT Manager: Chris Grammer

News Editor: Lisa Brody News Staff/Contributors: Hayley Beitman, Hillary Brody, Sally Gerak, Eleanor & Ray Heald, Austen Hohendorf, Garrett Hohendorf, Kathleen Meisner, Laurie Tennent

DOWNTOWN

Society reporter Sally Gerak provides the latest news from the society and non-profit circuit as she covers recent major events.

ENDNOTE

THE COVER

Zinfandel aficionados know the winery name Ravenswood but they might not know about the other wines produced here.

DISTRIBUTION: Mailed monthly at no charge to homes in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills. Additional free copies are distributed at high foot-traffic locations.

Spangas Coney Island Plus, SHE, Blue Yoga, Jarbo, Dallo Law firm, Liquid Lunch, Sol Potion Studio, Illusionz, Hunter House; and more.

SOCIAL LIGHTS

FOCUS ON WINE

6

Cameron's Steakhouse in Birmingham is upscale but unpretentious and is clearly the place for prime steaks as the name implies.

BUSINESS MATTERS

67: J Chris Newberg

74

Tasers have been relied upon in all local community pubic safety efforts but the critics are still not giving up.

77

FACES

47

Taser use locally

AT THE TABLE

A recap of select categories of crime occurring in the past month in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills, presented in map format.

27: Chris McCarus

An old foe—the rat

The common rat is nocturnal so it is not always seen by residents but local municipalities continue to battle this old foe.

Our local candidate endorsements for November’s election; respecting merchant concerns.

INCOMING: We welcome feedback on both our publication and general issues of concern in the Birmingham/Bloomfield community. The traditional Letters to the Editor in Downtown are published in our Incoming section, and can include traditional letters or electronic communication. Your opinions can be sent via e-mail to news@downtownpublications.com; or mailed to Downtown Publications, 124 West Maple Road, Birmingham MI, 48009.

Letters must include your full name, address and daytime phone number for verification.

10.12

P R E S E N T S

h an d - l oom e d k n i t s c u s t om m a d e f ro m t h e f i n es t y a rn s i n t h e w o r l d . . . j u st f o r yo u .

SUZI JOHNSON WILL BE HERE TO PRESENT HER FALL/WINTER COLLECTION AND GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO SELECT YOUR PERFECT COLORS AND STYLES

THURSDAY AND FRIDAY OCTOBER 4 AND 5 A PORTION OF THE PROCEEDS FROM THIS EVENT WILL BENEFIT 2012 JARC COMMITTEE Joanne Aronovitz Mariam Bergman Lauren Bienenstock Marlene Cohen Courtney Colton Lindsay Dembs

Wendy Eisenshtadt Renee Erlich Niki Fink Stephanie Freedman Jennifer Gilbert Sonia Gonte Susan Gordon

Andrea Jacobson Sherri Ketai Dana Loewenstein Lisa Nederlander Lisa Pernick Deborah Rosenthal Leslie Ruby

Rebecca Salama Andrea Seigel Sherri Singer Loren Stone Kelly Victor Carolyn Werner Stacey Wittenberg

FROM THE PUBLISHER

I

n February of this year I shared with readers of Downtown that our publishing group was looking at the possible launch of a new publication although we had many months of work still to accomplish before we could say with certainty that the introduction of a new monthly newsmagazine was definite.

So it is with some sense of satisfaction, as we mark our official second year anniversary with this October issue of Downtown, that I am able to share with our followers that in mid-October we will be bringing to the tri-county area a newsmagazine, Xpress, that will be geared to the LGBT community in parts of Oakland, Wayne and Macomb counties.

All told, it has taken over 18 months to network with members of the LGBT family to develop a newsmagazine that will celebrate the accomplishments in this special community while at the same time bringing our brand of long-form journalism to explore the issues facing the lesbian, gay, bi and transgender members in the tri-county area.

Aside from obvious editorial content differences with Downtown, Xpress will be smaller in physical size while still remaining full-color, and it will be distributed free at over 300 high foot-traffic locations in the three county area rather than mailed to homes. So Xpress will not be arriving in your home uninvited, although in the immediate area you will be able to find Xpress at about 20 locations and it will be viewable online in late October as we roll out the publication's website, xpressmi.com.

The first Xpress issue is quickly taking shape, both on the editorial and advertising fronts.

We have assembled an LGBT editorial advisory board to help direct us on issues facing the community and our first news stories are deadlining at this writing.

We have received good response from the business community in terms of support, and from many mainstream businesses and their owners, both gay and straight, who recognize the potential this new market holds with a higher than average disposable income group.

Our goal with Xpress is to develop a publication that is upscale in nature.

For those who are wondering, I was approached nearly two years ago by members of the LGBT community in Oakland County who asked if we would consider bringing our editorial and publishing talents to develop a publication much like Downtown but focused on LGBT issues.

My early discussions with both the business community and LGBT residents in Oakland and other counties convinced me that there was both an editorial need to be met and a business opportunity.

As I said in my February column, as an old-style publisher I understand the need to produce a profit to make a publication selfsustaining but at the same time I understand that publishing carries with it a responsibility to weigh-in on public policy issues and help shape the debate for the benefit of the public. So the thought of being able to help influence and advance the public agenda on behalf of the LGBT community with my over three decades of experience in publishing and the political realm was intriguing.

I liken the LGBT battles now being fought to the civil rights movement I grew up hearing about at the dinner table as a teenager or watching on television, including the pitched battles in the South where fire hoses were turned on protesters or trained dogs were unleashed on the crowds. Yes, in many respects the core issues of equality are at the center of the political skirmishes we are now witnessing just as they were years ago as the black community sought equity, although the battles today for the most part have shifted to the halls of state legislatures and congress and the ballot box.

Bringing Xpress to market will be an exciting time for our publishing group. It represents for us both growth with the launch of a new publication and an opportunity to add another voice in the ongoing push for equality for the LGBT community in Michigan.

As always, I welcome your feedback.

David Hohendorf Publisher DavidHohendorf@downtownpublications.com

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I work in Birmingham and I have seen the homeless man that you wrote about earlier this year (May 2012).

I have seen him when I was studying in Baldwin Library, and he was sitting in a corner, reading a magazine by himself. I recently saw him walking outside of my workplace, and I came up behind up, said 'hello', and gave him an unopened drink I had purchased for myself.

I am glad people are nice to him.

However, I am bothered by why he does not want to go home. He was very soft spoken, but also polite, like you had mentioned. When I handed him the drink, he smiled and said “thank you”, continued to look around in the trash, and wandered away. I was upset that I had nothing else to give him and that I could do nothing to help.

I have seen him wandering many times before, as I have worked in Birmingham for the past two years. I feel really bad for him but do not know how to help. No one else around me has had an encounter with him.

The reason why I am writing you is because you know of this person and have actual knowledge about his personal life. Thank you for writing about him and letting people be more aware of his presence. His mother must be heart-broken. I can only pray for him and his family.

I wish other people could see him for who he is - quiet, gentle and kindhearted, and try to help him out the best they can.

Jaye Yang, Troy

Pensions outrageous I recently learned that the average pension payout for the top 100 retirees

of the Bloomfield Hills School District is over $3,000,000. The highest is just over $6,000,000.

This only includes their pensions, not health care benefits or any unused sick or vacation time payout in addition. I’m sure all of these good folks did a fine job before they went off on their boats and leisurely way, but as a taxpayer who is left behind to pay for all of this and is constantly asked to pay more and more, I am outraged.

Remember, these pensions are guaranteed by the taxpayer regardless of how the stock market or economy performs over time.

I can never figure out why Bloomfield (Hills School district voters) never met a millage increase they didn’t like. It may be that the voting public isn’t made aware of these outrageous pensions and benefits before they vote.

Now the unions want to enshrine this sort of thing into our state’s constitution under the guise of the “Protect Our Jobs” amendment. It should be renamed “Protect our Outrageous Retirement Benefits at the Expense of the Taxpayer” amendment.

I propose we double the salaries of these people and let them save for their own retirement at their own risk like the private sector does. That way the taxpayer can easily see what we are actually paying these people and it’s no longer hidden from view.

Million dollar payouts to public employees makes no sense, especially in this economy. We need to elect school board trustees that can be trusted to look out for both the students and the taxpayer, not just themselves. Jenny Greenwell is one of those people. Please consider this when voting this November.

Rod J. Myers, Bloomfield Township

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SPEAK OUT We welcome your opinion on issues facing the Birmingham/Bloomfield communities.

Opinions can be sent via e-mail to news@downtownpublications.com or mailed to Downtown Publications, 124 West Maple Road, Birmingham MI 48009.

While we don’t have a specific word limitation, we reserve the right to edit for length.

Restricting gun rights I just got done reading the piece entitled "Extend Gun Restrictions to More Places" (September/2012). I found several contradictions and bits of misinformation, so I decided I should make the author aware of those.

In the fifth paragraph of this piece, the following is written: "We think an extension of the restrictions on open carry is an excellent idea, and one that should be taken up by our state legislature for all local municipal meeting chambers, school board meetings, libraries and local public parks. Extending the open carry exemption to these places will not endanger any Second Amendment rights. Rather, it is an effort to protect the right to spirited debate at public meetings and for those who seek the sanctuary of libraries and community parks."

The second sentence there is a complete lie, and I fail to see how anyone expected to say that and get away with it. The Second Amendment is as follows: "A well

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regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." If you are restricting the places that the people can bear arms, you are infringing upon the right of the people to bear arms. That is painfully obvious to anyone who can read and comprehend the English language.

What doesn't the author understand about the words "shall not be infringed"?

In addition, in that same paragraph, the author makes the point that restricting the open carrying of weapons in certain places to make them "sanctuaries" is a good idea to protect people. This is not the case. Making a law to prevent people from carrying a gun to a certain place promotes a concept in criminology called “victim disarmament.” In victim disarmament, laws are passed to prevent law-abiding citizens from carrying weapons in certain places, so they therefore cannot defend themselves from the criminals that ignore the laws anyways. Last I checked, criminals do not follow laws. Therefore, it makes little sense to make a law preventing lawabiding citizens to defend themselves. It was illegal to carry guns in the theatre in Aurora, Colorado in July. If just one or even two of the nearly 100 people in that theatre had had a gun, perhaps James Holmes could not have allegedly shot those 70 people and killed the 12.

Guns do not cause crime; crazy people cause crime. Restricting guns only makes it easier for violent criminals to commit violent acts unhindered by law-abiding citizens.

Besides, what criminal would openly carry their weapon and draw attention to themselves?

James C. Baker, Leonard

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SCHOOL LUNCH

CHANGING CONTENT TO MEET NEW FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS

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ou remember them, even if you've spent years trying to erase the memory of stuck-like-glue cardboard pizza, grayish brown meat covered in a mystery gravy accompanied by mashed potatoes that may not have contained any real potatoes, and sandwiches made with slimy lunchmeat, all served on light aqua lunchroom trays.

If you brought your lunch, you definitely carried an aluminum lunch box, perhaps with Barbie, The Monkees or Batman and Robin (TV series version) on the front. The peanut butter and jelly sandwich was OK, the Twinkie or Little Debbie snack was a definite keeper, but the fruit or carrot sticks had to be traded away.

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Lunch at school in the old days. Definitely not the most nutritionally sound, and for most kids, just a stop on the way to recess. Fast forward a few decades, and school lunches have radically changed, with sound nutrition, a large selection of fresh fruits and vegetables, little fat in foods, whole grains, and delicious taste at the forefront. And while students still can't wait to get to the playground, at all grade levels, they are eating better and enjoying their lunchtime repast more than ever before.

The impetus to improve school lunches began as part of First Lady Michelle Obama's campaign to reduce the number of overweight children through improved nutrition and exercise, and she actively sought to change the nutritional guidelines for school meals for the nation's children. In December 2010, the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act was passed into law, and in January 2012, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released final meal pattern requirements that are mandated by that law. It was the first changes to the school lunch program on a national basis in 15 years.

The Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act is part of federal reauthorization of funding for child nutrition. The bill, signed by President Obama in December 2010, funds child nutrition programs and free lunch programs for the next five years. It sets new nutritional standards for schools, and allocates $4.5 billion dollars for implementation.

T

hrough the bill, the USDA was given the authority to set standards for food sold in lunches, including vending machines, and authorizes additional funds for the new standards for federally-subsidized school lunches. It also provides the resources necessary for schools to utilize local farms and gardens to provide fresh produce to students, and allocates resources to schools to increase the nutritional quality of the food they provide. It also has a provision which sets minimal standards for school wellness policies, and encourages schools to increase access to drinking water.

Any new program must be competently monitored. The bill requires school districts to be audited every three years to make sure they are meeting the new nutritional standards. They also must provide easy access to nutritional facts to students and parents on the meals being served in schools, and the law provides training for school lunch providers. If there is a recall on a food product, there is specific procedures on how to go about handling the situation.

As of this past January, all public schools in the country must comply with the new federal law. Locally, Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools have worked hard with all of the dietary and nutritional guidelines set forth to the children in their respective districts.

And while private and parochial schools are not mandated to comply, local private schools often surpass federal guidelines in providing good, nutritional meals.

“Providing meals for students is a very complex issue—food preferences are determined by many factors: taste, culture, social, parental, ethnicity, psychological and physiological. We meet all children's needs—we can't afford not to. We work with all students individually on a one-to-one basis,” affirmed Deb Stoops, Bloomfield Hills Schools Food Service Director.

Stoops noted that prior to the changes to school lunches this year, their school lunches were nutritionally balanced, with each lunch offering a variety of proteins, fruits, vegetables, grains and milk. “School meals were not super-sized, and students were served age-appropriate portions.”

Yet to meet the specifications of the USDA law, each meal must consist of a minimum of 8 to 10 ounces of whole grains; at least a half cup per week of dark green vegetables; at least a half cup of beans or peas; have at least a half cup of starchy vegetables, with no limit upon the amount of starchy vegetables served; at least three-fourths cup of red/orange vegetables for students in grades K-8, and at least 1.25 cups in grades 9-12; at least a half cup of fresh fruit in grades K-8, and at least 1 cup in grades 9-12; offer at least a half cup of other vegetables in grades K-8, or three-fourths cup in grades 9-12; tofu as a meat alternative is permitted; have zero transfat, and obtain less than 10 percent total calories from saturated fat; limit salt intake according to grade level; and offer at least a cup of low fat or skim milk, only.

For Stoops, this has meant working with the school's nutrition staff on planning menus to meet the new stricter guidelines, contracting with a registered dietician to assist in the implementation of the nutritional requirements and finding creative ways to get kids excited about eating food that is much healthier.

“A new chef is being hired to work in the high school and students are involved in taste tests to obtain direct feedback,” she said. “The district is demonstrating their commitment to serving healthy, tasty food by investing

in new foodservice equipment for a healthier way of cooking.”

She noted they have a farm-to-school program that is bringing in fresh, local produce to the school cafeterias, with students learning how to grow food in the community.

“What I served even two years ago is not what I'm serving today,” noted David Andrejko, general manager and catering director of Sodexo Education Services, which provides services to Birmingham Public Schools. “The trend the last 10 years is healthy, healthy, healthy. We're serving fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains. We're in the sixth year of offering whole grains in our elementary schools. They never had less than three or four offerings every day of fresh fruits and vegetables, and now they get six-plus daily. For the third year, we have had a salad bar in every school, but with the new regulations, it's undetermined if a salad bar is sufficient as a whole meal.

We're also determining how to implement the salad bar again in the elementary schools because before, a half-cup of a protein, we could give them cheese and turkey, and knew they had their proteins.”

He noted that in Birmingham Schools, 38 percent of students participate in school lunch programs, versus 62 percent who brown bag it. “Although we have a higher participation on popular items like Taco Tuesday or pizza days,” he acknowledged, noting the pizza they serve now meets USDA requirements of whole wheat pizza dough, a half-cup of low fat mozzarella cheese, and the requisite amount of tomato paste in the sauce. “But you can't tell the kids it's healthy pizza,” he said, noting they'll steer clear of it if they get a whiff of anything too “healthy”.

Steve King, manager of operations for Birmingham Public Schools, said it hasn't been too difficult to comply with the USDA requirements because “the writings been on the wall. The challenge is getting the kids eating fresh fruits and vegetables. When the food was initially introduced, sales tapered off 18 percent, then increased 7 percent. We expect sales to come back to where they were this year or even increase.

“We're already ahead of the game,” King continued. “We got rid of the fryers in the high school a few years ago, and we got rid of the pop. We feel the rest of the country is catching up,” noting they were the first major district in Michigan to meet the Healthier US School Challenge (HUSSC) from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, with all eight of the elementary schools qualifying. All of the food from the kitchens is baked, not fried, including french fries and tator tots, “and kids still go for them,” said Andrejko.

Private and parochial schools, if they do not receive state or federal funding, are not forced to comply with the USDA requirements, but most do.

While Brother Rice, Marian, and St. Regis did not return numerous phone calls, other local private and parochial schools not only meet but often exceed the federal mandates on healthy nutrition.

Chartwells Educational Dining Services provides food services for both Cranbrook Schools and Roeper Schools in Bloomfield Hills and Birmingham, from the Cranbrook campus. Allison Mitchell, resident district manager for Chartwells, said that while Cranbrook and Roeper do not have to comply with USDA act, “these revisions reflected the same types of changes in Chartwells' own guidelines published earlier that same year (2010).

Chartwells has already made many advances in improving the nutrition standards for school meals in the districts we serve.”

F

or both Cranbrook and Roeper, in advance of new federal regulations taking effect, Chartwells implemented school nutrition guidelines in 2010 that increased legumes, fruits, vegetables, and low-fat or non-fat milk, and properly-sized portions. As a school food purveyor, Mitchell said they promote locally grown fruits and vegetables, and in 2011, Chartwells nationally purchased $3 million of local produce, which was up from $1.04 million in 2010.

Mitchell said that the process of feeding students at Cranbrook and Roeper's elementary schools is kept simple by design. “Choices are limited so that students only need to evaluate and select from entrée options, various grains, vegetables and fruits, and low-fat milk. Our dining experience is built around age-appropriate needs and characteristics, while at the same time providing healthy, balanced menu choices that fuel their bodies for a day of learning,” she said. “Middle school students love lunch for the sociability first, and the food second. The concept of grab-and-go food items is introduced at this level. These quick service food items provide even more options for lunch. High school students are entering into a highly independent stage, and they like their food choices to reflect that freedom.

This level of service is all about the customization and customer service. An

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*$1,000,000+ homes sold 1/2012 - 8/2012, data provided by Broker Metrics. Š 2012 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. A Realogy Company. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal KĆ‰Ć‰Ĺ˝ĆŒĆšĆľĹśĹ?ƚLJ Ä?ĆšÍ˜ Ä‚Ä?Ĺš KĸÄ?Äž /Ć? /ŜĚĞƉĞŜĚĞŜƚůLJ KÇ ĹśÄžÄš ŜĚ KĆ‰ÄžĆŒÄ‚ĆšÄžÄšÍ˜ Ĺ˝ĹŻÄšÇ ÄžĹŻĹŻ Ä‚ĹśĹŹÄžĆŒÍ• ƚŚĞ Coldwell Banker Logo is a registered service mark owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

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element of offering food just for the customer to suit individual preferences is evident. A unique combination of made-to-order, assisted or self-service, and the ability to customize meals with additional toppings or flavors reflects the careful research and attention to food trends.”

The trend in the general marketplace towards organic foods, while not required by the USDA, is noted by Chartwells, although it is not emphasized. “We offer some organic seasonal items based on availability. However, our main focus is on locally grown foods,” Mitchell said.

Andrejko of Sodexo, with Birmingham Schools, concurred. “To go all organic would be very expensive,” he said. “It would double our costs.”

Birmingham's King noted, “By (school) board policy, we have to be selfsufficient. We do not get any general funds. If we significantly increase our costs, while participation drops, we lose money and we're out of business.”

D

etroit Country Day School in Beverly Hills is in its third year of partnering with Plum Food Service, a division of Plum Markets, which Sue Murphy, director of external affairs for the school, said serves the school's mission of sound mind and sound body in three ways. “It provides our students with nutritious, from scratch food for 1,600 students on all four of our campuses,” she said. “With the economy the last few years, with Plum, we can keep our food dollars here in southeastern Michigan, and their sources with local purveyors are from the region. Plum has worked to keep costs down, coming in under budget each year.

Lunches are included in our tuition, and we want to keep our tuition as reasonable as we can, so we don't want the cost pressures of high food costs.”

Kristine Lee, with Plum, noted that while Detroit Country Day is not regulated by the federal standards, “we believe we far exceed them on a daily basis. Our program is called Plumsmart, and it's an all natural program, with all of our proteins grown with no growth hormones and no antibiotics. We have it throughout, down to our ketchup, which has no high fructose corn syrup, no artificial color, no artificial flavors, and no additives. Whenever possible, they use organic ingredients.

