Life Directions ‘Tee it Up’ for Area Youth at the Annual Golf Classic and Auction on September 21st

Life Directions will hold its annual charity golf outing and auction on September 21, 2009 at Sycamore Hills Golf Club, 48787 North Avenue, in Macomb Mich.

The event will being with lunch at 11 a.m., followed by a shotgun start at 1:00 p.m. After a Texas scramble golf format, the cocktail hour will begin at 6:00 p.m., followed by a gourmet dinner and live auction.

Proceeds from this event will benefit Life Directions, a Detroit-based non-profit, that works to prevent students from dropping out of the Detroit Public Schools.

Life Directions’ mission is to motive at-risk young adults, ages 13 to 35, especially the economically poor, to mature into responsible, productive adults through self-direction. The core values of the organization are the fostering of a mission-driven attitude, partnership in diversity, balance in relationships and self-responsibility for one’s own future.

Sycamore Hills was rated by Golf Digest as, “One of the best courses to play – beautifully challenging.” For more information about the golf course, including directions, please visit, www.sycamorehills.com or call 586-598-9500.

There will also be individual golf awards during the day, including: longest drive, closest-to-the-pin, and a chance to win a new car with a hole-in-one. Every golfer will receive a gift bag, filled with a variety of free giveaways.

Prices are $125 for an individual player and $500 for a team of four. For further information, including event registration and sponsorship opportunities, please call Life Directions at 313-420-0310.

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Danny Glover to Star in Highland Park Library Film

The Associated Press

Actor Danny Glover will star in a movie that could help revive a shuttered library in the impoverished Detroit enclave of Highland Park.

The film project titled "Highland Park" was announced Monday at a news conference at the McGregor Library.

The story line will mirror the ongoing struggle to reopen the library, which closed in March 2002 because the city could not afford to keep it open.

Producer Chris Panizzon says Glover will star in the film.

Lt. Gov. John Cherry Jr. was on hand for the announcement.

Highland Park Mayor Hubert Yopp tells the Detroit Free Press the library will undergo significant restoration and the movie will be a "steppingstone" to its reopening.

Musician Jack White Donates $170k for Detroit Baseball Field Restoration

http://www.twentyfourbit.com

Jack White may have moved from his hometown of Detroit, but he’s definitely not leaving behind his old stomping grounds. The White Stripes, Raconteurs, and Dead Weather rock star is trying his hand at philanthropy.

The Detroit News reports that White covertly donated $170,000 towards the restoration of Clark Park field, a baseball diamond where White played ball as a kid. “He was good,” said Mo Blackwell, former brother-in-law to White and father of Dirtbombs drummer, Cass Records founder, and Jack’s right-hand man at Third Man Records, Ben Blackwell. “Smooth left-handed swing.”

Jack has always kept in touch with the volunteers at the park, including Deb Sumner, who recalled meeting once-girlfriend “Rene Wellzinger, or however you say it.” Sumner had been imploring Jack to do a charity concert for years when an LA lawyer called on behalf of a then-anonymous donor. White’s donations paid for restorations that include new dugouts, grandstands, and a revamped infield.

Aww. I can tell that we’re going to be friends, Jack.

Michigan Credit Unions Fuel Auto Sales

Michigan credit unions are riding high in the auto-lending market with an 8.5-percent increase in new loans in the second quarter, totaling $2.2 billion in auto-loan balances as of June 30, 2009.

This represents a record 32 percent increase in new vehicle loans from June 2008 to June 2009.  The record-breaking growth coincides with the launch of the “Invest in America” program in December which offers credit union members discounts on select General Motors and Chrysler products and low-cost financing.  The “Invest in America” member discounts are helping the domestic automakers during a critical time when credit is tight and encourages “buy American”.

“More than 200 credit unions statewide have stepped in to fill the void in auto lending,” said David Adams, MCUL CEO.  “Credit unions are financially stable, increasing members’ savings deposits and supporting their members and Michigan’s auto companies by making the loans that put new and used cars on the road. The ‘Invest in America’ program has strengthened credit union relationships with auto dealers and shown the importance of buying American.  This is not just about market share.  It’s about credit unions helping the auto industry, jobs and our economy.”

“Invest in America” has facilitated more than 190,000 new vehicle purchases for GM and Chrysler nationwide since January.  The program has resonated with Michigan car buyers as the Detroit automakers work to reestablish market share.  By offering a significant discount on a new GM or Chrysler vehicle, the program encourages Michigan’s 4.4 million credit union members to buy American-made products and support local jobs.  By offering lower rates than competing lenders, the program prompts members to finance their purchase through their credit union.  The average new car loan rate from a credit union is significantly lower, at 5.8 percent, than bank rates at 7.0 percent, according to Datatrac July 2009 data.  

 New auto loans are not the only bright spot for credit unions. Used car loans increased 14 percent from June 2008 to June 2009 and small business loans grew 17 percent over the same time period. And the momentum continued into the third quarter of 2009, as Michigan credit unions increased their market share of new and used car loans from 23 percent July 31, 2008 to 36 percent July 31, 2009.  This is the highest market share increase of the 20 most populous states.

Reflecting the trend in the broader economy, credit union savings deposits grew by 2.5 percent in the second quarter.  This represents the strongest growth rate in six years. Overall credit union loans are also on the rise with an increase of 1.6 percent in the second quarter.  This represents a 12-month growth rate of 5.8 percent; the highest since 2005.

The Race is Off: Help Erin Rose and Positive Cities Raise $17,700 Through KickStarter.Com

Dear Fans of Positive Detroit,

The website expansion of the Positive Detroit Blog, Positive Cities, has been selected by Kickstarter as its newest funding project.

Kickstarter aims to let creative people of all kinds -- journalists, artists, musicians, game developers, entrepreneurs, bloggers -- raise money for their projects by connecting directly with fans, who receive exclusive access and rewards in exchange for their patronage.  Kickstarter has received recent press from NPR and The New York Times.

All projects selected for the site are by invitation only.  It is an honor and privilege to be granted this opportunity.

Kickstarter has already help fund $500,000 in projects and the site has only been in existence since April 2009.

Positive