“We do two hot entrees daily, a vegetable, two soups, a full salad buffet that includes protein, fresh fruit daily, and a deli bar, so students can always make a sandwich,” she continued. “We try to cater to a lot of different taste needs. We try

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to make food look and taste so great that students are inspired to make better and smarter choices about food.”

Lee said they have nutritional analysis done for every single meal served so that students don't experience the dreaded afternoon crash from low glycemic levels.

“Last year, we started a local farm-to-school program with cooperation from Michigan State University's farm-to-school program, and they guided me in finding farmers for local apples, corn, tomatoes and other produce,” she said.

Lee said that in the first year of Plum's partnership with Country Day, some of the menu items were more creative and exotic than they are currently. “We discovered kids want familiar foods,” she said. “Now, we just maker it fresher and healthier.”

Bridget Bearrs, Head of School at Academy of Sacred Heart in Bloomfield Hills, said, “because we have an infant/toddler program, we had already implemented most of the nutritional guidelines put forth by the state.” Working with Educational Catering Inc. (ECI), they had determined correct portion sizes, option sizes, options to purchase, and appropriate snacks for extended day and enrichment students.

“We felt it was important to educate our parents and families as well as our students,” said Bearrs. “We can control what is served through our school lunches, but are working to make sure they are leading nutritional, healthy lives, and that what is sent from home is meeting the nutritional options.”

She said that while they are not forced to comply with the USDA regulations, they are choosing to follow them. “They follow our mission, which is health in body, mind and spirit. We believe that exercise plus activity are equally important and healthful to a healthy life. The guidelines provide benchmarks, and those are helpful.”

While some students bring their lunch, a hot entree choice is prepared every day, as well as a soup. There is also a salad bar and prepared sandwiches. A beverage bar offers water and milk.

Aimed at controlling obesity and curtailing the explosion of Type 1 Diabetes, the nutritional guidelines recommend caloric intake of between 550-650 calories at lunch for students in K-5; 600-700 calories in grades 6-8; and 750-850 calories for students in grades 9-12.

With the nutritious and delicious,options available to students at local schools, it's unlikely they'll even miss the Twinkies.

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hris McCarus, who created the only independent radio series in Michigan's National Public Radio system, gained experience as he traveled Africa reporting for the BBC and volunteering for the Peace Corps. His need for a challenge and affinity with his surroundings became apparent early on by reading National Geographic and riding his Schwinn bicycle around his Birmingham neighborhood.

“I was a regular suburban kid,” he said. “A lot of the conformity of the suburbs never really rang true for me. I was always looking for something very different from that.”

McCarus attended Quarton, Covington, Seaholm, Michigan State University, and graduate school in New York, but his sights were always set on Africa. “I wrote all my papers and took all my courses on Africa. All I wanted to do was go there and live there for a while.”

Spending two decades working in the public information industry for CBS Radio News, WNBC, and the United Nations New York, he said his most challenging position was working for New York City Public Schools as a teacher.

“I'm such a small time grassroots guy, but in a lot of ways I was always connected to big institutions.” He bid that farewell to pursue his interest in African culture.

Spending years learning about Africa gave him the experience to fulfill his dreams. “It was my freest, most exciting time. It was what I needed to do to teach myself about other people in the world. I needed to know everything about how other people live.”

Returning from Africa, McCarus had to readjust to a forgotten lifestyle and introduce his new wife Zozo to a completely foreign one in America. Two years later McCarus created Michigan Now, the only independent radio series in Michigan's NPR system.

“How we live, where we live, how we use farm land, all those things became important to me when I came home. I wanted to report on land use because no one else was.”

Regularly on the air, he is glad to know people are listening.

“I'm really hoping to inspire people to volunteer. Fixing Detroit is my job and it's what I'm supposed to do. It's my obligation, challenge and calling.” McCarus plans to relocate his family from Lansing to Detroit to continue his unspoken commitment.

McCarus and his family currently live in what was once a house of drugs and prostitution but he feels his middle class values adds value to the neighborhood and will hopefully help turn the once drug headquarters into a better place to live.

The working dad supports his wife, who is trying to graduate from school, by helping with the kids. “It's a challenge, but I'm not the only guy with that challenge,” he said.

After many years, McCarus still calls Birmingham home. “If you grew up there, that's where you feel like you're from. There's a weird sense of camaraderie, people stick together after graduating 30 years ago,” he noted.

In his free time, McCarus enjoys playing guitar, biking, and spending time with his four children. He hopes to instill a sense of adventure in them, even bringing his daughter on a 250 mile bike ride from Brighton to the thumb of Michigan and back.

He dreams of fixing up an old brick building on Woodward and running an African cafe on the sidewalk with a Congo band playing on the rooftop but for now, living anywhere on Woodward will do. “I need to clean up tires from empty lots in Detroit,” he said. “I just need to do that.”

Story: Hayley Beitman

Photo: Laurie Tennent

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hey're usually gray or light brown, with long tails, sharp pointy noses and beady eyes. Rats. To most of us, they're wily, invasive and generally frightening and disgusting.

Rats are usually blamed for damaging food supplies and other goods, and for spreading disease. It's believed that the infamous plague known as the Black Death of 1330-1352 was spread by ship rats carrying fleas on their backs, which

spread the plague to humans throughout Europe and Asia, killing hundreds of thousands. Their reputation has carried over into popular culture, with the term â&#x20AC;&#x153;ratâ&#x20AC;? meaning someone who is a shady, unscrupulous character or who betrays other people. To call someone a rat is to suggest they're suspicious or a traitor.

Among unions, a rat means someone who is a nonunion employee or a union contract breaker.

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CHRIS PERO

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Approximately one acre on Gilbert Lake. Incredible property and views.

Finished walkout lower level. $1,500,000.

To be built in Dourdan Place, an exclusive development of million dollar plus homes.

5 lots remain. Bloomfield schools. $1,199,000.

Just listed 4 bedroom, 4.1 bath Colonial in Quarton Lake Estates, built in 1995.

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2003 built west Troy Colonial. Extensively upgraded throughout.

Large gourmet kitchen.

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Troy schools. $749,900

Build site available in Riverside Place. Wonderful location in back of complex within walking distance to town. 3 lots remain. Lot price $699,900.

A great opportunity to be steps from downtown Birmingham on a fabulous double lot. This 1921 built classic provides all the charm & character one would expect. $449,900 or $3,500/mo.

5387 Echo Road, Bloomfield Hills

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Wonderfully maintained on a private cul-de-sac lot.

Beautiful grounds with brick pavers in front & back. Two car attached garage. Bloomfield schools. $389,900

Move-in ready brick ranch.

Spacious white kitchen with newer floor & appliances.

Finished basement. Two car garage. Florida room overlooks nice backyard. $189,900

To view more pictures of these homes or any of my other listings, please visit www.chrispero.com Recognized as a leading producer in the Wall Street Journal and Hour Detroit

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Real live rats are nocturnal and not always seen. But they're around us nonetheless. And they're on the rise where we live, work and eat.

By the time they're seen in the daylight hours, it means there is a massive rat infestation in the area.

When Birmingham Code Enforcement Officer Rick Smith was asked if there are rats in Birmingham, he responded, “Oh sure.” Yet, when asked for specific numbers, he declined to provide those. His supervisor, Bruce Johnson, of the Birmingham building department, noted that in 2011, Birmingham had 14 complaints of rats, and so far in 2012, 13. Extermination companies note that municipalities do not always hear about the complaints—they do, and they handle it for residents and businesses. ccording to Gene White, a board certified entomologist and director of education and training for Rose Pest Control in Troy, rats are one of those animals that are perennially around. “There's always a rat population in cities and suburbs that goes unnoticed until it gets bad. And it gets bad because of people,” he said.

Hear that? It's our fault.

In Michigan, the common type of rat is the brown rat, also known as the common rat, street rat, sewer rat, or Norway rat. It is usually a brown or gray rodent with a body that's about 10 inches long, with a tail that's about the same length. An average male weighs about 19 ounces, and a female 12 ounces, with coarse fur.

They are known to have very acute hearing, and possess a very highly developed olfactory sense, allowing them to sniff out various food sources, but they have poor eyesight. They are nocturnal, good swimmers and they are diggers, burrowing into the ground, even creating extensive, multilevel tunnels under structures, yards and fields. These burrows offer rats shelter and food storage, as well as nest sites. They use their burrows as places to escape from perceived threats in the environment—if they hear a loud noise as they are foraging, or while they're fleeing from an intruder. A 2007 study by University of Georgia, published in Science Daily, discovered that brown rats have a superior mental ability of cognition, which has before only been found in humans and some primates, allowing them to follow commands within their ecosystem, and is why they are so effectively trained as laboratory animals.

Entomologists believe that this kind of rat originated in China. It is now found in every continent in the world except Antarctica, and is the dominant rat in Europe and most of North America. It is considered the most successful mammal on the planet after human beings, and lives wherever humans live. Especially in urban areas.

“That is because they live from the table of man,” White said. “Humans provide them with food, water, and shelter, and they're masters of exploitation. They can exploit the smallest amount and we give them way more than they need. When that happens, their populations explode and they begin to create havoc.

Currently, that is what is happening.”

Anecdotally, it's often said there are as many

A

rats in cities as people. But that can vary from area to area, depending on the city, climate, living conditions, water supply and infrastructure. The Gotham Gazette speculated in 2008 that in New York City, the rat population was anywhere from 250,000 to as many as 100 million, with experts suggesting New York is particularly appealing to rats because of its aging infrastructure, high amount of moisture and poverty rates. In addition to sewers, rats enjoy living in alleyways and residential buildings because there is always a large and continuous source of food.

Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills have no where near those kinds of infestations of rats, but despite the high income levels in these suburbs, rats do exist.

“In 2011 and 2012, there have been no reports of rats to the department of building safety or code enforcement,” said Larry Rospirieski, Bloomfield Hills building official.

Similarly, Lorry Harbough of the Bloomfield Township Animal Welfare shelter said that so far in 2012, there have been no reports of rats in Bloomfield Township, and only one report in 2011.

Birmingham's Johnson said efforts the city has made over the last several years have kept the rat population and resident and business complaints down, noting most of the recent complaints the city has gotten have been from neighborhood areas. “The Department of Public Works has worked with the alleys and the restaurants, keeping up with baits and pest control, so we're really not seeing rats in the alleys,” he said.

In the past, demolition work of commercial buildings would lead to significant rat problems.

“Now, in Birmingham, if they're going to demolish a commercial building, they're required to have an exterminator place baits in and around the building 30 days prior to demolition,” Johnson said. “We started that around 10 years ago and that has really helped.”

“Rats are one of those things that have ebbs and flows, and at times it's problematic,” said Kathy Forzley of the Oakland County Health Division. “We're in the community all of the time, doing restaurant inspections, doing garbage checks. Our sanitarians are in the field looking for things that support rats. We want to educate people and officials on what to do to prevent rat infestations. It has to do with harborage. Where are you providing them with food, water and storage? There has to be an integrated approach to prevent them from both businesses and residents.” ob Boyd, owner and operator franchise of Critter Control in White Lake for the last 26 years, which services the Birmingham/Bloomfield area, said the rat population has been “steadily increasing over the last three or four years as local municipalities have had a lack of funding to put poison in the sewers, as they always used to do.”

Joel E. Brooks of University of Nebraska wrote, “The average urban sewer system provides a vast labyrinth of passages and nesting places for the Norway rat. Here, in the

B

protected underground habitat the rodent population is free to reproduce and ultimately to expand to the maximum number that the environment can support. At this point population pressures force the animals to move out of the system. Rat burrows begin appearing in front yards, under sidewalks and driveways, and in flower beds, and rats themselves are occasionally seen emerging from drains and swimming into toilets. In short, the uncontrolled population of rats in sewers constitute a reservoir which extends into all parts of the city and is capable of establishing new infestations on the surface.”

Brooks adds that rats can endanger the sewer infrastructure themselves by stressing faulty joints and deteriorating concrete, which can lead to sewer breaks and street collapse.

Boyd said that this summer's sewer repairs at Coolidge and 13 Mile roads in Royal Oak revealed “a real lot of rats.” ohnson said sewer repair and replacement work used to cause a lot of rat complaints in neighborhoods in Birmingham, also.

“Wherever you have sewers, you're going to have rats. They may not live there, but they live near them, burrowing nearby, and if you do work in the sewers you disturb them and they come out. That's what happened in a neighborhood in Birmingham where we had sewer work about six years ago,” he said. “So since then, we have put into every sewer construction contract that they have to bait the sewers prior to performing work in them.

“I believe it's made a real difference,” Johnson noted. “Complaints and rat sightings have gone down a lot.” He said while there are a certain amount of occasional complaints each year, the numbers have not increased.

Boyd added that Royal Oak has had a lot of rats in both its downtown and neighborhood areas, that Birmingham has had some, primarily in the downtown area, where there are businesses, residents and restaurants, despite Johnson's numbers, and that they have had no reports from Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills.

“Berkley has had a problem bigger than all of the rest for the last four years,” Boyd said. “It's because of a lack of sanitation. The houses aren't being maintained, and they're not sealed up properly. People are leaving dog feces not picked up in yards. If there are holes in homes, rats will make the most of them.”

As communities have seen a rise in foreclosed and abandoned homes, even in Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills, so too do they see rats. That is because the foreclosed and abandoned homes often become harborage for rats, with unsealed holes becoming entry points for the rodents, strewn garbage turning into food, and water leaks providing the water they need to survive.

As long as the problem of these unattended homes continues to exist and grow, so too will the rat population grow in neighborhoods, even in affluent areas.

Additionally, wherever there are restaurants, there tends to be a rat population, as restaurant waste is often not disposed of properly, leading

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to rats foraging for food, and succeeding. While usually unseen during daylight hours, Birmingham's Johnson acknowledged that rats in the past inhabited many of the alleys behind restaurants in Birmingham, often only seen during dark middle-of-the-night hours. hite of Rose Pest Control said, “Over the long term, people want governments to solve this for them.

But that's not how it works. People and local governments together have to create strategic plans to manage rodents in the long term so they don't get out of hand like we're seeing.”

In the short term, in order to drop the rodent population, the first thing the experts recommend is identifying where the rat populations are high, and then determining exactly what the best course of action should be, whether with rodenticides or trappings.

Rodenticides are toxins that kill rodents, White said. “They can be expensive, but they specifically are for rodents. But they run the risk of other organisms eating the bait.” It can be very toxic if a family pet accidentally eats rat poison in a home or yard.

“The problem with poison is they can't be used where there is any accessibility to pets or children,” Boyd concurred. “Critter Control uses live traps for lots of rats, and then we euthanize them. No one wants them.”

“Trapping works quickly, but it has it’s own problems,” White said. “While its inexpensive, if they (traps) are not placed properly, you can catch

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neighborhood cats or dogs as well. You don't want to target neighborhood animals or children.

“There's always a downside to every choice,” White continued. “That's why it's important to have a plan, and it's important to have someone come in and consult with you and help you do that plan.”

The real key to not only getting rid of a rodent population, but in avoiding one in the first place, is to “deny them food, water and shelter, which are the resources they need,” White said. “That's often easier said than done.

Sometimes it's just about getting rid of garbage bags lying around overnight, or picking up the feces of your dogs and cats. If you leave dog and cat dishes outside, bring them in. Things like these make all of the difference. They're simple and inexpensive.”

Experts recommend putting garbage bags in sealed garbage cans to prevent rats from getting into garbage. Seal any holes in the foundation of your home so they can't get into your basement, an open sump pump, and especially your garage, which rodents are particularly fond of because of its cold, musty ambience. You'll know they've been around if you see recent chewing on wood, plastic and car or other electrical wires.

“The full landscaping around a home or business, especially around abandoned houses, are nothing more than large access points for mice and rats,” White said. “Also, there's usually leaking water around those areas, and rats need freestanding water to survive. Mice can live

DOWNTOWN

without water as long as food has a water content, but rats can't. Rats are soil burrowers or void nesters. They live in crawl spaces, and especially in the soil, which is its number one habitat. While rats can be an enormous problem in neighborhoods, it's always due to something we are supplying them.”

A popular food item for rats in colder months is bird food, which drops on the ground, and then rats during nighttime hours look for and seize upon, spreading their germs, allergies and disease potential. ccording to the Center for Disease Control, rats and mice cause a common allergy in children, typhus fever, Weil's Disease, Leptospirosis, Salmonellosis, a form of meningitis, rat bite fever and Hantavirus. They always carry fleas, which can cause other diseases, and often ticks and mites. Most of the diseases they carry are passed on through inadvertent contact with their urine or feces. Critter Control's Boyd said rat droppings are brown, blunt at one end, and pointy and the other.

White emphasized that by being proactive and putting a plan together of guidelines on how to rid the area of rats, homeowners, businesses and municipalities can work together to keep rat populations under control.

“Get involved and educated and see how you can work together with your municipality to recognize the problem and get it under control,” he said. “Mice and rats don't care—they're already getting a free handout.

A

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ocumentary filmmaker Nina Davenport, who won a Gardner fellowship from Harvard to travel to India and shoot her first film Hello Photo with a silent movie camera, says she is able to capture emotion on film from the warm personality she developed growing up in Bloomfield Hills.

Her journey began with the discovery of pinhole photography and film in the fifth grade. “It was the first time I ever discovered it and whether it planted the seed or not, it's too hard to say, but I definitely had fun with it.”

Attending Cranbrook Schools until high school when she moved to Massachusetts, Davenport remembers appreciating the idyllic campus even as a child. “I can't even believe the level of privilege I had in terms of the space and nature and freedom,” said the current New Yorker.

Following in her father's footsteps, she attended Harvard, where she explored her love for photography and discovered she wanted to be a filmmaker more than a photographer.

By virtue of a grant funded by the film center at Harvard, she was able to continue exploring filmmaking after college. “When I look back on it now it sounds like quite a crazy idea that I packed up and went to India by myself for a year, but I thought it was what I was destined to do from college,” she recalls. She learned Hindi while traveling and used what she was interested in as the basis for her first film. “I let the traveling I wanted to do guide my film. It's a travel log about being a Western person in India.”

Her next film Always a Bridesmaid, that aired on HBO's Cinemax, Parallel

Lines and Operation Filmmaker, explores the sensitive subjects of marriage, the World Trade Center bombing, and the war in Iraq. “I think that my films are very open and honest and intimate and emotional,” she said.

Davenport has also worked on NBC's Crime & Punishment, Bravo's The 'IT' Factor and PBS, but is most proud that she is able to make her own films. “It's a continual struggle. Each time I finish a film it feels like an enormous accomplishment.”

Her most recent film, First Comes Love, documents her experience having a baby on her own at the age of 42. Davenport's three-and-a-halfyear-old son Jasper was involved in the making of her most recent film, but that might not always be the case.

Davenport now lives in New York, but credits some of her success to her upbringing in Bloomfield Hills. “Being a midwesterner, I'm really friendly and open in a way that people on the east coast aren't as much, and I really value that and stick to that almost in a defiant way. I try to keep that as an essential part of who I am,” she said. “When I'm filming people they tend to feel very comfortable around me. People really open up to me and often cry on camera.”

In her down time, Davenport enjoys reading, seeing foreign films and raising her son. “My number one goal is to do a good job raising my son, and my number two priority is to continue making films. It's about raising Jasper, making films and I still have to find a husband!,” she said. “You can put an exclamation point on that.”

Story: Hayley Beitman

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TASERS PROS AND CONS OF POLICE USE

BY LISA BRODY

A

udiences were hysterical watching the movie “The Hangover” when a character gets Tasered. Leaving him writhing on the floor, in pain and immobilized, it's a hilarious plot device. The police even encourage a group of students to repeatedly Taser Alan, the character played by Zach Galifianakis, while the police and the kids roar with laughter. He's shocked but is seen later up and active, obviously not damaged by the experience.

In real life, sometimes people get up and are fine.

But others have not been as fortunate. Some victims of Taser use have even ended up dead. According to Amnesty International USA, in the last 11 years, over 500 people have died after being Tasered by law enforcement officials.

Tasers were introduced by Taser International as a non-lethal weapon to be used by police to subdue fleeing, belligerent, or dangerous individuals who would potentially be subjected to more lethal weapons if they weren't Tasered. It uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles causing what the company calls “neuromuscular incapacitation.” Someone struck by a Taser will feel a shock to his or her sensory and motor nerves, rendering involuntary contractions of the nerves and muscles. Taser International is currently the only manufacturer of Tasers utilized by the law enforcement industry. There are other electronic stun devices on the market for civilians, many of which provide lesser amounts of electricity to a subject.

Tasers primarily function by creating neuromuscular incapacitation: the devices interrupt the ability to control the muscles of the body. This creates an immediate and unavoidable incapacitation that is not based on pain and cannot be overcome. Once the electricity stops flowing, the subject immediately regains control of his body. Most subjects after being Tazed once will comply so as to avoid being Tazed a second time,” according to company literature.

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Tasers were first developed by Jack Cover, a NASA researcher, in 1974, after beginning work on it in 1969. He named the device after his childhood hero, Tom Swift, initially calling it Thomas A. Swift's electric rifle. It's initial propellant was gunpowder, leading the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to classify it as a firearm in 1976.

In 1993, Taser International began to work on safer uses for law enforcement and citizens, to create a non-firearm Taser electronic control device. Their first model was released in 1994, with many updates and revisions of models both for law enforcement and citizens since then. aser International notes that the Taser fires two small dart-like electrodes which stay connected to the main unit by conductive wire as they are propelled by small compressed nitrogen charges, similar to how some air guns or paint ball markers work. The air cartridges contain a pair of electrodes and enough propellant for one shot, which is replaced after each use. The maximum range of a law enforcement shot is 35 feet, while a civilian one is 15 feet.

Many Tasers, especially those sold to police departments, also have a Drive Stun option, which is where the Taser is held against the individual. It is intended to cause the person pain without incapacitating them. However, guidelines released by a joint committee of the Police Executive Research Forum and the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services in 2011 to U.S. police departments recommend that the use of Drive Stun as a pain compliance technique should be avoided.

“Using the (Drive Stun) to achieve pain compliance may have limited effectiveness and, when used repeatedly, may even exacerbate the situation by inducing rage in the subject,” the guidelines state. However, a study of U.S police and sheriff departments found that 29.6 percent of local departments still permitted the use of the Drive Stun option in order to obtain acquiescence in passive arrest incidents. When there are situations of non-violent physical contact between law enforcement and a subject, the use of the Drive Stun option jumps to 65.2 percent, according to A Multi-Method Evaluation of Police Use of Force Outcomes by the National Institute of Justice.

Locally, the Drive Stun option is occasionally used. Bloomfield Hills police reported that between 2009 and 2012, Tasers were deployed on three separate occasions, all on males. In two other instances, officers deployed Drive Stuns on suspects. Another time, an officer only had to show the Taser to a suspect in order to achieve compliance.

Bloomfield Township Police Captain Scott McCanham said the department “uses the Drive Stun option more in close combat, when we're in hand-to-hand combat with them.” In the last three years, they have only recorded one instance of using Drive Stun. In 2010 and 2011, police officers deployed Tasers in four separate incidents each. So far in 2012, there have been three episodes where township police officers have felt they needed to use a Taser to attempt to subdue a non-compliant subject. In one of those incidents, an individual who was off his medication, they were able to subdue him and get him into custody. In the other two instances, despite Tasering, the suspects got away.

McCanham said in some situations just the

T

threat of using a Taser, “just the click of it,” is enough for a suspect to give themselves up. The department has approximately 30 Tasers, which cost under $1,000 apiece. McCanham said the department is still using most of the original Tasers purchased approximately six years ago, but a few have had to be replaced. He said he's not sure what an expected lifespan for the non-lethal weapons are but that they appear to have a long-lasting life expectancy.

Bloomfield Hills Police Chief Richard Matott said his department has used Tasers for the last six to eight years, with every one of his 24 officers equipped with a Taser. “It's part of the use of our force continuum,” he said. In order for an officer to even think of using a Taser, “there has to be some resistance on the part of the suspect, coupled with the fact that the officer could withstand injury if he didn't use one.”

Matott said it is rarely used but the word is out on the streets that Bloomfield Hills officers will use one if necessary.

“Sometimes the mere warning of use is often enough,” he said. “The street term is 'riding the lightning'; and no one wants to 'ride the lightning'.”

In Birmingham, where all 29 police officers in the department are provided with a Taser for use if necessary, the department has no record of using Drive Stun in order to achieve a suspect's compliance. Twice in 2011, both in December, a Birmingham police officer felt he had to use a Taser to subdue a male suspect. Both instances were for armed robbery, in circumstances where, Birmingham Police Chief Don Studt said, officers were faced with a very uncooperative or assaultive subject who was not responding to voice commands.

“It's an alternative that's less than lethal force.

When you shoot someone, that's deadly force,” Studt said. “Four to one, in our experience, they'll comply with a Taser.”

He noted that his officers like having another tool to face criminals. “My officers are happy to have another device to get compliance that's less than lethal,” Studt said. “Nobody wants to use deadly force on anybody. And certainly in the case of voluntary compliance, there's no injury. You take a baton, there's injuries.”

Studt said Birmingham's department has moved away from the use of pepper spray as a device of control or compliance. “Pepper spray is too hard to control,” he said. “If you're downwind from it, the officer gets as much as the criminal.” tudt said his department's Tasers are nearing the end of their lifespan, and he will be proposing to purchase 32 new Tasers X2 with accompanying holsters in the police department's 2013-2014 budget. The cost will be $60,400, which he said will be funded by drug forfeiture money.

Robert Sedler, professor of constitutional law at Wayne State University Law School, said, “It's argued that it's less dangerous for the police to Taser someone than to use a billy club or tear gas or pepper spray to subdue an individual, but there's always the possibility of misuse. But police can use reasonable force to subdue and arrest an individual, and usually Tasering is considered reasonable force. It's usually used reasonably for that purpose.”

Eric Lambert, chairman of the criminal justice department at Wayne State University, disagreed.

“In theory, yes, it was designed for police to use as

S

a non-lethal weapon. In fact, they do not always use it as it was designed or they are not properly trained,” he said. “The problem is, what is proper use. We forget it is painful. There is literature that shows they may overuse it, or lawsuits they have lost where they used verbally threatening language or challenges, but not physical challenges, so the Taser was overused, or when people have been in handcuffs or leg irons, with more than one officer, and they used a Taser, whereas if the officer had been properly trained they should have been able to have properly restrained the individual. But the vast majority use it for legitimate purposes, with the boundaries and proper training followed.

“Is it a better choice than a firearm?” Lambert continued. “Yes. We call it a lethal weapon. Police are trained to shoot to harm, not to kill.”

The Police Policy Studies Council provides Taser use recommendations for law enforcement officers, including to only use Taser for physically assaultive subjects; identify high-risk subjects for age, extremes, pregnancy and excited delirium; to always weigh the alternatives to the use of Taser, such as deadly force or using a baton, use a Taser when preferable to the alternative; train all officers in excited delirium recognition and management; to call EMS if there is a high-risk subject, of if there are more than three Taser exposures. It also states than when used properly, “Taser is generally a nondeadly force, but should be considered higher on the physical force scale.” irmingham police also keep compliance records—which are records of each time they show a Taser to a subject and just showing the Taser subdues the individual.

“You want to keep records of compliance and not just of Taser use because if at any point someone says it's not justified, we can show them the records of compliance versus non-compliance,” Studt said.

Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills do not maintain compliance records.

There is no state requirement to report the use of Tasers by local police departments, although Birmingham, Bloomfield Township and Bloomfield Hills all do internal reviews. “Our administration views all of our use of force cases. Everyone in the administration reviews the cases, including Tasers, individually,” McCanham said. “We also report our use of force of any kind to our risk management firm.”

Matott said that Bloomfield Hills also has an internal review for all use of force, as did Studt in Birmingham.

McCanham noted that use of Tasers is reserved for “combative, non-compliant individuals. They have to be combative and non-compliant to verbal commands. Most of them are likely under the influence. Some we assume have mental issues but we don't usually know that ahead of time,” he said.

Each department trains their own officers in the use of Tasers. In Bloomfield Hills, Sgt. Rick Szuber handles all internal training. In Bloomfield Township, they have a lieutenant and a sergeant, each of whom have gone to Taser International's training course. “They've gone to Taser to be certified as teachers, and they handle our internal training of officers,” McCanham said.

Studt said they also have a “group of people who are certified who have gone to Taser International's course to be certified and they train our other officers in the proper use of a Taser.”

Each department has specific, written policy on

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the appropriate use of Tasers by an officer. “We have written policy on Taser use within the use of force continuum,” Studt said.

Matott said Bloomfield Hills' policy on Tasers is within their use of force spectrum. McCanham said, “We have written policy on Taser use that falls under our less than lethal force use policy. It's not much different than baton or pepper spray use.”

McCanham, Studt and Matott all said their departments have not had anyone experience serious injury from being Tasered. Matott said when they initially began using Tasers, he and his fellow officers Tased one another to experience the shock, and understand its effects. “It's not pleasant, but I stayed on my feet,” he said. He said they no longer do that with new officers. “You don't need to be shot to know what that feels like.”

Jared Feuer, Deputy Director of Membership at Amnesty International USA , said that while there is no comprehensive database, at least 500 people have been killed by Tasers used by law enforcement individuals.

“One challenge is we're flying blind. We don't know why these people have been Tasered,” Feuer said. “The tool has been rapidly deployed. It's a technology that has outpaced policy, and everyone, including law enforcement, is playing catch up, to see if the risks are worth its usage. We're putting law enforcement in the field with a device that we're telling them is safe, and they're utilizing them in situations that would never potentially lead to a lethal weapon. It's become a weapon of first resort, versus last resort. It's become an alternative to negotiation, where a situation does not call for deadly force, but because law enforcement is told it's not harmful, they're using it against a very

vulnerable population. It's being seen as a cure-all rather than as a 50,000 volt device.”

Matott said that “to my knowledge, none of the deaths have been from Tasering directly, but from other conditions, such as drugs or heart conditions.”

However, a new study from Indiana University Health cardiologist Dr. Douglas P. Zipes determined that Tasers have the capacity to provoke ventricular arrhythmias, sudden cardiac arrest and even death. he study analyzed eight cases from 2006 to 2008 where clinically healthy men suffered electronic control device-induced loss of consciousness, and all but one of the men died. Zipes reported that he reviewed police, medical and emergency response records, electronic control device dataport interrogation, automated defibrillator information, electrocardiogram strips, depositions and autopsy reports. The study analyzed men in age from 16 to 48, and found severely abnormal heart rhythms in six of the eight cases following shock.

“A person can appear healthy but may have underlying health concerns which can lead to death,” Feuer said. “Law enforcement is charged with the public's safety. We do not want them in the situation where they are using something they are not properly trained for.” He noted that several law enforcement agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the state of New Jersey, and Hartford, CT, have stopped using Tasers due to concerns of safety. “Amnesty International advocates that there needs to be a comprehensive independent medical study to inform policy, to include training, regulation, monitoring, and that Tasers, for now, if they're being used, should only

T

be used as an alternative to deadly force.”

Feuer said that between September 2001 and January 2012, Michigan had 13 deaths of individuals from being Tasered by law enforcement officials. Included in that count is a 15-year-old boy from Bay City who died after three police officers were called to an apartment to stop a fight between two males, and he was Tasered. There are different news accounts as to whether the teen attempted to fight with police as they were breaking up the fight. Some accounts assert the teen was already in handcuffs when he was Tasered. Amnesty International said his death added to concern over Taser use by police in nonlife threatening situations.

“We don't take a position about the use of Tasers by police departments,” said Mark Fancher, staff attorney for Racial Justice Department for American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “But related to that, we have seen accounts of use on juveniles, so that says there has not been scrupulous attention paid to (Taser) usage. The other concern is regarding race.”

Fancher pointed out that the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Michigan, ruled setting parameters for Taser training and usage, providing guidelines for appropriate usage for police departments, which Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Bloomfield Township currently appear to follow.

“The Sixth Circuit said Tasers cannot be used where a suspect has been restrained or is in handcuffs,” said Fancher. Drive Stun cannot be used when the suspect is detained in a police vehicle.

“Our interest is in insuring they (police departments) follow the legal and safety guidelines that have been established,” he said.

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CITY/ TOWNSHIP Alleys/passageways ordinance approved

By Lisa Brody

An ordinance plan called Activating the Urban Space: A Strategy for Alleys & Passageways, was recommended for approval by the Birmingham Planning Board on Wednesday, September 12, with some changes requested by the city's Principal Shopping District (PSD) board.

The ordinance will now be sent to the city commission for a public hearing and final approval.

Birmingham has numerous alleys, passageways and vias, some of which are traditional alleys, such as the Merrillwood/Pierce alley and Bates alley, and some which are pedestrian pathways, like the Social passage, Peabody alley and Cafe Via passage.

In the Birmingham 2016 Plan, alleys behind commercial buildings were identified as underutilized assets within the city, and while the plan recognized the service function of alleys, it also noted that certain alleys are more pedestrian-oriented, and these are untapped resources which can become focal points in the city and generate interest in the downtown.

The purpose of the ordinance is to create an overlay district which will allow the city commission to amend zoning regulations of the city code, and establish regulations for public and private alleys and passageways.

Birmingham Planning Director Jana Ecker visited the August board meeting of the Principal Shopping District (PSD), and told the PSD in August that there is a desire on the part of the planning board to require public rear entrances to stores and restaurants in an effort to create more active usage of the passageways and alleys. However, board members found that objectionable because the rear of their establishments are often work spaces.

PSD chairperson Geoff Hockman wrote a letter to planning board chairperson Robin Boyle stating that Section 3.16, Specific Standards, Paragraph H, item B, “First floor retail, restaurant and office uses will be directly accessible to the public from adjoining vias,” is the portion of the ordinance as a mandatory provision which the PSD opposes because it can be a hardship to the property owner or tenant.

In considering the ordinance plan at their September 12 meeting, planning board members responded by removing the requirement for a rear customer

entrance, changing the language to encourage rear doors to invite pedestrian access. The ordinance also includes lighting and landscaping improvements, signage identifying what is down the alley or passageway and cross walk improvements.

Ecker said the public hearing before the city commission will likely occur sometime in October.

City elections date moved to November

By Hayley Beitman

All future Bloomfield Hills city elections will be held in November rather than May beginning with the November 2013 election, following a city commission public hearing on a proposed amendment to the city's charter September 11.

The proposed charter amendment was a reaction to a resident survey conducted by the city this spring that showed 88 percent of residents supported moving the elections to November.

According to city clerk Amy Burton, moving May annual elections to oddyear Novembers will increase voter turnout and cost the city $8,000 every other year instead of every year, a savings of 50 percent. Burton also stated the election amendment will eliminate single issue general elections.

The majority of residents who spoke at the public hearing agreed moving the election will allow Bloomfield Hills to be in line with other communities and have a better turnout because people are used to voting in a November election.

Burton explained a few drawbacks, including the education process required to inform citizens of the new date and possible term changes. Under the amendment, all five current commission seats would expire in November 2015, meaning all terms would be up at the same time without term extensions. It was pointed out to the commission that the Oakland County Board of Commissioners and the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees currently run elections this way, with the whole board being up at one time.

However, the commissioners decided they would prefer to stagger their terms by extending current commissioner terms. The three seats elected in May 2011 will be granted a six-month extension and expire in November 2011, while the two seats elected in May 2012 will be granted an eighteen-month extension, and expire in November 2015.

New rules for Birmingham restaurants

By Lisa Brody

T

he Birmingham City Commission amended several city ordinances related to restaurants in the city with traditional Class C “quota” licenses as part of an effort to clamp down on drinking establishments in late August, unanimously approving a revised version of city manager Bob Bruner's recommendation of ordinance changes, while leaving out two items Bruner thought were key but commissioners felt were onerous to restaurant owners.

The revision of the zoning ordinances were a reaction on the city's part following numerous police incidents at three of the city's night spots over the last couple of years, South Bar which is now closed, Hamilton Room and Chen Chow.

Bruner said the need was made more urgent by the issuance of a bulletin from the Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC) on June 21, announcing that, as of July 1 they would no longer require local approval for transfers of liquor licenses. On August 13, the Birmingham City Commission unanimously approved an ordinance requiring any and all transfers of ownership or location of a liquor license in the city to receive prior approval of the city commission.

There are two classes of restaurants in Birmingham with liquor licenses, the traditional Class C “quota” licenses, and Class C “bistro” licenses. The bistro license holders also have a special land use permit (SLUP) with the city in order to operate but quota operators do not.

Bruner sought to change the zoning ordinances in order to bring quota license holders, some of whom have had their licenses for 40 years, under a SLUP agreement with the city if they proceeded to do any change to their establishment, including a sign change, which he said could be a trigger that they were altering their business model.

“I'd like the city commission to be the captain of its own destiny,” Bruner said. “SLUPs are legal and binding. The city commission enforces them. We have to balance the desire to all the existing licensees to operate in perpetuity without SLUPs, unless there are certain triggers.”

His recommendations for those triggers were a change of ownership; a name change of the restaurant; a design review application; a sign review application; or a site plan review application.

Bruner acknowledged that existing restaurateurs had complaints over the sign review and design review ordinance change. He said a SLUP application costs an additional $2,800. Many applicants also pay for an attorney.

Commissioners agreed that change of ownership and a name change were signals that something different could be going on at a restaurant which warranted a zoning ordinance change for a SLUP, and that a site plan review usually refers to altering the footprint of an establishment, which would need a SLUP. They disagreed over requiring long-time and generally trouble-free restaurants to need a SLUP for a sign review or design review. Many were concerned operators would not re-invest in their establishments if the ordinances were changed.

“I don't think the design review belongs here because it may not seem like a burden, but I don't want to discourage them from renovating their establishments,” said commissioner Stuart Sherman. “While I believe we have to have regulations, I'm concerned about over regulating a group of people who have been good citizens.”

Commissioner Rackeline Hoff agreed. “We are encouraging people to not renovate, to not update, in order to not get a SLUP,” she said.

Commissioners then unanimously approved the package of zoning ordinance changes for a change of ownership, name change of an establishment, or a site plan review, all of which will necessitate a SLUP.

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Spacious New England Colonial in the heart of Birmingham. Ten foot ceilings, open floor plan, 85 foot wide lot, attached three car garage. Bring your decorating and renovation ideas to update this classic early 90's home or purchase completely renovated for $1,599,000. Four bedrooms with 3.2 baths. 212067055. Presented by Linda Eriksen

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A slice of Paradise on this 42 acre retreat on Hummer Lake. Great fishing on this 12 acre private lake. Two level Brick Ranch with 5,500 sq ft of living space including a private guest wing. Two par 3 golf holes. 30 x 50 Pole Barn. Walk out lower level and terraced garden. Five bedrooms with 4.2 baths. 212065181 Presented by Bev McCotter

One of Birmingham's finest homes. Newer construction finished in 2010, this 3,000 sq ft brick Colonial home has all the fine details one would look for.

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Gracious Custom Home BLOOMFIELD Magnificent 1.4 acre hill top property with mature trees, lovely landscaping and waterfall. Two first floor masters. Nanny's suite. Custom millwork throughout. Inviting sun porch with fireplace. Marble foyer.

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Maceday Lake Frontage WATERFORD You will enjoy over 5,000 sq ft of living space with view of all sports Maceday Lake from all levels. Dramatic two story foyer, two brick fireplaces, premium appliances, island kitchen with beautiful cabinetry. Unique master bedrooms on both first and second floors. Four bedrooms with four baths. 212093793. $875,000. Dawn Williams

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CITY/ TOWNSHIP Federal grant for wireless detectors

By Lisa Brody

The Bloomfield Township Fire Department announced it was recently awarded a grant from the federal government for the purchase and installation of 1,675 wireless smoke detectors.

The grant, worth $64,150, will fund a project that enables early notification and protection of children, adults and seniors who live in 24 adult foster care facilities and five of the most populated multi-unit residential apartment and condominium complexes in Bloomfield Township.

“We are strongly committed to enacting this potentially lifesaving program. Bloomfield Township will share 10 percent of the overall costs.

This project will give back to the community and better protect the thousands of residents who live in these homes,” said fire chief Dave Piche.

The Bloomfield Township Fire Department was one of only four fire departments in the state of Michigan to receive a funding grant from the federal government this funding cycle, according to Bloomfield Township Fire Inspector Doug Brown.

The fire department's fire prevention division submitted the grant request and received the award in July to purchase and install the smoke alarms, and the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees unanimously accepted the grant at its September 10th meeting.

Brown said the procurement and installation process is underway and will be completed within the next year.

The work will be coordinated by the fire department, and will include the use of private contractors, building owners and maintenance providers.

Brown said that inspections at several Bloomfield Township residential facilities over the past two years showed that some lacked proper coverage according to recommendations from the National Fire Protection Association. For example, the Square Lake Hills Condominium Association, after consulting with the fire department, agreed to install the wireless detectors to replace its aging detectors.

Brown said the fire department intends to submit a similar grant request next year in order to expand the program to all of the township's remaining multi-residential facilities. downtownpublications.com

Church for sale; Reading Room expands

By Lisa Brody

T

he First Church of Christ, Scientist, Birmingham church building at 191 N. Chester is up for sale and the church's Christian Science Reading Room at 355 E. Maple in Birmingham is looking to expand its space to 4,600 square feet with room for worship services.

They received a permit for a two-story addition at a public hearing during the September 12 Birmingham Planning Board meeting.

“We're right-sizing,” said librarian and manager of the reading room Judy Miller. She noted the First Church of Christ, Scientist church building has a capacity for 300 to 400 worshipers, as well as a Sunday school and meeting rooms. After its planned expansion, the Christian Science Reading Room hopes to accommodate about 100 worshippers, she said.

Miller said they plan to move their Sunday school to the E. Maple location as well. “We'll be able to have a full complement of services and accommodations,” she said.

The church was first formed in 1923 and the church structure was built in 1926 and included the Reading Room at that time. In 1946 the church leased the current space on E. Maple for the Reading Room and then purchased the property in 1969. The Christian Science Reading Room is generally considered to be one of the longest operating businesses in Birmingham.

Birmingham Planning Director Jana Ecker said that by ordinance it is permissible to hold worship services in the downtown central business district.

Miller said that while several people are currently looking at the church location on N. Chester, no sale is pending.

“We're going to be adding about 40 percent more space, going all the way to the alley, which is our lot line,” she said. In addition to the space in the rear of the building, she said they plan to reconfigure their current space to update it for modern uses.

Miller said they hope to begin construction sometime in 2013.

Social to enclose outdoor dining area Birmingham city commissioners approved, with a 5-1 vote, a request from restaurant Social Kitchen and Bar to enclose its outdoor dining area in the public passageway on E. Maple Road with the use of isinglass curtains, a form of thin glass used in insulation and fireproofing that comes in rolls, the same as what is used to enclose the outdoor dining area at Birmingham's Cafe Via. Commissioners approved a

resolution to temporarily enclose Social's outdoor dining area because it was discussed during the bistro's approval on January 9, 2012. However, the enclosure had not been on plans submitted to the planning department during construction, said city manager Bob Bruner, causing some miscommunication. It was uncertain if isinglass curtains are an item that should be on plans submitted to the city commission.

Only commissioner Rackeline Hoff voted against the measure.

Commissioner George Dilgard was not in attendance. Hoff's objection was that

DOWNTOWN

Social owner Zack Sklar had taken the bistro license, which calls for no more than 65 seats, including 10 at the bar and some outdoor seats, and has now created a restaurant that is bigger than some of the traditional Class C quota license restaurants.

While acknowledging that was true, Sklar noted that in his bistro application to the city, he had noted on the application his request for an isinglass enclosure. The five other commissioners affirmed his request while noting that in the future, all bistro applicants will need to show their outdoor plans on their plans and drawings.

Sklar said the interior of the outdoor space will be heated, and in warmer months, there will be air conditioning.

He said he anticipates installing the isinglass in early October.

Pierce Street to be redone spring 2013 It's going to be a rough spring 2013 for merchants on Pierce Street in Birmingham next as road construction comes to Pierce Street between Maple and Merrill streets, and Merrill between Pierce and Old Woodward, following city commission approval on September 24.

Birmingham City Engineer Paul O'Meara said work on sewers, water mains, new sidewalks, streetscaping and streetlights will all begin in early spring, followed by road reconstruction with concrete, which has a longer life than asphalt.

The entire construction project is expected to take three months. “We'll try to provide a bonus/penalty clause to entice them to work a six-day week,” O'Meara said.

The estimated cost for the project is $800,000.

Commissioners unanimously approved resolutions to replace the sidewalks, add diagonal parking on the west side of Pierce Street in front of city hall, and to add another crosswalk on Pierce and Martin. Commissioners approved the change from parallel to diagonal parking on Pierce in order to add three additional parking spaces to the street. The additional crosswalk, on the south side of the intersection at Pierce and Martin, is to be added as pedestrians currently cross there without the crosswalk, and engineers and commissioners felt it was respecting the natural flow of pedestrian traffic.

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Bistro Joe's to open with new owner

By Lisa Brody

Papa Joe's Gourmet Marketplace in Birmingham succeeded September 10 at the Birmingham City Commission meeting in assigning the rights to its bistro license to Addie & Jacks LLC, an entity owned by Mindy Lopus who also owns Tallulah's Wine Bar and Bistro and Bella Piatti in Birmingham.

Commissioners voted 5-2 to approve the assignment of rights to Lopus. The eatery, to be called Bistro Joe's, first received a bistro license from the city in 2007, and has had its license renewed annually, despite urgent calls from commissioners to open the bistro.

Tony Curtis, the owner of Papa Joe's, and Lopus had earlier this year come before the commission in an effort to make Lopus a co-licensee. On July 23, commissioners said it was an inappropriate attempt at getting around the city's bistro application process, and denied them the request.

Bistro Joe's, a dine-in area within Papa Joe's, has been under discussion since receiving a 2007 Birmingham bistro license. Commissioners have expressed frustration at the lack of progress Papa Joe's has made in creating and fulfilling their bistro contract, which originally was for visitors to purchase prepared foods in the market and take them to the bistro area. The concept then morphed into the second floor mezzanine near the wine shop where customers would purchase wine by the glass from a special vending machine.

Curtis told city commissioners on July 9 he would now like to transfer the rights of his bistro license to Lopus, in the form of a co-licensee as Addie & Jacks, which would serve lunch and dinner weekdays and brunch and dinner on weekends upstairs within Papa Joe's. According to Eleanor Heald, restaurant columnist for Downtown Publications, Addie & Jacks would serve American comfort food and bottled beer and wine.

On September 10, Curtis and Lopus' attorney, Kelly Allen, came before the city commission acknowledging they would not change the name to Addie & Jacks, as Bistro Joe's was tied to the special land use permit (SLUP) given with the bistro license.

“We came back with a straight assignment of rights, and we are dropping Mindy as a co-licensee,” Allen told commissioners. Noting that downtownpublications.com

bistro licenses were designed initially to not be transferable and selfextinguishable, she said, “When you look at why you wanted them to be self-extinguishing, you didn't want a $20,000 license to go for $600,000.

Mindy is paying nothing for this license. There will be no liquor sold downstairs (in Papa Joe's). Tony will do what he does best (running the market) and Mindy will do what she does best.”

Commissioners spent a lengthy period of time debating whether the bistro license ordinance should be considered and altered prior to deliberating Bistro Joe's rights assignment transfer, a consideration not initially included in the ordinance.

City manager Bob Bruner introduced the assignment by telling commissioners that in addition to approving or denying it, they could postpone it in order to consider developing systems and procedures for transfers.

“The bistro license gave the city the ability to permit transfers and assignments of the licenses, but did not specify what those would be. I would recommend postponing this discussion until October 15, when we have our discussion about 2013 bistros,” he said.

He also suggested discussing transfers and assignments at the joint commission/planning board meeting on October 22, and waiting to discuss Bistro Joe's until after that meeting.

Commissioner Stuart Sherman concurred. “This seems to me this will take a great deal of discussion. I think this should be part of our long-term planning session or the joint meeting.

We need to do this right.”

Commissioner Rackeline Hoff also brought up that bistro licenses were designed for small operators who could not afford a Class C “quota” license.

“This would be the third license for the same person, and I'm not sure that's what the bistro license was designed for. I don't think it's really fair, especially when there are so many restaurants who would like a liquor license.”

Several commissioners, however, said it was unfair to Papa Joe's to “hold them hostage,” as commissioner Tom McDaniel said, while the bistro ordinance is redefined. They approved the assignment of rights from Curtis to Lopus 5-2, with Sherman and Hoff dissenting.

Commissioners then unanimously approved a resolution to review the transference of bistro ordinance at their joint meeting on October 22.

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SO

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5 bedrooms - 4.1 baths 2 master suites 187 Ft frontage - 1.64 acres 6 car heated garage - pool $1,599,000

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3 bedrooms - 2.1 baths 2 story great room 1st floor master bedroom 3 car attached garage Sold in 7 days of full price

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Walters Lake

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Unique lakefront vacant lot Western exposure 161 Ft. of sandy shoreline 262 acre all-sports lake Walled Lake Schools $160,000

Email: Rwwatson@skbk.com

Birmingham, Michigan | 248.644.7000 | skbk.com

FACES

J Chris Newberg

L

ong before musical comedian J Chris Newberg was writing songs for American Idol and touring with Dane Cook, the Bloomfield Hills native was a quiet and reserved student at Brother Rice High School.

Newberg was a bookworm, thespian and even homecoming king, but was never the class clown. Although he never strived to be the center of attention, it was apparent that Newberg had a natural ability to find humor in everyday situations.

It wasn't long before he ditched the road to academia and ventured onto the stage for open mic night at Mark Ridley's Comedy Castle. “I sucked. I didn't know how to do it,” he said.

Unaware that he was actually doing it right, his first unsuccessful time on stage was humorous in itself. “If there are two people on stage and one wins and one loses, who's funnier? Ultimately you want success, but it's difficult to walk on stage and connect with the audience if you come off as perfect.”

Practicing and improving the learned talent of stand-up comedy, Newberg enjoyed sharing his dose of medicinal laughter and giving everyone a chance to unwind, including himself.

“It's a pretty simple job to make people laugh immediately. Very few jobs are that single themed. You show up at 8:00, and at 8:01 when the lights go down, you have to be funny,” he said.

Everyday occurrences spark inspiration for his edgy and witty humor, which is why he uses Twitter as a drawing board for constant exploration.

“It's like being on a blind date with 200 people every time you go on stage. One-third of them will probably hate you, one-third will probably love you, and one-third will be indifferent. If you go after hate or indifferent,

you'll lose everyone. You have to go up knowing most of the audience won't like you.”

The unlimited power and potential in that moment are what motivate Newberg to succeed on stage. “If you have a good day at work, you could find a fortune in fame.” Which is exactly how he got involved with Last Comic Standing, America’s Got Talent, Jimmy Kimmel Live and the Tonight Show, just to name a few.

Of all of his many accomplishments, he is most proud to be one of a few who have written an original composition for American Idol. Having also toured with the Counting Crows, Oasis, and John Mellencamp, he briefly considered the music industry instead of comedy but stuck with his original passion. “Music's fun, but I'm way better at listening to it than I am at playing it.”

Since gaining popularity, Newberg said he has been a “workaholic gypsy,” but would eventually love to get married and raise a family in Michigan. “Every girl wants a guy with a sense of humor, but no girl says she wants to date a comic.”

Though he currently resides in Los Angeles, the musical comedian, who lived in Oakland County for 36 years and once donned a “248” decal on his guitar, still calls the mitten his home. He finds time to visit Birmingham at least once or twice a year but unless he's working, it's unlikely you'll find him at a bar or club on his downtime.

In the future he hopes to become more widely recognized than he is now, and since he's currently working on three shows with Howie Mandel, his dreams may just come true.

Story: Hayley Beitman

Photo: Felle Photography

NANCI J. RANDS & MEREDITH COLBURN

Recognized Leaders In Residential Real Estate Nanci

Birmingham $2,395,000

Farmington Hills $2,795,000

Bloomfield $3,350,000

Remarkable 2004 built in-town home. Over 6800 sq. ft. of living space with additional 2900 sq. ft. in finished Lower Level. 6 Bedrooms, 6 Full and 2 Half Baths. Private apartment over 3 car garage. Formal Living Room and banquet sized Dining Room. Gourmet Kitchen with oversized granite island. Breakfast Room with French doors to bluestone courtyard.

Spacious Family Room overlooks outdoor living spaces. Generator.

Fabulous estate on a very private 2.4 acre park-like setting. Exquisite craftsmanship and detailing throughout. Stunning foyer with grand double staircase. Outstanding 1st floor Master Suite with luxurious Bath and 2 walk-in closets. Handsome 2-story paneled Library. 6 fireplaces.

4 balconies. Lower Lever Retreat with Lap Pool, Hot Tub, Theatre, Kitchen, Rec Room, Bedroom Suite and more. 5 car garage. Elevator.

Prominently gracing the North shore of Wing Lake, this outstanding 2000 built home has over 10,000 sq. ft. of elegance and style in architecture, quality and detailed trim work. 6 Bedrooms, 6 full and 2 half Baths. Library with screened porch. Island Kitchen with informal dining area. 2-story Living Room. Incredible walk-out. Boat dock. 4 car garage. Additional private apartment. Also for lease: $20,000/month.

BUILDING SITES

JUST LISTED

Quarton Lakefront $849,000 Last remaining vacant site directly on Birmingham’s Quarton Lake. Frontage and long views of the lake, park and waterfall. Walk-out site may accommodate up to a 9,000 sq. ft. residence on three levels.

Bloomfield $1,149,000 Beautiful 2009 updated walkout Ranch with 136' Island Lake frontage and breathtaking views of Kirk in the Hills. Located on nearly 2 secluded acres with a gated entrance highlighted by a fountain. Open floor plan.

Spacious Cherry Kitchen and breakfast area. First Floor Master. Large terrace overlooks dock and sweeping lawn. Additional Bedrooms in Lower Level.

Generator. Home lovely as is, with incredible opportunity to expand.

Nanci J. Rands 248.701.9000

Gilbert Lakefront $769,995 Beautiful lakefront acre site with wide vistas of Bloomfield HIlls’ Gilbert Lake, framed by mature trees.

Gently sloping site will accommodate a large home with walk-out. Perk test and survey available.

www.RandsColburn.com

C HRISTIE’S INTERNATIONAL REAL ESTATE

Bloomfield $389,500 Classic Bloomfield walkout Ranch on landscaped corner site. Expansive, open floor plan with large rooms and bay windows revealing wooded views.

Hardwood floors throughout 1st floor living spaces and Bedrooms. Island Kitchen and spacious Breakfast Area. Sophisticated Living Room with built-in cabinetry/entertainer’s bar. Finished walk-out includes Rec Room with wet bar, Library, full Bath and Bedroom. 4 fireplaces. 3 car garage.

Meredith Colburn 248.762.5319

NANCI J. RANDS & MEREDITH COLBURN

Client Service Excellence...

Proven Results Meredith

Bloomfield $2,995,000

Franklin $4,250,000

Bloomfield $3,450,000

This historic hilltop property overlooking Wing Lake was restored and expanded in 2001 to extraordinary elegance and functionality. Over 6,000 sq. ft. with additional 4,000 feet in finished Lower Level. 3 Bedrooms, 5 Full and 2 Half Baths. Grand entry Foyer with domed rotunda. A 38-foot gallery leads to 1st floor Master Suite with fieldstone fireplace and Sitting Room. Wine Cellar and Tasting Room. 3 car garage.

Exceptional 2001 Tringali-designed English Tudor replica on 2.48 acres in Franklin Village. Winding gated drive opens to views of the slate roofed home with pond, fountain and arched walkways. Over 10,000 sq. ft. of luxury with 4 Bedroom Suites, 4 full and 3 half Baths. Cook’s Kitchen.

3 season Sun Porch. Lower Level with Wine Cellar and Tasting Room.

Exercise Facility with Dojo. 2 heated garages with capacity for 8 cars.

An incomparable Post Modern Masterpiece on 3.3 wooded acres.

Sophisticated and functional living spaces. Dramatic Living Room with curved wall of windows overlooks Pool and Tennis Court. Wide Gallery Halls. Upper Level is a private Master retreat and includes a 3-room Office. Finished walk-out Lower Level. 4 car garage. A one-of-a-kind residence that is spectacular in daylight and when illuminated at night.

UNDER CONTRACT

S OLD

UNDER CONTRACT

Bloomfield listed at $359,000

Bloomfield listed at $345,000

Bloomfield listed at $1,545,000

Outstanding Kirkwood Colonial renovated inside and out! Granite Kitchen with stainless appliances and Breakfast Area opens to 3-season Cedar Sunroom. Wood Floors throughout. Family Room with stone fireplace.

Living Room and Dining Room with cove ceilings. Spacious Master Bedroom with fireplace. 1st floor Laundry. Finished Basement. Private site with extensive landscaping, patio and paver walkways.

Wonderful Transitional home on a 2/3 acre site. Updated and neutral with 4 Bedrooms and 3 Baths. Newer Cook’s Kitchen with stainless steel appliances. Dining Room with fireplace and sliding door to patio.

Outstanding Master Suite with vaulted ceilings, large walk-in closet and spacious Bath. Wonderful living and entertaining spaces. Skylit foyer.

Newer windows. Hardwood floors. Generator. Move right in!

Fabulous 2000 addition and complete renovation of a classic Bloomfield Village home on a picturesque acre. 5 Bedrooms, 5 full and 3 half Baths.

Granite Kitchen with large center island and professional appliances opens to spacious Breakfast Area and Family Room, all overlooking beautiful rear grounds. 1st Floor Bedroom used as Library. Spectacular Lower Level with Theatre, Bar and Rec Room. Oversized 2.5 car garage.

Nanci J. Rands 248.701.9000

www.RandsColburn.com

CHRISTIE’S INTERNATIONAL REAL ESTATE

Meredith Colburn 248.762.5319

442 S. Old Woodward Birmingham, MI 48009

THE INTEGRITY OF HALL AND HUNTER...THE POWER OF CHRISTIE’S

Chris Edwards Associate Broker

248.310.9896

cedwards@hallandhunter.com

Kelly Small Realtor

248.631.8750

Rich

ksmall@hallandhunter.com Charlevoix $1,195,000 Quintessential Earl Young masterpiece. A treasured retreat owned by one family for nearly half a century, Boulder Manor, is now finally available.

This is a rare opportunity to own one of Charlevoix’s defining landmarks. Overlooking Lake Michigan and out to the lighthouse, you are about to experience the most spectacular Northern Michigan sunsets in a neighborhood setting of beautiful Earl Young cottages. Walking distance to downtown and Michigan beach. 3-car garage, guest apt. & stone dollhouse cottage included.

OPEN HOUSE 12-4PM, October 14th Apple Festival Weekend!

Bay Harbor $39,000

Charlevoix $215,000

Charlevoix $149,000

Farmington Hills $999,000

Exclusive Bay Harbor lot, steps from Lake Michigan and in the heart of Village Beach District, walking distance to dining, shopping, private beach and more. Swim and Yacht Club memberships available.

Build your dream home in Michigan’s premiere luxury resort community. Featuring world-class golf, yacht and equestrian facilities, Bay Harbor offers a lifestyle beyond compare. 3 years dues food/ beverage minimums waived if bought by 12/31/12.

Adorable, remodeled, 1-story Mid-Century retreat in Charlevoix’s historic Northside, right up the street from Depot Beach/Lake Charlevoix, Charlevoix Golf Club and downtown. Beautifully redone, huge pass-through fireplace, wood-beamed ceiling, nice backyard. We also have the next-door corner lot on Mercer Blvd. for sale (see at right) which can be combined to create Charlevoix’s next great landmark estate in this unique and tranquil location.

Build your dream house in Charlevoix. 12,000 sq.ft. on historic Mercer Blvd. Best location on the North Side. Imagine a stunning Georgian Plantation home with huge wraparound porch on a beautiful corner lot. Located steps from Depot Beach, Charlevoix Municipal Golf Course and a short stroll to downtown.

Owner may finance with 20% down. House next door available (see at left.) Combine and create a landmark estate on nearly 25000SF of park-like grounds.

Designed by Acclaimed Architect, Alexander V. Bogaerts. This timeless, well-built custom Tudor Estate is luxuriously appointed with exceptional craftsmanship throughout. Gorgeous gourmet kitchen w/fireplace, 28-ft. ceiling in living room w/enormous field stone fireplace, 2330SF finished walkout lower level, Koi pond, gracious outdoor view deck on a beautifully landscaped 1 acre hillside lot w/running stream below. Reduced to $999K.

ChrisandKellySold.com

C HRISTIE’S INTERNATIONAL REAL ESTATE

442 S. Old Woodward Birmingham, MI 48009

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Birmingham, Michigan | 248.644.7000 | skbk.com

Experience the Difference Between an Agent and An Expert

BIRMINGHAM

BLOOMFIELD

BLOOMFIELD

Custom In-Town

Stately Center Entrance Colonial

Spectacular Mini Estate, Lake Privileges

5,000 Sq Ft of Custom Finishes, 2 Story Limestone Foyer, Double Island Kitchen, 4 Bedroom Suites, 2,400 Sq Ft Finished LL, 3 Car Att. Garage $1,299,000

2,740 Sq Ft, 3 BR, 2.1 BA on Large Lot. Eat-In Granite Kitchen Leads to FR, Elegant Master Suite, Gracious Floor Plan w/ Beautiful 3 Season Rm and Grounds. $599,999

4,300 Sq Ft w/ exquisite details, 4 BR, 4.1 BA, Chef's Kitchen with Large Breakfast Room, 2 Story FR, 2,000 Sq Ft LL w/ Kitchen, Bedrm, Rec. Room & Bath. 3 Car Att. Garage. $995,000

BIRMINGHAM

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Charming and Sophisticated Family Home

Impeccably Detailed Designer's Home

3,500 Sq Ft, 5 BR, 3.1 BA w/ Granite Kitchen Opens to Large FR, Mstr Suite w/ Balcony & Jetted Tub, Mud Room, Finished 3rd Flr Features Office and 5th BR, Finished LL w/ FP. $749,000

4,650 Sq Ft, 4 BR, 3.2 BA. Hilltop Masterpiece. Brazilian Teak Hardwd Flrs, Custom Ceilings,Chef's Kitchen, Master Retreat w/FP, Claw Ft Tub, Wooded, Private Lot. Lake Privileges. $1,199,000

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4,100 Sq Ft, 4 BR, 5.1 BA Chef's Kitchen opens to Spacious FR, Formal LR & DR, Master Suite w/ Vaulted Ceilings, His and Hers WIC's & Marble Bath, Finished Lower Level. $1,325,000

2,767 Sq Ft, 4 BR, 3.1 Baths, Granite and Stainless Kitchen/Great Room w/ Large Eat-In Space, Formal DR and Office, 3rd Flr is 4th BR w/ WIC, Finished LL and Bonus Heated Room Above 2 Car Garage. $599,000

2,700 Sq Ft, 4 BR, 3.1 Baths, Formal Living and Dining Rooms, Island Kitchen Opens to Family Room w/ FP, Master Suite w/ Updated Bath, Finished LL w/ 2nd Kitchen, Living and Office Space. $289,000

Renee Lossia Acho SKBK Sotheby’s International Realty Renee@skbk.com Birmingham, Michigan

248.310.1414

PLACES TO EAT The Places To Eat for Downtown is a quick reference source to establishments offering a place for dining, either breakfast, lunch or dinner. The complete Places To Eat is available at downtownpublications.com and in an optimized format for your smart phone (downtownpublications.com/mobile), where you can actually map out locations and automatically dial a restaurant from our Places To Eat.

220: American. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 220 Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.645.2150.

Andiamo: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 6676 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, 48301.

248.865.9300.

Bangkok Thai Bistro: Thai. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 42805 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Township, 48304.

248.499.6867.

Barrio Tacos & Tequila: Mexican. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 203 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.6060.

Beau Jacks: American. Lunch, MondaySaturday; Dinner, daily. No reservations.

Liquor. 4108 W. Maple, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.626.2630.

Bella Piatti: Italian. Dinner, TuesdaySaturday. Reservations. Liquor. 167 Townsend, Birmingham, 48009.

248.494.7110.

Beyond Juice: Contemporary. Breakfast & Lunch daily; Dinner, Monday-Saturday.

No reservations. 270 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.7078.

Big Boy: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6675 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.642.0717.

Big Rock Chophouse: American. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations.

Liquor.

245 South Eaton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.7774.

Birmingham Sushi Cafe: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. 377 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009.

248.593.8880.

Bloomfield Deli: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 71 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.645.6879.

Brooklyn Pizza: Pizza. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 111 Henrietta Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.258.6690.

Cafe Via: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 310 East Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.8800 Cameron’s Steakhouse: American. Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 115 Willits Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.723.1700.

Chen Chow Brasserie: Japanese. Dinner,

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR EXECUTIVE CHEF, BRIAN HENSON, FOR BEING NAMED THE AMERICAN CULINARY FEDERATION’S MICHIGAN CHEFS DE CUISINE ASSOCIATION

daily. Reservations. Liquor. 260 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.2469.

China Village: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. 1655 Opdyke, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.758.1221.

Churchill's Bistro & Cigar Bar: Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor.

116 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.4555.

Cityscape Deli: Deli. Lunch & Dinner, Monday-Saturday. No reservations. Beer.

877 W. Long Lake Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.540.7220.

Commonwealth: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 300 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009.

248.792.9766.

Cosi: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & wine. 101 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.203.9200.

Deli Unique of Bloomfield Hills: Deli.

Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 39495 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.646.7923.

Dick O’Dow’s: Irish. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 160 West Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.642.1135.

Einstein Bros. Bagels: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. No reservations. 176 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.9888. Also 4089 West

“neighborhood favorite” - Zagat

Award of Excellence - Wine Spectator 2012

273 Pierce Downtown Birmingham 248.645.9123 www.streetsideseafood.com

FINE DINING

FUN DINING

“CHEF OF THE YEAR!!!”

Stop by and try his award-winning entrée, Arctic Char with Smoked Char Pierogi, served with Golden Beet Sour Cream, Chanterelles, Fennel, and Toasted Hazelnut Vinaigrette, now on special this month.

Present this ad for

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245 S. ETON STREET, BIRMINGHAM | 248.647.7774 bigrockchophouse.com downtownpublications.com

PE ABODYSRESTAUR ANT.CO M DOWNTOWN

73

FOCUS ON WINE Ravenswood – masterfully made zinfandel

By Eleanor and Ray Heald

infandel aficionados know the winery name Ravenswood. They probably also know the founder and winemaker Joel Peterson as a zinfandel specialist since 80 percent of Ravenswood’s production is zinfandel. Don’t dismiss the remainder. There’s flavorful chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and a Meritage blend from Pickberry Vineyard.

Peterson maintains that zinfandel wines tend to sort themselves by county of origin. His County Series Old Vine Zinfandels originate from Lodi $13, Napa County $16, and Sonoma County $16. He compared two extremes: Lodi and Sonoma.

There are real climate differences between Lodi County and Sonoma County that show in the zinfandels. Vine age for both counties is about 85 years old. Lodi has very sandy soils that are not irrigated but tend to flood. Temperatures are quite warm during the day (90-100+ degrees F) and cool slightly at night to yield a small diurnal variation. Lodi fruit is harvested midAugust. These wines are less tannic, softer with less acid, lighter in color and forward. Flavors tend to be plum, blueberry and show a slightly over-ripe character.

Sonoma County is close to the Pacific coast, cooler at night with marine intrusion dropping the temperature into the 50s. Days get warm (in the 80s) with few heat spikes.

Soils are mostly reddish, cobbly-volcanic loam (the best soil type for zinfandel). Vines are dry-farmed; grape clusters tend to be smaller and ripen later with harvest near the first week in September. Wines tend to be better structured, better acidity, lower pH, a lot of blackberry fruit flavors, greater density, longer on the palate, age better and are more spice driven than fruit driven.

One other profound difference: in Sonoma from the late 1800s to 1920 farmers planted other varieties, known as mixed blacks, such as petite sirah (for color and tannin), carignane (for acidity and brightness), alicante bouschet (for color), syrah, grenache, and mourvedre in order to make a balanced, stable, claret-style wine.

All of the county wines are made essentially the same way: aged 14 months in 25 percent French oak barrels.

Flavor differences depend on the place where the grapes were grown.

During a recent tasting at The Reserve in Birmingham’s Big Rock Chop House, Peterson described some wines.

“2010 Vintners Blend Chardonnay $10, Monterey County

Z

Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.258.9939.

Elie’s Mediterranean Cuisine: Mediterranean. Lunch & Dinner, MondaySaturday. No reservations. Liquor. 263 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.647.2420.

Embers Deli & Restaurant: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, daily. Dinner, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 3598 West Maple Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.645.1033.

Flemings Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar:

74

fruit partially barrel fermented. Classy but inexpensive.

2008 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel $13, softer, fruit forward, blueberry and spice, hint of cherry pie character and a trace of Lodi earthiness which I personally identify as tomato stem.

2008 Napa County Old Vine Zinfandel $16, red raspberry, good acidity, distinctive structural tannins, pretty racy aspect.

2008 Sonoma County Old Vine Zinfandel $16, blackberry, vanilla, cherry.”

The Ravenswood price tier of vineyard-designated zinfandels includes some of our personal favorites: Barricia, Sonoma Valley $35; Belloni, Russian River Valley $35; Big River, Alexander Valley $35; Dickerson, Napa Valley $35; Teldeschi, Dry Creek Valley $35; and Old Hill, Sonoma Valley $60.

Each vineyard in this group of wines is chosen for its unique flavor characteristics.

Peterson says that “2008 Teldeschi $35, consists of head pruned vines planted by the Teldeschi family just after 1900 on Dry Creek Valley benchland. It demonstrates classic California zinfandel character of black cherry and vanilla with a succulent center and firm structure.

“I think all of Ravenswood vineyard-designated zinfandels are of equal quality, but Old Hill Vineyard $60, is certainly most expensive and a special vineyard because historically it traces the evolution of the California wine business.

“It was planted in the late 1860s by William McPherson Hill and replanted around 1885. It is a throwback because Hill didn’t really know what he wanted to plant. He didn’t wake up one day saying ‘I want to plant zinfandel.’ He said, ‘I think this feels like a Mediterranean or Iberian climate, so I need to find out what Iberian grape varieties are and plant them.’ He experimented by getting vine cuttings wherever he could find them. The Old Hill Vineyard is a fingerprint of history in that it contains 30 other grape varieties beside zinfandel.”

Today, they are not all significant, but you can imagine his experimentation. Peterson picks the vineyard twice because the mixed blacks ripen at a different rate than the zinfandel. He ferments them separately and then blends to make the best wine possible while maintaining 75 percent zinfandel in order to legally call it zinfandel.

The wine tends to be more spice driven than fruit driven, very structured with good acidity that rewards aging.

Eleanor & Ray Heald have contributed to numerous international publications including the Quarterly Review of Wines. Contact them by e-mail at focusonwine@aol.com.

American. Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 323 N. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.723.0134.

Forest Grill: American. Lunch, MondayFriday; Dinner, Monday-Saturday.

Reservations. Liquor. 735 Forest Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.9400.

Fox Grill: American. Lunch, Monday through Friday; Dinner, daily. Sunday brunch. Reservations. Liquor. 39556 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304. 248.792.6109.

Fuddrucker’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No Reservations. Beer & wine.

42757 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Township, 48302. 248.333.2400.

Greek Island Coney Restaurant: Greek.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 221 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.646.1222.

Hogan’s Restaurant: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 6450 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.626.1800.

DOWNTOWN

Honey Tree Grille: Greek/American.

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, daily. No reservations. 3633 W. Maple Rd, Bloomfield, MI 48301. 248.203.9111.

Hunter House Hamburgers: American.

Breakfast, Monday-Saturday; Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 35075 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.646.7121.

Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse: American.

Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 201 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009.

248.594.4369.

IHOP: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 2187 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301.

248.333.7522.

Kerby’s Koney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations.

2160 N. Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.333.1166.

La Marsa: Mediterranean. Lunch & dinner daily. Reservations. 43259 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills, 48302, 248.858.5800.

Leo’s Coney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 154 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.9707. Also 6527 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301.

248.646.8568.

Little Daddy’s Parthenon: American.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 39500 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.647.3400.

Luxe Bar & Grill: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily; Late Night, 9 p.m.-closing. No reservations. Liquor. 525 N. Old Woodward Ave., Birmingham, 48009. 248.792.6051.

Max & Erma’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 250 Merrill Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.258.1188.

Mitchell’s Fish Market: Seafood. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 117 Willits Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.646.3663.

Mountain King: Chinese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 469 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.2913.

New Bangkok Thai Bistro: Thai. Breakfast, Monday-Thursday; Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. No reservations. 183 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.2181.

Northern Lakes Seafood Co.: Seafood.

Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 39495 North Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.646.7900.

Olga’s Kitchen: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Also 2075 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302.

248.451.0500.

Original Pancake House: American.

Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 33703 South Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.642.5775.

Panera Bread: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 100 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.203.7966. Also 2125 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302.

248.253.9877.

Peabody’s: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

Reservations. Liquor. 34965 Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.644.5222.

Phoenicia: Middle Eastern. Lunch, MondayFriday; Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor.

588 South Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.3122.

Pita Cafe: Middle Eastern. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 239 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009.

248.645.6999.

Qdoba: Mexican. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 795 East Maple Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.988.8941. Also 42967 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Township, 48304. 248.874.1876

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75

Quiznos: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 185 N Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.540.7827.

Roadside B & G: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 1727 S. Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48302.

248.858.7270.

Salvatore Scallopini: Italian. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Beer & Wine. 505 North Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham, 48009. 248.644.8977.

Sanders: American. Lunch, daily. No reservations. 167 N. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.3215.

Social Kitchen & Bar: American. Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations, parties of 5 or more. Liquor. 225 E. Maple Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.594.4200.

Stacked Deli: Deli. Breakfast & Lunch, Monday-Saturday. Delivery available. No reservations. 233 North Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.5300.

Steve’s Deli: Deli. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6646 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield, 48301. 248.932.0800.

Streetside Seafood: Seafood. Lunch, Monday-Friday; Dinner, daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 273 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.645.9123.

Sushi Hana: Japanese. Lunch, MondayFriday; Dinner, Monday-Saturday.

Reservations. 42656 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48304. 248.333.3887.

Sy Thai Cafe: Thai. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations.

315 Hamilton Row, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.9830.

Tallulah Wine Bar and Bistro: American.

Dinner. Monday-Saturday. Sunday brunch.

Reservations. Liquor. 55 S. Bates Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.731.7066.

The Corner Bar: American. Dinner.

Wednesday-Saturday. Reservations. Liquor.

100 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.2958.

The Gallery Restaurant: American.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 6683 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, 48301. 248.851.0313.

The Moose Preserve Bar & Grill: American.

Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations.

Liquor. 2395 S. Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48302. 248.858.7688.

The Rugby Grille: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. Reservations. Liquor. 100 Townsend Street, Birmingham, 48009.

248.642.5999.

Toast: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; Dinner, Monday-Saturday. Reservations.

Liquor. 203 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.258.6278.

Tokyo Sushi & Grill: Japanese. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 225 E. Maple Rd., Birmingham, 48009.

248.258.6501.

Touch of India: Indian. Lunch & Dinner, daily.

No reservations. 297 E. Maple Road, Birmingham, 48009. 248.593.7881.

Townhouse: American. Brunch, Saturday, Sunday. Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. Liquor. 180 Pierce Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.792.5241.

Village Coney Island: American. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, daily. No reservations. 653 S. Adams.

Birmingham, 48009.

248.593.7964.

What Crepe?: French. Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner, Tuesday-Saturday, Breakfast & Lunch, Sunday. No reservations. 172 N. Old Woodward, Birmingham, 48009.

248.792.5634.

Whistle Stop Cafe: American. Breakfast & Lunch, daily; Dinner, Monday-Friday. No reservations. 501 S. Eton Street, Birmingham, 48009. 248.647.5588.

Zazios: Italian. Dinner daily. Reservations.

Liquor. 34977 Woodward Ave, Birmingham, 48009. Phone: 248.530.6400.

Zumba Mexican Grille: Mexican. Lunch & Dinner, Daily. No Reservations. 163 W. Maple Rd., Birmingham, 48009.

248.792.2775.

AT THE TABLE Cameron’s - a modern American steakhouse

Broiler master Thirty-five-year-old Executive Chef Juan Duenas-Rivas is a passionate broiler master. He’s a native of Central America who emigrated in 1994; has been with the Ruth’s

By Eleanor Heald Chris restaurants for 15 years and came to Cameron’s two ith its Rat Pack-era theme, rich walnut woods and jazz- years ago.

You may consider yourself a backyard barbecue master, yet influenced wall art, the atmosphere at Cameron's Steakhouse in Birmingham is distinctly American. Dark it’s next to impossible for you to buy top-of-the-line prime beef leather upholstery, white tablecloths and logo-engraved place and grill a steak as delicious as a steakhouse. Given his steakhouse passion, I asked Chef Juan why a home cook fails in settings mark Cameron’s as upscale. Yet, it’s unpretentious.

Owned by Ruth’s Chris, the international mega steak grilling or broiling a top quality steak, at least to the high level house corporation, Cameron’s offers dinner only from an a la of Cameron’s.

“It starts,” he says, “with our char broiler at 1800 degrees, carte menu of prime steaks (28-to-35-day dry and wet aged) then sorting steaks. We butcher with traditional appetizers, our steaks, but also sort them for seafood, lamb, chicken and sides. the best steaks to match the General Manager Chris diner’s doneness request. A home Rewald and Executive Chef Juan griller often plays with steaks on Duenas-Rivas say that Filet the grill, flipping them too early.”

Mignon is the most popular steak.

Chef Juan seasons steaks generCurrently, beef cuts run $31 to ously with sea salt and freshly $51, yet I mused how well do dinground black pepper. When steaks ers know all the options? The folare done to order, they are removed lowing are Chef Juan and from the broiler and placed immeRewald’s responses. diately on the service plate and delivered to the guest at the table.

Filet Mignon, 7 oz/11oz, $31/$37.

What about the notion of letting The most popular and most tenthe steak rest? “We don’t practice der cut. However, it offers the that,” Chef Juan says. “Juices run least flavor due to being very less because of the high temperalean. Thus, grilled or broiled it ture. When diners cut into the harmonizes well with compound steak, some juices run, but we butters or accompanying sauces want them to have this au jus on such as Cameron’s Steak Sauce, the plate as a dipping sauce.”

Béarnaise, Horseradish, or Chef Juan believes that potatoes Cognac Peppercorn, all at $3 are the best steak sides. He prefers extra. Order it rare, medium rare mashed with butter and sour or medium. cream. Second choice is baked with generous sea salt. Cooked New York Strip, 14 oz, $41. Cut potatoes retained in the kitchen for from the cow’s mid-back, it is more than one hour are never juicy, thick and more flavorful on Executive Chef Juan Duenas-Rivas. Downtown photo: served. the bone with some tenderloin Laurie Tennent attached. Order it medium only.

Beverages A steak house without great red wines is like a day withRibeye, 16 oz, $38. It’s boneless, but when butchered with an extended bone, it’s called Bone-in Ribeye, 22 oz, $46. As out sunshine. Cameron’s list is filled with legends, halla ribeye, it’s well marbled, juicy and an easy steak to share. marks, icons and award winners. Most are California red It’s best ordered medium or medium well and is the only cut wines from $37 to well into three figures.

A beer-by-the-bottle list is long and inclusive. Classic that can be enjoyed well done. cocktails are $12.

Porterhouse, 22 oz, $49. Like a New York Strip, it has a clasCameron’s Steakhouse, 115 Willits, Birmingham, sic T-bone with some tenderloin attached. Medium rare is 248.723.1700. Monday-Wednesday 5-10 p.m. Thursdaythe only way to order it.

Saturday 5-11 p.m. Sunday 5-9 p.m. Parking: valet or metered street.

Braised Short Ribs, 18 oz, $27. Ribs butchered toward the cow’s chest and different from back ribs because they are QUICK BITES meatier and at their tastiest when braised for a minimum of The American Culinary Federation’s Michigan Chefs de four hours.

Cuisine Association named Birmingham’s Big Rock Chophouse’s Executive Chef Brian Henson Chef of the Year.

Beef shortage & pricing According to a recent Bloomberg report, the Livestock The winner was announced at the annual Chef of the Year Marketing Information Center predicts record beef prices Awards Gala held at the Country Club of Detroit on August this year. The main reason for the climb is that there are 27. Each competitor was given one whole Arctic Char and 1.5 fewer cows - a decline of 2.1 percent from last year. Drought hours to develop four identical main course plates. In addition to Henson, the competing chefs were Kevin Peasgood, across the U.S. has forced farmers to keep herds low.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts beef stocks CEC, Executive Chef, Bloomfield Open Hunt Club, and David to decline further in 2013, though beef imports may rise Daniot, CEC, Executive Chef, Edgewood Country Club. slightly to help meet the shortage. www.usda.gov/oce/com- Henson’s award-winning preparation included Smoked Char Pierogi, served with Golden Beet Sour Cream, Chanterelles, modity/wasde/latest.pdf On September 7, Cameron’s raised menu beef prices an Fennel and Toasted Hazelnut Vinaigrette.

W

average of 2.5 percent. According to Rewald, “This is the first increase since January 2011. We’ve tried to be respectful to the community and not raise prices until we had to.”

Eleanor Heald is a nationally published writer who also writes the wine column in a double byline with her husband Ray for Downtown. Suggestions for Quick Bites section can be e-mailed to QuickBites@downtownpublications.com.

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Selling Fine Homes and Building Lasting Relationships Anthony@skbk.com or LScaccia@skbk.com www.homesnestates.com (248)-814-8000 | 415 S. Old Woodward, Birmingham, MI 48009

BUSINESS MATTERS SHE fifth anniversary SHE, an upscale women's clothing boutique at 4076 W. Maple Road in Bloomfield Township that also benefits local nonprofit organizations through numerous fashion designer events, is celebrating its fifth anniversary this fall. "We are very grateful for the community's support and patronage as we achieve this important milestone," proprietor and fashion expert Sharon Eisenshtadt said. SHE carries a variety of fashions from casual to dressy and contemporary to designer to dress the most fashionable women in the metropolitan Detroit area. To mark the anniversary, Suzi Johnson, designer of SOUCHI knits that is sold in Aspen, Portland, and exclusively at SHE in Bloomfield, will be at the store on Telegraph and Maple on Thursday, October 4 and Friday, October 5 to donate a portion of the proceeds to JARC, a non-profit organization that supports children and adults with disabilities.

Coney Island reopens Spangas Coney Island Plus, which closed its Royal Oak restaurant on Woodward in December 2011, recently reopened as Greek 2 Go at Telegraph and Long Lake roads in Bloomfield Hills. The move to 883 West Long Lake Road allowed the family-run restaurant to re-evaluate the market and customers' demands.

“We're rebranding a little bit and streamlining our selections,” family member and spokesperson George Drosis said. The new restaurant will focus on salads, Greek favorites, sandwiches and homemade soups. “It will be called Greek 2 Go based off of our experience and be geared more towards a diner on-the-go, hence the “2 Go”, although dine-in space is available.” George's father opened Royal Oak's Coney Island in 1988.

The Spangas Coney Island restaurant in Livonia remains open for business.

Don Zavis Sales Training Don Zavis Sales Training, located in Suite 180 at 42690 Woodward Avenue in Bloomfield Hills, opened in August to provide private, group and individual sales training and coaching as well as educational workshops. The new coaching office downtownpublications.com

will also use conference calls, recorded and written materials, and Skype for training purposes. “By having a presence in the Birmingham/Bloomfield area, we can better serve our northern suburb clients,” President Don Zavis said.

The national sales training and coaching organization provides financial, retail, manufacturing and professional services.

New yoga studio A new yoga studio, Blue Yoga, opened at 161 Townsend Street in Birmingham this August.

Birmingham resident and co-owner Niki Fink said she is excited about the new studio she opened with Erin Brockhaus. “There is such a vibrant yoga community in the city already and we felt like there was room for another studio.” Blue Yoga offers classes for all levels and abilities and is dedicated to a very pure practice of yoga and foundations. “We are so thrilled with the support of the community, it's really been amazing,” Fink said.

Family law firm opens The Dallo Law Firm is opening an office at 255 South Old Woodward Avenue in downtown Birmingham that will specialize in family and divorce cases. The 2,700 square foot office space above Gas Station TV has already been renovated and principal and managing member Jalal J. Dallo said they will move October 1. Dallo said the law firm is expanding due to high demand for its divorce practice. “We have opened up a new focal point in our practice,” he said. “Clients have trusted me because I've succeeded in criminal matters and developed their trust.”

The law firm also has an office in Troy that specializes in criminal defense and immigration law, which will remain open until Dallo moves all services to the Birmingham location.

New women's store Jarbo, a new women's clothing store, opened the last week in September at 203 E. Maple Road in Birmingham.

Husband and wife owners Sharon and Cary Roth of Seattle, recently decided to open a local location when they were dropping their son off at college and

fell in love with Birmingham. They describe the clothing as “edgy, modern and wearable. Jarbo indulges the sophisticated woman who seeks luxurious comfort and timeless fashion.”

Optician travels to Peru Nicole Taylor, an optician with Birmingham's Clavenna Vision Institute at 600 South Adams Road, traveled on a mission trip to Coya, Peru with VOSH Michigan (Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity) this summer to provide eye care to villagers. Through the sponsorship of local donations from the Lions Club and Gerry Mansuy, owner of Vision Craft, 800 patients were examined, fitted and supplied with eyeglasses and sunglasses over the course of four days at the Kausay Wasi Clinic.

Taylor said she is grateful for the experience. “There is so much need, and we are so amazingly blessed to have been born here in the United States; we have so much. It was an incredible feeling to be able to go on this trip and make a difference,” she said. “I would make another trip in a heartbeat, should that opportunity arise.”

Liquid Lunch cafe opens Be Well Lifestyle Centers at 750 South Old Woodward welcomes Liquid Lunch, the newest addition to the wellness and lifestyle center. The new cafe portion of the center offers smoothies, juices, tonics and graband-go foods. “It's not another smoothie bar in Birmingham. It's a unique center you're not going to find it any other place,” said Silvio Cozzetto, who runs the center with his ex-wife Elaine. “I do it out of passion. It's my legacy,” Cozzetto said. “I like my business to be a loving family and family-oriented place people can come to and feel love and comfort. I want people to leave and say wow I've never experienced something so amazing.”

Cozzetto is a doctor, chiropractor, yoga teacher and natural healer. The Liquid Lunch cafe is open to anyone looking for a greater nutritional lifestyle or healing.

Rehab center offers care Michigan Orthopedic Rehabilitation opened in late July at 33437 Woodward Avenue in Birmingham to provide back, neck, post-op and sports injury care. Physical therapist Tim Wiater said, “We decided to

DOWNTOWN

open a location to provide rehabilitative services for the people of Birmingham.” Wiater said he was very excited to open his first business, especially in Birmingham because it is where he was born and raised. “It's very exciting and there is a lot going on. I love the city and location where I am.”

Smoke shop opens Illusionz opened at 142 South Old Woodward in the old Churchill's of Birmingham location on September 10, selling tobacco and smoking accessories to Birmingham residents 18 years of age and older. Owner Gus Schamoon said he just picked a nice city when he decided to open the store in downtown Birmingham.“We're trying to do more artsy kind of glass, including finding local artists,” he said.

Sunless bronzing bar Sol Potion Studio recently opened a sunless bronzing bar at 33668 North Woodward in Birmingham. The sunless tanning salon will offer spray tans with up to 15 different shades designed for each skin tone. Business partner Michele Major said the studio will also offer pH balancing treatments and ultra moisturizing treatments to clients. “A lot of our clientele is in Birmingham and in the Birmingham area,” she said. Major said she had been in business for about six years in Clawson before merging with Sol Potion, the creator of the tanning products and skin care line. “Existing clients love the lotions,” Major said.

“You go from 0 to 60 with the self tanner.”

Blinds store moves to area House of Blinds, a custom window treatment company, has a new storefront at 39560 Woodward Avenue in Bloomfield Hills. Vice president of sales Bill Burns said he is looking forward to adding a storefront to provide blinds, shades, drapes, shutters and more. “Our intent is to use this location as a branching off point to grow into the market. We're excited about the area we're in because those are our customers and we can assist them with interior windows and provide the best service 79

in our industry.” Having formerly operated as House of Blinds, family owned Eddie Z's Blinds and Drapery took over the business in 2010, but decided to keep the name and loyal customer base House of Blinds acquired over the years.“It has been in the market for a while but we bought the name from a company that went under, so for us it's new.”

Acupuncturist relocates Acupuncture Health Alliance has moved to Suite 3 of 1890 Southfield Road in Birmingham from Berkley. Dr. Susan Burke, OMD, has been in practice for 25 years and offers acupuncture, Chinese herbs, nutritional and spiritual counseling, cupping and more. The businesses will also offer massages in the future. “I really like where I'm at; it's much smaller but the amount of light and sky light is much better. I can open the door and let breeze come in. It has lots of sun,” she said. Burke said the building that was formerly a dental office was fully renovated, newly carpeted, and is now decorated with beautiful Chinese furniture.

60 years of Hunter House Hunter House at 35075 Woodward Avenue in Birmingham is celebrating its 60th anniversary. President Susan Cobb held a showing in late September of a historical documentary she has been working on for the past few years at the burger joint.

“We interviewed a lot of long-time customers and generations of families who've been coming and had a lot of fun with it,” she said. The restaurant was founded in 1952 and has been owned

by Cobb's father, Al Papazian, since 1982, making him the longest owner.

“My dad is just the nicest guy in the world; everyone loves him. He's been retired since 1996, so I'm running it but I still give all the credit to him.”

Business Matters for the Birmingham-Bloomfield area are reported by Hayley Beitman. Send items for consideration to HayleyBeitman@downtownpublications.com.

Items should be received three weeks prior to publication.

Celebrate in S T Y L E .

TRUNK SHOWS

Gatherings – be they family or business – are an excellent reason to put your best foot forward.

We’d like to suggest including your best suit and tie.

Or perhaps, a sport coat and trousers. Either way, count on us for classic style and savvy advice as you head into the holiday season.

Saturday, October 13 Samuelsohn Custom Clothing 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Thursday, Friday, Saturday October 18, 19th & 20th Jack Victor, Salence Outerwear 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

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248.633.2980 | 6405 Telegraph Rd., F-1 | team-rehab.com/locations/bloomfield.php 80

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Ying Vue DPT, OMPT, CKTP Clinic Director

ASK AB biow OUT

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Christie Booth DPT Physical Therapist

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THE COMMUNITY HOUSE Stephen R. Polk, CEO of R.L. Polk & Co Highlights TCH Oct 25th Business Symposium We are delighted that Stephen R. Polk, Chairman and CEO of R. L. Polk & Co. will join The Community House (TCH) as the Business Symposium luncheon keynote speaker, wrapping up the half day conference on October 25th. As the marketplace leader, R. L. Polk & Co. is an excellent example of the symposium theme “How to Work Smarter”, since their success demonstrates a commitment to achieving continuous improvement through people, marketing solutions, and technology – all structured around customer needs. Part of R. L. Polk & Co.’s success has been due to implementing many of the practices that the symposium panelists will highlight in the morning’s seminars: Smart Sales & Marketing; Using the Internet/Wireless Apps/Digital Media; and Planning for Now and the Future.

Camille Jayne

TCH Advances Business Professionals: The symposium is another example of TCH becoming a catalyst and facilitator to help business professionals be more successful at whatever job they are in. Whether you are an advisor, marketing or creative person, technology provider, doctor, realtor, educator, landscape architect or business owner – the symposium is designed to expose you to concrete tools to help you achieve a higher level of personal success. Breakfast and lunch will entail structured networking sessions engaging all attendees in a small business problem for their job, and using that as a way to introduce themselves to their table peers. It’s a great way to break the ice and network, while learning a new business tool. Each attendee will go to all three breakout seminars.

Learn While Helping At-Risk Youth: While part of TCH’s nonprofit mission is to help and bring business people together, our ultimate goal is to raise money to help educate those less fortunate. Your $100 symposium ticket will help TCH raise $35,000 to fund our three programs for At-Risk Youth and ChildrenIn-Need in Oakland and Wayne counties: iCount/KidsCount 10-week wellness and nutrition program for poverty level teens; our yearlong 21st Century Leadership program for seventh graders; and our “Experience the Arts through Orchestrated Giving” that brings classical concerts, and art and music instruction to children whose schools do not offer such programs.

THE CORNERSTONE OF NEW CONSTRUCTION – A WELL-BUILT MORTGAGE. START WITH A CONSTRUCTION-TO-PERMANENT MORTGAGE LOAN FROM CHARTER ONE. At Charter One, we’re for homes. We’re for helping more people be successful homeowners. And a Charter One loan is a great way to start. Our Loan Officers can help you secure both the construction as well as the permanent financing all at once.

Our experts can help you: • Obtain a fixed rate mortgage, a 5/1 or 7/1 adjustable-rate mortgage for the permanent loan up to $2 million.

• Lock in your permanent loan rate at application.

Sponsors Who Care to Help: Thank you to presenting sponsor Northwood University Business School; breakfast and lunch sponsor, Greenleaf Trust; complimentary valet sponsor, Dr. William J. Vasileff, M.D.; print sponsor, Royal Oak Recycling; volunteer food sponsor, The Root Restaurant; graphics sponsor, Decision Toolbox; radio media sponsor, WJR; and table gift sponsors SAKS and Epoch Catering.

Please Join Us & Have A Little Fun: All attendees get a chance to win an amazing grand prize with gifts from Sony Google Internet TV Player (courtesy of Comcast Spotlight), Tapper’s Diamonds & Fine Jewelry, The Root Restaurant, Cole’s Spa, SAKS, Pine Lake Country Club, Chanel and The Fox Grill. Register at: www.tchsymposium.org or call 248.644.5832. Come to learn, meet others and help the children all in one morning!

downtownpublications.com

• Renovate an existing home or tear it down and rebuild.

• Include lot financing or build a home on your own lot.

MARILYN JOHNSON NMLS ID# 697433 810-441-1377 marilyn.s.johnson@charteronebank.com

October Happenings at TCH OUR TOWN “Art In Vogue” Art Show & Sale: Opening Night Party October 10th, sponsored by Raymond James, the DIA juried Art Show & Sale of Michigan artists features 350 pieces. Benefactor tickets at $200 receive a collector’s tile; Friend tickets at $75. Register at www.tchserves.org or call 248.644.5832. Art Show & Sale open to the public October 11-13.

Policies and Politics Panel: October 17th, Election Year Issues; 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free to the public. Call to RSVP at 248.644.5832.

ECC Pre-School Openings: Due to demand we’ve opened up two more full time spots and two part-time spots. Call 248.644.5832 to inquire.

Camille Jayne is President & CEO of The Community House.

• Take up to 12 months of interest-only financing during the construction period.

Mortgages are offered and originated by RBS Citizens, N.A. Charter One is a brand name of RBS Citizens, N.A. (NMLS ID# 433960).

All loans are subject to approval. Equal Housing Lender. 1212

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Here is the update on the recent social scene.

Many more photos from each event appear online each week at downtownpublications.com where readers can sign up for an e-mail notice when the latest social scene column is posted. Past columns and photos are also archived at the website for Downtown.

SAKS Blast for Karmanos Institute

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1. Event co-chair Jennifer Fischer (left) of Bloomfield with designer Naeem Khan of NYC and SFA’s Cheryl Hall-Lindsay of W. Bloomfield. 2. New SFA manager Ina Levinson (left) with Alex and Lil Erdeljan of Bloomfield.

3. Event co-chair David Fischer (left) of Bloomfield with Kappy and Dave Trott of Birmingham. 4. Karmanos chief Dr. Gerold Beppler and his wife Tracey of Bloomfield. 5.

Kathy Broock (left) and Bruce Ballard of Orchard Lake with Adele and Mike Acheson of W. Bloomfield. 6. Fair Radom (left) and Vivian Pickard of Bloomfield. 7. John Balardo and his daughter Sophia of Bloomfield. 8. Howard and Brenda Rosenberg of Bloomfield.

9. Jackie Layne (left) of Bloomfield with Dr. Luisa DiLorenzo and Francoise Colpron of Birmingham. 10. Cathy Rauen (left) of Rochester Hills with Timothy Quinn of NYC and Nancy Paley of Bloomfield.

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Catwalk for a Cause benefit

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1. Event co-founder Tatum Schwartz of Marian with Erin Cosgrove of St. Regis. 2. Event co-founder Caroline Reason of Marian. 3. Jackie Meier of Seaholm. 4. Megan George (left) of Mercy and Reid Fisher of Brother Rice. 5. James Bertrand (left), J.D. Hess and Spencer Eick of Seaholm.

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SAKS Blast for Karmanos Institute Saks Fifth Avenue’s Somerset Collection store was a popular place the evening of August 15. More than 300 fashionable supporters of the Sally Gerak Karmanos Cancer Institute convened there to sip, sup and socialize throughout the first floor. While awaiting the arrival of designer Naaem Khan, people checked out the new women’s shoe salon and some (like this reporter) had their make-up enhanced at vendor stations like Dior’s. When folks settled into seats bordering a very long runway set up on the second floor, co-chairs Jennifer and David Fisher thanked everybody and drew names of the lucky winners of three pairs of shoes. SFA’s Cheryl Hall Lindsay announced the date for SAKS BLAST 2013 (Aug. 23) and the chairs (Barry and Stephanie Kasapis Zekelman). The show itself kicked off with a spotlight on shoes from the 10022-Shoe collection (12 ensembles).

Kahn’s gorgeous 2012 Fall and 2013 Resort Collections (58 ensembles) followed and received spirited applause. The event raised more than $100,000 to support the programs at Karmanos.

Catwalk for a Cause benefit Speaking of fashion, Marian students Caroline Reason and Tatum Schwartz are becoming quite the fundraising production specialists. They staged their second annual Catwalk for a Cause benefitting Christ Child House at the Fenton Family car-accented warehouse in Troy. More than 200 friends and family gathered there to watch 46 youthful models parade down the runway. The Bloomingham area models, who attend Marian, Brother Rice, Mercy, U of D, Sacred Heart, Seaholm, Lahser, Groves, Cranbrook and Detroit Country Day schools, each paid $100 for their moment in the spotlight. They wore apparel from J McLaughlin, Complex’s Roccoco, That’s Maple, Double Up, The Tux Shop, Cache, and Rachael Lynn by Rachael Damman. Figo did their hair and talents from Michigan College of Beauty their make up. The spirited event raised $4,500 to support the at risk boys of Christ Child House (www.christchildhouse.org.)

DIA Junior Council FASH BASH After last year’s FASH BASH, which made history for being the first since its launch in 1970 to be held at the DIA, anticipation was high for the Founders Junior Council repeat event. Al fresco partying on the steps had been invigorating and the Neiman Marcus runway fashion show in the Great Hall was dramatic. But Mother Nature had other plans this year. A rain forecast prompted the decision, at 9 p.m. the preceding night, to move the partying inside, not really a downer when your rain option is the museum.

Socializing in the Ancient Eastern Art Gallery and Kresge Court was a splendid alternative to the outdoor venue.

When the 250-plus Fashionably Late ($75) ticket holders arrived and headed to Prentiss Court, where a huge screen had been installed so they could view the show and the pricey ticket holders (nearly 750 at $500, $250 or $175) settled into the Great Hall, FJC president Christopher Trebilock welcomed all, introduced his board and happily announced that the event would net $300,000 for the DIA. Then DIA board president Gene Gargaro got a standing O for the success of the millage proposal. He noted that museum attendance, which is now free for residents of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, had increased dramatically in the 10 days since the vote. The dazzling fashion show followed. It eschewed the traditional finale of balls gowns. The 22 models all came out wearing T-shirts printed with the legend: “Thank you for saving the DIA”, and the crowd cheered.

Belle Isle Legacy Luncheon Things change. The former Belle Isle Women’s Committee has joined with DOWNTOWN

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other existing groups that support the island jewel to form the Belle Isle Conservancy and the Grand Prix races returned to the island in early June.

Hence, the conservancy has moved the former BIWC Legacy Luncheon to the fall. The “godmother” of the BIWC and the luncheon, Sarah Earley and her husband Tony, who now also maintain a pied a terre in San Francisco where Tony heads up the PG&E Corporation, hosted a cocktail party for luncheon benefactors in their new local digs overlooking Oakland Hills Country Club’s 18th fairway. More than 60 guests nibbled on Matt Prentice’s savories and milliner Gina Conti (www.ginaconti.com) helped many, including good sport guys Gene Miller, Ken Way and Allen Phillips, select hats to model.

Forgotten Harvest Champagne Cruise It’s hard to recall more perfect weather for the Woodward Dream Cruise than Mother Nature bestowed this year. It was definitely better than 10 years ago, the first year Westborn Market hosted a Friday night fundraiser for Forgotten Harvest. As FH CEO Susan Goodell sadly recalled, “That was the year (the power failure) blacked out everything (including the event).” Since then, the market’s Anusbigian clan has perfected, with the help of lots of volunteers, the preview event in a festival tent erected on the parking lot beside Woodward Avenue in Berkley. The event takes its name from Pommery Champagne’s generous donation of non-stop bubbly.

They are joined at beverage stations

by Atwater Brewery, Faygo and Envio and 13 good guys like Barrio Taco & Tequila who brought savory and sweet cuisine for the 650 guests to eat on the stroll. Music makers Modern Tribe with Charles & Gwen Scales took a break for Goodell to thank Mark Anusbigian and Andrews Brothers for 10 years of loyalty accounting for more than $1.3 million dollars and six million meals. Then charity auctioneer Gregory Bator got $4,900 for three live auction items, bringing to $15,000-plus the silent and live auction proceeds. When all the accounting is completed, the 2012 event is expected to provide more than 800,000 meals for the hungry people served by Forgotten Harvest.

Bank of Birmingham’s Cruisin’ Fund Drive Because Bank of Birmingham CEO Rob Farr and his wife Laurie are chairing The Community House 2012 downtownpublications.com

DIA Junior Council FASH BASH

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2 1. Event co-chairs Stephen (left) and Nicole Eisenberg of Bloomfield and Beth and Michael Fisher of Grosse Pointe with Michael Fisher, Jr. of Washington, DC. 2. Event co-chairs Jon (left) and Lindsay Cotton of Grosse Pointe and Lauren Rakolta Fitzgerald and her husband Michael Fitzgerald of Birmingham. 3.

Suzi (left) and FJC board members Dante Cerroni of Bloomfield and Trish Dewald and her husband Chris of Royal Oak. 4. Nate Forbes (left) of Franklin, Sam Gray of Bloomfield and Dan Mullin of Birmingham. 5. Frances and Kenneth Eisenberg of Bloomfield.

6. Chuck and Carolyn McQueen of Bloomfield. 7. Lauren Fisher (left) and her son Kirt with his cousin Stewart Hayes and his mother Elyse of Bloomfield. 8. Eileen (left) and Matt Kiriluk of Bloomfield and Wendy and Doug Hamburger of Birmingham.

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Belle Isle Legacy Luncheon

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1. Maud Lyon (left) and Ruth Glancy of Grosse Pointe, Mary Kramer of Detroit and Sarah Earley of Bloomfield. 2. Allen Phillips (center) of Grosse Pointe with Gene Miller (left) and Ken Way of Bloomfield. 3.

Pat McCann (left) of Livonia, with luncheon co-chairs Dorie Shwedel of Bloomfield and Marcy Hayes of Farmington Hills.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Annual Fund Drive, they figured the bank’s location on Woodward would be a logical place to stage a Fund Drive party during the Dream Cruise. They were right. Not only did they provide air conditioned viewing in the bank lobby, a festive food tent in the parking lot behind the bank with yummy TCH food and spirits and shuttle service from the Pierce School parking lot in a swanky white stretch limo, they also matched (up to $5,000) fund drive donations. Confirming the great partnership, Community House supporters flocked to the event and socialized while they watched the cruising.

Forgotten Harvest Champagne Cruise

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1. Forgotten Harvest CEO Susan Goodell and honorary chair Westborn Market’s Mark Anusbigian of Birmingham.

2. Audrey Herman and Denise Abrash of Bloomfield.

3. Kimberly Shapiro (left) Donna Grant and Leisl Must of Bloomfield. 4. David and Jane Buckley of Bloomfield. 5. Craig Maass (left) of Bloomfield and auctioneer Gregory Bator of Beverly Hills. 6. Ron DiCicco (left) of Grosse Pointe and Huntington Bank’s Bruce Kridler of Bloomfield. 7. Mary (left) and Paul Glantz of Lake Angelus with Amy and Chuck Doherty of Birmingham.

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Piety Hill DAR Chapter Reception The Daughters of the American Revolution’s Piety Hill Chapter hosted a Dream Cruise hospitality reception to support the troops and recognize veterans. The event took place in front of Woodward Camera in Birmingham. A Jeep from the Michigan Technology and Historical Museum provided a place to sit curbside while WRCJ Radio’s Roger Sherman interviewed veterans in the crowd. Chapter members and their children and grandchildren, many members of the Children of the American Revolution (CAR), passed out souvenirs flags and held up signs imploring cruisers to “…honk if you love America.” The horns reverberated in agreement.

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Bank of Birmingham’s Cruisin’ Fund Drive

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2 1. Lynn Gillow (left) and Bank CEO Rob Farr of Beverly Hills with TCH CEO Camille Jayne of Bloomfield.

2. Dr. Bill and Cassie Vasileff and Boris Vasileff of Birmingham. 3. Dave and Lisa Wilson of Bloomfield.

4. Paul and Janet Kavanaugh of Bloomfield. 5. Carol Aubrey (left) of Birmingham with photographer Gene Meadows of Royal Oak.

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Guest House Detroit Bishop’s Dinner With Archbishop Allen Vigneron as host, the 54th Annual Detroit Bishop’s Dinner began with Mass at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, followed by a reception and dinner for more than 300 patrons at the Detroit Athletic Club. There were highlights, notably the presentation of awards to Msgr. Michael LeFevre, Deacon Patrick A. McDonald and Debra Jay for their toil in the field – the Guest House mission of helping Catholic religious recover from alcoholism and other addictions. A more lighthearted highlight was provided by Dr. Ray Guarendi, a father of 10 and a popular psychologist whose nationally syndicated show “The Doctor Is In” can be heard weekdays on more than 200 stations (www.drray.com). He regaled the audience with humorous anecdotes about marriage, family life, parenting and child discipline. “I laughed ‘til I cried,” said one grandmother, remembering the hurdles she faced raising her own four children. The traditional evening netted nearly $60,000 for Guest House. For more information, go to www.GuestHouse.org.

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CHRISTIAN GROTHE Christian Grothe was recognized as one of the “TOP 100 REALTORS” nationally by the Wall Street Journal.

Bloomfield

$1,699,000

Bloomfield Hills $780,000

Rochester

$849,900

Beautiful, new construction home in gated subdivision. Still time to pick your own interior finishes!

Spectacular 1.4 acre lot in Rudgate, one of Bloomfield Hills’ most desirable neghborhoods. Spacious formal and family entertaining areas.

Extraordinary & sophisticated newer construction home-walking distance to downtown Rochester.

Premium craftsmanship & finishes throughout.

West Bloomfield $419,000

Birmingham

Stately French Colonial on private 1.4 acre lot. Great for entertaining with family & friends.

Great location, in-town Birmingham living, 3 car garage with apartment above. Fantastic value!

Bloomfield

$629,000

Immaculate, sophisticated home with many designer finishes. Lovely custom kitchen. Nearly 5000 sq ft of liveable space. Motivated Seller!

cgrothe@gmail.com

Orchard Lake

$624,900

$969,000

Bloomfield Hills $419,900

Lakefront living on all sports Orchard Lake. Custom home w/150 frontage & panoramic views. Attention to detail.

Spacious 3900 Sq Ft ranch on a 1+ acre private lot with Birmingham schools.

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direct

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Recipient of the “Power Seller Award” by Crain’s Detroit Business Magazine

Max Broock Realtors | 275 S. Old Woodward Avenue, Birmingham

SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Piety Hill DAR Chapter Reception

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1. Chief Warrant Officer Don Woodworth, USMC Ret. (left) with WRCJ Radio’s Roger Sherman and Piety Hill DAR regent Barbara Balow of Bloomfield. 2. Charlie Wiltgen (left) of Bloomfield, US Army Lance Corporal Justin J. Zdun and Ruby McCall of Birmingham. Charlie and Ruby are members of the Children of the American Revolution. 3. Past Piety Hill DAR regents Virginia Bennett (second from left) of Bloomfield and Nancy Reed of W. Bloomfield with veterans Chris Causley (left), Rick Anderson and James Hess. Photos by Doug Ashley.

Guest House Detroit Bishop’s Dinner

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1. Fr. Bob Hunitz of Commerce with Kay Browne of Bloomfield and her daughter/event co-chair Katie Nienstedt of Birmingham.

2. John Fleckenstein (left) of Bloomfield with Lou Emmert of Flint and co-chairs Dr. Philip and Betsy Hessburg of Grosse Pointe.

3. Mike (left) and Joyce McKale of Troy, Msgr.

John Zenz and Julie and Peter Kreher of Birmingham. 4. John (left) and Robert Wilson and Sis Wenger of Bloomfield with past board chair Bob Koval of Troy. 5. Ray and Anne Marie Lopez of Birmingham.

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Women’s Caring Twilight Gathering

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1. Ron Thayer (left) of Bloomfield and WCP founder Carol Walters of Milford. 2. Event co-host Judy Malburg (left) of Birmingham with daughters Jody Brinker of Bloomfield Hills and Rachelle Fitzgibbon of Birmingham and friend Catherine Wallace of Rochester Hills. 3. Annabel Cohen (left) of Bloomfield and co-host Laura Berman of Birmingham. 4. Martin Olejnik (left) of Canton, Patrick Davison of Farmington Hills, Scott Tappan and John Monigold of Birmingham. 5. Event co-host Ann Tappan (center) with her husband Scott Tappan (left) and John Monigold of Birmingham. Photos by Elayne Gross.

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Women’s Caring Twilight Gathering What began in 1979 as a small Girls Night Out event on a front porch in Milford has grown into a registered non-profit that has awarded more than $2 million to working families which need assistance with quality early childhood education tuition. In recent years, some of that has come from grants but the featured fundraising ploy is the Twilight Gathering parties held across the state. This year, one of the six was hosted by Jay and Joanna Abramson at their lakeside home in W. Bloomfield. It attracted 110 (at $100 each) for sipping, supping, socializing and bidding in a small silent auction. The early August weather was perfect for the garden party and the volunteer bartenders and servers seemed to be having as much fun as the guests. All paused to celebrate the 1,000th financial assistance recipient and wish current WCP board chair Colleen Robar bon voyage as she leaves for Shanghai.

The event raised $18,710, bringing to more than $90,000 the total realized from the 2012 Twilight Gatherings. For more information about the mission, go to www.WomensCaringProgram.org.

ORT Michigan’s Rub-A-Dub Rub-A-Dub, a fundraiser that began years ago in Doreen and David Hermelin’s garage with some friends rubbing off lottery tickets in hopes of scoring a few bucks, has become a happening party for two generations. It recently attracted the most ever people (550) who believe in the importance of education (ORT’s schools and programs in 60 countries) to Franklin Hills Country Club.

They sipped, supped, socialized big time and bid $59,015 in the silent auction before settling at tables on the tented terrace for dining on superb grilled entrees, dancing to music by the Foster Brooks Band and bidding in a live auction. Brian Hermelin has become a stellar auctioneer, cajoling guests to overbid ($80,000-plus) for all of the 15 items, including presenting sponsor LaFontaine Automotive Group’s three-month Cadillac Escalade lease and Tapper’s Chopard Sport diamond watch, to name but two coveted donations. Counting also the raffle (for a $5,000 Somerset Collection shopping spree and ABC Warehouse large, flat screen TV) and significant sponsorships the annual late summer soiree grossed nearly $400,000.

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Angels Place Family Fun Day Squeals of laughter rang over the playing fields at Detroit Country Day School’s Maple Rd. campus the Saturday afternoon that 400 supporters of Angels Place frolicked there.

They included the AP residents, their family, friends and AP supporters. The carnival games, which are always popular because everybody wins a prize, great food, climbing wall, inflatables and, new-this-year field games and an animal farm were among the favorite attractions. The annual event raised more than $55,000. AP, which now has 20 homes for people with developmental disabilities, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year with an Anniversary Gala Thursday, Nov. 8 at The Henry. It will feature entertainment by Sinatra-like crooner Mark Randisi and the Sun Messengers. Call AP at (248) 350-2203 for information.

Arts Du Jour Charity Preview Some 1,000 supporters of the 15 beneficiary charities turned out at the Royal Oak Farmers’ Market for the official Charity Preview for Ford Arts, Beats & Eats. It was presented by Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort and Beaumont Hospital and featured food from more than 50 eateries, including Bloomingham area’s Sourdough Bread Factory, Fox Grill, Mitchell’s Fish Market, Peabody’s, Schakolad and Zumba Mexican Grille. Live music and performers from the Detroit Circus enlivened the scene in the permanent market building and the festival tent.

The main event presented by Citizens Bank over the long Labor Day weekend enjoyed splendid weather, record crowds (390,000) and it also benefited many charities.

Jimmy McInerney Memorial Golf Classic Since diabetes claimed the life of Jimmy McInerney, his friends have fundraised to find a cure for the disease. The fourth annual golf classic benefiting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation attracted 140 golfers to the Cherry Creek Country Club. And, because the event honored Jimmy’s uncle Hoot McInerney, 330 attended the dinner following play. It featured hearty salutes to Hoot by Ford’s Alan Mulally, Edmund Cardinal Szoka, Joe Schmidt and Paul W. Smith. The day’s spirited activities were coordinated by Dino Zogzas and raised $100,000 for JDRF. Furniture Bank/Assistance League Sale The people (100-plus) who attended the Wednesday First Night/First Choice downtownpublications.com

ORT Michigan’s Rub-A-Dub

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1. Event co-chairs Pam Nodel (center) of Orchard Lake and Seth Rogers (left) and Scott Marcus of Birmingham. 2. Event co-founder Doreen Hermelin (left) of Bingham Farms with committee member Gary Ran and Sally Marx of Bloomfield. 3. Howard and Sharon Eisenshtadt of Bloomfield. 4. Committee members Andi and Larry Wolfe of Bloomfield. 5. Event auctioneer Brian Hermelin (left) of Bingham Farms with event sponsor LaFontaine Automotive Group’s Kelley LaFontaine and Carole Peters of Clarkston and Maureen LaFontaine of Highland. 6. Debbie Horowitz and Richard Eaton of Bloomfield. 7. Margo (left) and David Grossman of Franklin with ORT interns Shayna Stillman of W.Bloomfield and Alysa Levine of Bloomfield. 8. Mark Hauser (left) and Bill Baris of Bloomfield. 9. Stephanie (left) and Jared Rosenblum of Huntington Woods with Beth Gotthelf and her husband Steve Miesowicz of Birmingham. 10. Layne Ashley Sakwa (center) of Bloomfield with Myna Shorrr (left) and Arleen Schwartzberg of W. Bloomfield.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK Angels Place Family Fun Day

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1. Event co-chair Tom MacLean (center) with Dan (left) and Paul Christ of Bloomfield.

2. Mary Heston and Susan Hommel of Birmingham. 3.

Clare Walsh (left) of Birmingham and Claire Fisher of Bloomfield.

4. Annemarie Lopez (left) of Birmingham and Cheryl Loveday of Pontiac. 5. Jack, David and Brendan Buckley of Bloomfield.

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BBSO’s Opening Gala Marci and Marv Shulman hosted a social saluting the Birmingham Bloomfield Symphony Orchestra upcoming 38th annual season.

Highlights of the event included a welcome by executive director Dana Gill, a preview of the upcoming season by music director Charles Greenwell and guest conductor John Thomas Dodson and a performance by a BBSO string quartet. Among the 35 music lovers applauding were Mary and Pres Happel, who were also at the orchestra’s1978 concert afterglow which this reporter spot lighted in her first newspaper column. For details about the season, which kicks off Sunday evening, Oct. 21, go to www.bbso.org where you will learn that concert tickets are free for those 18-and-under.

Arts Du Jour Charity Preview

2 1. Dr. Scott Grant (left) of Birmingham with Bill and Maria Roberts of Bloomfield. 2. Carol Marshall (left) of Bloomfield and Dottie McDermott of Birmingham. 3. Doug and Ellen Cale of Bloomfield. 4. Kelsy Peabody (left) of Berkley and Matthew McCuen of Birmingham. 5. Emily (left) and Tawnya Bender of Bloomfield. 6. Craig Jolly (left) and Steven Winess of Birmingham. 7. Alicia Urbinati (left) of Macomb, Alex Cain of Birmingham, Jim Miller of Rochester and Suzy Karpinski of Royal Oak.

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opening of the charity Estate Sale which Kay, Rosemary and Steve Scheidt, Lorna Salmon, Valerie Westley and crew staged at Birmingham’s Lutheran Church of the Redeemer snapped up lots of the donated merchandise. “Two couples …furnished an entire condo in New Orleans with their First Night purchases,” said Kay. Before the event closed at noon on Saturday, it seemed like everyone who stopped by found a treasure to buy and the event raised $27,000 for the Furniture Bank and the Assistance League. Each non-profit has fundraisers on the calendar. The Furniture Bank Comedy Night is Thursday, Oct. 18 at Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle. For tickets ($40,) go The to www.furniture-bank.org.

Assistance League of Southeastern Michigan’s 9th annual Mistletoe Marketplace Luncheon and Boutique is Thursday, Nov. 15 at the Palazzo Grande in Shelby Twp. For tickets ($75, after Oct. 16-$90), go to www.semich.assistanceleague.org.

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Children’s Charities Liontown Kick Off Blame Lois Shaevsky if you don’t like those artistically decorated lions guarding the downtown streets. 2012 Liontown is just the latest brainstorm of the savvy, albeit amateur, publicity maven whose instincts for non-profit fundraising span several decades. In this case the great cause is The Children’s Charities Coalition –Variety and CARE House - and the Detroit Lions Charities. Some 125 Liontown sponsors and committee members kicked off the charity extravaganza at the handsome home former Bloomfielders Paul and Mary Glantz 10.12

built overlooking Lake Angelus. Their hospitality was especially cordial and included gourmet comestibles created by the chef at Glantz’s Emagine Theatre / Star Lanes in Royal Oak. Liontown co-chairs Connie Beckett and Lisa Payne gave a brief pep talk for the big tailgate-style party planned for Tuesday, Oct. 16 at Ford Field when the 40, not-so-ferocious felines will go on the auction block to benefit the charities. All were hoping the real live Lions will be on a winning streak then. Tickets ($100) for the roaring good time soiree are available at the Variety office (248) 258-5511.

BARD City Social @ Eastern Market The Bloomingham area natives who first staged Gobble Wobble, a Thanksgiving charity event, have formed the BARD (Born And Raised in Detroit) foundation to distribute their beneficence to deserving Detroit-based charities. They staged their first late summer party which attracted more than 500 to Eastern Market’s Shed 3. The mostly young professionals and some of their supportive parents sipped wet goods from Detroit Brewing Company and Valentine Vodka, chowed down on fare donated by Slow’s BBQ, Downtown Trailer of Flavor, and other generous donors and socialized to the music of Ben Keeler & The 500 Club, I Love Lightening Bugs, and Percussion/DJ by Jared Sykes and DJ Prevu. There was also shopping at vendors like Detroit River Outdoors, Stacey Leuliette Gracious Living, Fotoula Lambros Design, 248 Studio, ShutterBooth, D13 clothing, Made Here artisan cheese boards, and many more. The Detroit Derby Girls added atmosphere by skating around the shed. The event raised about $11,000, which BARD has earmarked for HATCH DETROIT, Racquet Up Detroit, and Detroit Swims, non-profits working to elevate the goals and skills of Detroit youth. BARD is again planning its Thanksgiving event on Friday, Nov. 23. To get on the contact list send an email to contactus@bornandraiseddetroit.org.

Preservation Bloomfield Corn Roast The visionary who saw that the Barton Farmhouse could be saved for duty on the Bowers Farm campus of the Bloomfield Hills School District - Pat Hardy – was the surprised recipient of a bronze plaque honoring her at the fourth annual PB Corn Roast which attracted 225 young and not so young guests to the farm. Mike Dul, Hardy’s successor as PB president, made the presentation and said that it would be mounted on a rock in the Barton Farmhouse garden. Hardy saluted her fellow believers but singers/musicians Robert Dempster and Tony Bernardo extended the tribute in their lyrics to the song “House of the Rising Sun.” In addition to eating sweet corn, hot dogs, ice cream bars and home made perogies, touring the barn, bidding in Mary Lou Kopmeyer and Patti Jessup’s mini silent aucdowntownpublications.com

Children’s Charities Liontown Kick Off

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2 1. Event host Paul Glantz (left) of Lake Angelus, Liontown co-chair Connie Beckett of Troy, Detroit Lion’s Rob Wooley of Grosse Pointe and Liontown co-chair Lisa Payne of Bloomfield. 2. Event co-host Mary Glantz (center) of Lake Angelus with Elyse Foltyn (left) and Roz Jacobson of Birmingham. 3.

CARE House board president Cathy Weissenborn (left) and Honorary Committee chair Karla Sherry of Bloomfield. 4. Felicia (left) and Ed Shaw of Birmingham with Sandi Pape of Bloomfield. 5. Jeff Beckett (center) of Troy with Dan Sebold (left) and Matt Shuert of Bloomfield. 6. Scott Jacobson (left), Denise Alexander and David Foltyn of Birmingham.

7. Maggie Allesee (left) and Frannie and Julian Greenebaum of Bloomfield with Judy Solomon of Birmingham. 8. Auctioneer Dan Stall (left) and Brad Marshall of Birmingham with Detroit Lions’ Rob Wooley of Grosse Pointe.

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BARD City Social @ Eastern Market

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1. Dick Quigley (left) of Detroit with Anne Strickland, Lauren Kerr and Lauren Combs of Birmingham and Parker Lynch of NYC. 2. Chris Simmons and Heather Ryan of Bloomfield. 3. Lauren Maiman (left) of Beverly Hills and Jesse Jabbori of Bloomfield. 4. Jackie Nagle (left) and Sam Lites of Royal Oak, Joselyn Swift of Franklin and Sachem Sohal of Bloomfield. 5. Amy Zimmer (left) of Bloomfield with Pam Stanton of Grosse Pointe, Jason Eddleston of Birmingham, Kristin Lusn of Royal Oak and Katie Katz of Huntington Woods.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK tion, listening to a Native American story teller, and getting faces and arms painted, guests could also tour the Craig Log Cabin and, for the first time, the Barton Farmhouse. More restoration and fund raising are required before they become meeting houses, but the corn roast raised more than $7,000 to that goal.

Preservation Bloomfield Corn Roast

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1. Pat Hardy of Bloomfield. 2. Preservation Bloomfield president Mike Dul (left) with event committee members Rob Herner, Jan Roncelli, and Mary Lou Koppmeyer of Bloomfield. 3. Shirley Maddelena (left) and event committee member Patti Jessup of Bloomfield. 4. Ann and John Kolon of Bloomfield with their grandson John Kolon of Birmingham. 5. Pam Budde (left), Bee Engelhart and Pam Williams of Bloomfield. 6. Dannielle Rendziperis (left) and Dorothy Perrotta of Bloomfield. 7. Thomas Kolon of Birmingham with his father Chris and mother Liz. 8. Franks Anatraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bill (left) and Paul Avesian of Bloomfield.

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I Matter for Kids Family Fun Day

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2 1. Jacquelyn Zamora (left) with Bob, Grace and Sheryl Shenefelt of Birmingham. 2. Dan Gutfreund of Birmingham with his harem, Roya (left), Darci and Ava. 3. Duke (left), Kent, Jack and Susan Lassen of Birmingham. 4. Phillip Vercellone and Emilia Mushkate of Birmingham with Lizzie Davidson of Beverly Hills and Charlotte Howarth of Ypsilanti.

5. Cam Cameron (left) of Birmingham, with Mackenzie Grout, Mackenzie Smith and Julie Fynke of Troy.

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I Matter for Kids Family Fun Day More than 400 people of all ages frolicked at Baldwin Park at the third annual fun day staged by supporters of the non-profit organization that helps children realize their selfworth. The after school character education program involving parents (www.imatterforkids.org) was co-founded at Pierce Elementary School by Sheryl and Bob Shenefelt. Fun day amusements included a kilted magician, water balloon toss, a bounce house and lots of games and prizes. Admission was free but food and I Matter garb sales raised more than $2,000 for the program.

Big Wine Classic The BWC, a unique golf and wine charity event that funds full-ride college scholarships for deserving young people, is hosted by pals of the late Rob Schuele who inspired it: Bart Tinsley, Tom Violante Jr, Bernie Ronnisch, Curtis Burstein, Dave Provost, Steve Ortale, Terry Thomas, Dave Lychuk, Chris Lievois and Scott Steigerwald. This year it attracted 118 golfers and 217 for fine wine and dinner at Birmingham Country Club.

Ronnisch, Randy Doran, John Scodellaro and Mark Woods were the winning golfers but all cheered most loudly for the scholarship recipients, the newest being Bailey Hulswit, a Royal Oak HS graduate now a freshman at UM majoring in biomedical genetic counseling. The supporters also love to hear the updates from the three past recipients, one of whom Christy Low, a UM grad now working in Wisconsin, even brought a donation to the scholarship fund that enabled her to go to college. Thanks also to sponsors like Allegra Network, Motorola, American Metal Processing, and Planning Alternatives, the 2012 BWC raised more than $100,000.

Karmanos Partners Golf Brian Eisenberg and J.J. Modell chaired the Karmanos Partners Golf event that brought nearly 200 golfers to Franklin Hills Country Club. Winners included Brian Eisenberg, Jeff Weber, Bill Narens and Jim Narens; Bob Skandalaris, Brian Manoogian, Stacy Slobdnick-Stoll and Jim Stoll; Rob Hanet, Rich Jordan, Brian Minbiole and John Skirgas; longest woman driver Caralynn Bockhausen, and closest to the pin Tim Blair.

The second part of the two-part benefit is the Partners Night tailgate party that Carol Ritchie and Jill Schumacher are chairing Saturday, Oct. 6 at Somerset Collection South.

Guests are invited to wear their favorite team 10.12

apparel to the party that honors Julie and Bob Skandalaris. The Partners Executive Committee chairs are Michelle Mio and David Thewes.

Plans include a strolling dinner, entertainment, dancing, silent auction and a chance to win a $5,000 Somerset Collection gift card. For tickets ($175 and up), call Lisa Koltunchik at (313) 5768106.

Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber’s Vine & Dine Nearly 400 people attended the Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber’s popular annual Vine & Dine event at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center. Diamond event sponsor Center for Financial Planning used the occasion to entertain clients in an exclusive event-within-an-event, but most of the guests were eager to sample the savory comestibles donated by local bistros. In addition to sipping, supping, and socializing, guests also watched performance painter Dave Santia quickly create large, dramatic paintings, one of which Sunny Connolly won with a bid of $1,500. Like the proceeds of a Chance Auction which raised $2,500, the money benefited Gleaners Community Food Bank.

Generous chance auction donors were Cranbrook House & Gardens, Cranbrook Educational Community, Chartwells Catering, Forte Belanger, Platinum Imagery, SeegerPeople, Zazio’s, Chateau Chantal, the BBAC, the Townsend, Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, Astrein’s Creative Jewelers, and Kilwin’s.

Cultural Council Award & Women Painters The Birmingham Bloomfield Cultural Council and the Birmingham Society of Women Painters have a happy partnership for the council’s Arts Award presentation and the BSWP’s annual exhibition opening reception. Both events occur together at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center and this year’s attracted a crowd of 300. Anita De Marco Goor and Marcy Heller Fisher co-chaired the 17th annual CC award and Judi Richards and Shirley Gower chaired the 68th annual BSWP exhibition which Jane Dini juried. Regular event attendees know that the reception, this year chaired by Betty Sylvester, also features yummy finger food lovingly catered by members of the BSWP. And because the Arts Award winner Cathy Badalamenti was honored for founding the Village Youth Theatre at Village Players and her work with children at private and public schools, her fan club at the event the included lots of her proud kid thespians and Village Players members. Among the 34 exhibition artists wining juror’s awards were Best of Show winner Laura Whitesides Host and Honorable Mention winners Beverly Booth, Jan Filarski, Claudia Hershman, Ann Kelly, Martha Zausmer Paul and Judi Richards.

Kick Up Your Heels @ Saks for HAVEN Here’s a surprising concept – a shoe section that is so large it has its own zip code! Such is the downtownpublications.com

Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber’s Vine & Dine

1 1. Lipsa (left) and Sidhdharth Sheth with emcee Jackie Paige and her husband Dave Fischer of Bloomfield. 2. BBC president Alicia Green (left) of Bloomfield and treasurer Karen Pifer of Bloomfield with executive director Joe Bauman of Livonia. 3. Gleaner’s Anne Shenk (left), with Suzette Hohendorf of Gleaner’s and her husband David, Downtown publisher, and Glee Firth of Birmingham. 4. Bob and Sharon Smith of Bloomfield. 5. Bert (left) and Ruby Weidner of Birmingham with Ann and Dr. Paul Fecko of Bloomfield. 6. Cranbrook Educational Community CEO Dominic DiMarco and his wife Erin of Bloomfield. 7. Gordon Cox and his wife Laurie Tennant Cox of Bloomfield. 8. Nancy Varbedian (left) and Paul Taros of Birmingham.

9. Greg and Melissa Peterson of Bloomfield. 10. Liz Heldt (left) and Laura Rosen of Birmingham. 11. Rebecca King (left) of Beverly Hills, Liz Sellers of Bloomfield, Betsy Reich and Joyce DeVries of Sylvan Lake and Vickie Biggers of Bloomfield. 12. Hills Fine Wine and Spirits’ Brian Yaldoo (left) of W. Bloomfield and Sonny Mio of Northville.

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SOCIAL LIGHTS/SALLY GERAK case at Saks Fifth Avenue’s Manhattan store and the code – 10022 – is the name of the Somerset Collection Saks’ new shoe salon. According to Saks’ Cheryl Hall Lindsay, it is one of only 10 Saks stores nationwide to be so esteemed by company headquarters. Though still under construction early this month, it was the excuse for a HAVEN fundraiser, chaired by Terry Merritt and Carole Winnard Brumm, that drew a crowd of nearly 100. Shoe maker Manolo Blahnik cosponsored the benefit and guests like Barbara Whittaker showed gratitude by selecting a pair from the line. Some guests also had fun taking a shoe-style quiz and one benefactor won a pair of MB shoes. The fun event raised $5,000 for HAVEN’s programs that fight domestic violence.

Cultural Council Award & Women Painters

1 2 1. James (left) and honoree Cathie Badalamenti of Birmingham with CC president Cindy Cheaves of Bloomfield. 2. Olivia Forte (left) of Lake Angelus, Ben Amelia and Lily Johnston of W. Bloomfield, awardee Cathie Badalamenti, Haley Spencer and Stephanie Sills of Birmingham. 3. Best of Show winner Laura Whitesides Host (left) of Birmingham with juror the DIA’s Jane Dini of Grosse Pointe. 4. Tim (left) and Diane Wittinger of Birmingham, Jerri Carrington of Bloomfield, Debbie and Chris Crossen of Beverly Hills and Susie Gardiner of W. Bloomfield Village Players fan club of Cathie Badalamenti, Cultural Council honoree. 5. Representatives of sponsors BBAC’s Annie VanGelderen (left) of Commerce, award designer Link Wachler and the Cultural Council’s Anita DeMarco Goor of Troy, TCH’s Mark Melton of Northville with Groves HS’s John Rutherford of Rochester Hills who nominated Badalameni for the award.

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Yoga By Design Foundation’s Yogathon Foundation founder Lynn Medow and Karma Yoga studio owner Katherine Austin are pleased that 150 people attended the Yogathon they hosted for two days at Austin’s studio. Because each participant paid $20 per class, $12,500 was raised for the foundation mission – which is to fund yoga classes for people who need them but cannot afford to take them. Last year, the foundation’s first, funded programs that serve children with autism, children fighting obesity and people with Down Syndrome. Learn more at www.yogabydesign.us.

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Patriot Week Essay Contest Marian High School senior Lindsey Pieper of Bloomfield Hills won the statewide essay contest sponsored by Patriot Week which renews America’s spirit by celebrating the First Principles, Founding Fathers, other Patriots, vital documents, speeches and flags that make America the greatest nation in world history. It was co-founded by Judge Michael Warren and his daughter Leah. Peiper’s essay answering the question: How does a citizen’s right to vote help make America the greatest country in the world? was titled, “A Vote is a Voice, Speak Out,” The announcement by Secretary of State Ruth Johnson and Warren was made on the 225th anniversary of the signing of the U.S Constitution. For information, go to www.PatriotWeek.org.

2 1. Christine Giampetroni (left) and Linda LoDuca of Bloomfield, Adele Acheson of W. Bloomfield, Lisa Petrella and Patti Stein of Orchard Lake. 2. Barbara Whittaker of Bloomfield. 3. HAVEN CEO Beth Morrison (left) and Cheryl Bowman of Bloomfield with Jane Bowman of Birmingham. 4. Fair Radom and Kim Reuss of Bloomfield. 5. SFA’s Nancy Paley (left), Maureen D’Avanzo and Patti Prowse of Bloomfield.

Hall & Hunter’s Estate Sale for Habitat Here’s a great partnership – realtors raising money for Habitat for Humanity. And for the ninth year Hall & Hunter has done just that.

They invite clients and friends to donate their no-longer-wanted home furnishings for an estate sale in their tented parking lot. This year they also hosted a pre-sale party under the tent the evening before the sale. Guests sipped, supped and paid a 30 percent premium over the bargain prices for the donated objects. All proceeds were given to Habitat for Humanity.

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Send ideas for this column to Sally Gerak, 28 Barbour Lane, Bloomfield Hills, 48304; email samgerak@aol.com or call 248.646.6390.

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ENDNOTE

Our candidate endorsements for November

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n Tuesday, November 6, voters across the country will head to the polls to vote for president, and a variety of state and local offices and ballot issues.

In Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Bloomfield Township, voters are also being asked to decide who will represent them in the 40th District Michigan House of Representatives, Oakland County Board of Commissioners, 48th District Court, and on the Boards of Education for Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools. There is also a charter amendment for the city of Birmingham.

We offer our endorsements now for those residents voting by absentee ballot. Visit downtownpublications.com for all of the candidates full answers and biographies.

House of Representatives 40th District This district, which represents Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Bloomfield Township, has been ably represented by Chuck Moss (R) for the last six years but he is now term-limited. Bloomfield Hills city commissioner and businessman MIKE MCCREADY, will best represent this district. Republican McCready recognizes that while the economy has begun to improve, more needs to be done for Michigan to flourish and grow. His key issues are jobs, the economy and education, and feels our state government is moving on the right track. At another time or in another race, his challenger Dorian Coston's ideas would be ripe for picking, for while thoughtful, he is too idealistic at this period of time when we need practical responses in Lansing.

48th District Court Incumbent Judge Diane D'Agostini has been a judge in the 48th District Court for the last 12 years, working to educate students and parents of the dangers of drugs and alcohol, especially on the topic of driving under the influence. Since 2006, she has been the chief judge of the court, and as an administrator has cut over $1 million in unnecessary expenses. We concede that challenging a sitting

incumbent judge, especially one as entrenched as D'Agostini, is akin to spitting in the wind because it's almost unheard of for an incumbent judge to be unseated. But frankly, this court has come under increasing scrutiny and criticism for how it handles first time drunk driving offenses. Challenger JOSH ARNKOFF has raised valid concerns about how minor-in-possession offenses have been handled by this court, and that first time drunk driving offense sentences are not consistently in sync with state law.

We believe he has made a compelling case, particularly regarding the lack of a recognized drug/sobriety court in the 48th District Court and jail overcrowding due to overzealous sentencing for nonviolent offenders, and we're throwing our endorsement to him. Arnkoff will allow voters to start rebuilding the 48th District Court.

Oakland Board of Commissioners District 12 SHELLEY GOODMAN TAUB (R) was a county commissioner from 1993-2002, a Michigan state representative from 2003 to 2006, and since 2009, has once again been an Oakland County commissioner. She is a dedicated public servant, committed to residents living in her district, which now, due to redistricting, includes her longtime home of Bloomfield Township, Bloomfield Hills and Birmingham. She is especially concerned about seniors, working hard with Oakland County on the upcoming Silver Tsunami, and attentive to the county's budget. Her opponent is not even remotely qualified to be considered as a county commissioner.

Oakland Board of Commissioners District 13 MARCIA GERSHENSON (D), the incumbent Democrat in this district since 2004, is passionate about her constituents, the county, and both senior and youth services in Oakland County. She understands working across the aisle and is considered one of the leaders in her party. Residents in her district would be well served to re-elect her.

Birmingham Board of Education The Birmingham Schools Board has two open seats for four years each, currently held by GERI RINSCHLER and MICHAEL FENBERG. A third candidate is also running but failed to return information. Rinschler, who has been on the board since 1996, and Fenberg, the current board president, are good stewards of Birmingham's students and educational system.

Bloomfield Hills Board of Education Three candidates are running for two open sixyear terms. Current board president INGRID DAY has helped the district navigate shark-infested waters, hiring and working with superintendent Robert Glass on creating an innovative formula to combine the district's two high schools into one, working with outside educational consultants to determine the district's needs, and helping pass a bond proposal to accomplish those goals. Now actually comes the hard partâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;implementing the plan of consolidation. Day deserves the opportunity to continue the job to completion. Newcomer HOWARD BARON should be given a seat at the table, as well.

His fresh ideas will augment the thinking of the board.

JOAN BERENDT, appointed in 2011 to fill an open seat, should retain that post. She is running to complete the term left vacant when Kate Petterson moved. Of the three candidates running, she is best qualified for a seat at the board table until the term ends in 2014.

Birmingham Charter Amendment The Birmingham City Commission is seeking the ability to acquire property over $40,00 for development use without needing to first come before the voters for approval. When the city charter was first created, in 1933, the amount was a lot of money; today, there is almost no property in the city available for that amount. We urge a YES vote on the charter amendment to allow the city and commission the ability to proceed with adequate urban planning and implementation.

Respecting merchants concerns on alleys

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e have to commend the Birmingham Planning Board for creating an ordinance plan called Activating the Urban Space: A Strategy for Alleys & Passageways which not only is creative and innovative in its repurposing of previously underutilized and ignored spaces, but in respecting merchants concerns.

Jana Ecker, Birmingham's planning director, has worked for several years on re-imagining Birmingham's forgotten spaces. Rather than just back alleys filled with trash and overhead wires, she has actively sought to create vibrant spaces filled with outdoor cafes, benches, landscaping, storesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;in essence, a microcosm of the uniqueness that we all enjoy about Birmingham. The passageways would become vias, transporting pedestrians from place to place, connecting them rather than stopping them in

their tracks, as some of the alleys and passageways do now. As in quirky and inviting areas around the world, she envisioned opening up the city from the inside out and maximizing the walkability that so many of us relish in Birmingham.

Ecker, with the city's planning board behind her, has seen success. Take a look at the magnificent Cafe Via pedestrian via, as well as the newly-redone and revitalized passageway at Social Kitchen. Behind 220 Restaurant is a marvelous respite with landscaping and benches, perfect for a book, coffee or reflection.

There are others throughout the city.

But as with so many visionaries, Ecker ran into some practical realities. When she presented the new ordinance plan to the Principal Shopping District''s (PSD) board in August, mandating in the ordinance that all merchants, be they retailers or restaurants,

open their rear doors to alley access, they weren't so thrilled. Actually, they thought that was a terrible idea because most of these retailers have back work spaces that aren't for public eyes, and who really wants to walk through the back of a kitchen to get to the front of a restaurant? Geoff Hockman, PSD board chair, sent the planning board a letter expressing just this, and in September, the planning board approved the plan, to now go before the city commission, creating zoning ordinances and regulations for alleys and passageways, but with only a recommendation instead of a mandate for rear access to businesses that back up to alleys.

It's nice to see cooperation and respect between government and the business community. And it will be wonderful to see how well enhanced the community will be due to beautiful passageways.

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MELINDA ALLEN LYNN BAKER GAYLE BARKER PATTY BLAIR MATT BLAUVELT CAROLYN BOWEN-KEATING JOAN BROWN NANCY BUCK JOANN BUESSER JOANNE CARTER LILA CASENAVE LOIS CASEY BECCA CHAPMAN RON CLEM MEREDITH COLBURN JEAN COLBY KEVIN CONWAY LANIE HARDY COSGROVE EMILY DAY SANDY DEMETRIOU CHRISTINE DRINKWATER CHRIS EDWARDS GINNY FISHER FRANK FLYNN JULIE FLYNN GORDON FOX DEBY GANNES HOLLY GEYER EVA GOREN JASON GORTON JANET GRAHAM PAM GRAY ESTER GREIG GAIL GROUT ANNA GULOYAN KRISTI HAMED KIM MINASIAN HAWES TIM HERTZLER SUSAN HILL SAL IMPASTATO SAM KLEM GILLIAN LAZAR JO LINCOLN DONYALE MAHORN VICKIE MCASKIN ALICE MCINTYRE BILL MEADE KELLY MOODY JOY MORRIS JOHN NEWMAN ELLEN NEWVILLE GARY NEWVILLE KARIN NIHLS RITA M. O’BRIEN TOM O’BRIEN KRISTIN PARENT AMY PARKER MONA PARLOVE SHONDELL PATTERSON DOROTHY PERROTTA MICHAEL PERROTTA NANCI RANDS NANCY REIZEN CHERYL RIBACK JERRY SCHMIDT LYNDA SCHRENK DANA SHAGENA SUE SIMON KELLY SMALL KURT SMITH PAM STOLER VIOLET VESTEVICH ADAM WAECHTER CHI-CHI WARD MADELON WARD TED WIDLUND DIANA WOLAK SCHMIDT BRAD WOLF DENNIS WOLF DEE WRIGHT AMY SUZANNE ZIMMER ELISE ZIMMERMANN DENISE ZUCKERMAN

COMPETENCE, INTEGRITY & PERSONALIZED ATTENTION

Bloomfield Hills $1,300,000

Bloomfield $1,150,000

Birmingham $924,000

Birmingham $750,000

Bloomfield $690,000

Bloomfield $425,000

Troy $415,000

Bloomfield $359,900

Bloomfield $349,900

Stately builder’s own home on 1.3 acre private setting features a gracious floor plan and sophisticated detail.

Spectacular great room, wine cellar, 4 fireplaces plus walk out lower level with full kitchen, family room and more.

Beautiful pond with fountain, tiered decks, lush gardens.

Spectacular spacious Willits condo with front view and bay window. Custom moldings, marble and hardwood floors, great granite and cherry kitchen. Decorator light fixtures. Large master suite with generous closet space.

Den could be 2nd bedroom.

Spacious West Troy colonial boasts double-story foyer with curved staicase, step down living room opening to library. Maple kitchen with bayed breakfast area. Large master with private bath and walk-in closet. Deck off family room overlooks park-like private yard.

Serene estate setting with over 6000 sq. ft. of elegant living space designed for easy family living and gracious entertaining. Oversized living and dining rooms, superb 1st floor master retreat, 2nd floor children’s wing with playroom. Fully finished walkout lower level.

Gorgeous 1.5 acre lot with 150' of Chalmers Lake frontage and beach. Original builder’s home with custom appointments throughout. Open floor plan ideal for entertaining. Grand foyer with travertine floor, generous room sizes, extra wide hallways, spectacular views.

3376 sq. ft. home features 2 master suites plus 3 additional bedrooms, 3 full baths and powder room. Master offers large sitting room and grand deck. Kitchen with large dining space, ample storage. Lovely fireplace in the 23 x 22 family room. Fabulous roomy first floor laundry.

Unique architecture in a prime Quarton Lake Estates location. Stunning chef’s kitchen, family room and master suite. 5 bedrooms with a possible 6th. Charming 3rd floor guest suite. Covered wrap-around terrace overlooks magnificent landscaped patio and yard.

Entertainer’s dream home in wonderful family cul-de-sac.

Updated eat-in cherry and granite kitchen. Vaulted ceilings and fireplaces in both kitchen and family room.

Master with bath and balcony. Backyard has beautiful pool, hot tub and newer cedar deck.

Gracious quad in desirable location on lovely, wooded 1/2 acre lot. Spacious kitchen with breakfast nook.

3 fireplaces. Possible au pair/in-law suite. Walk-out family room leads to new brick paver patio. Basement access from 3 car garage. Circular drive.

248.644.3500 HallandHunter.com

C HRISTIE’S INTERNATIONAL REAL ESTATE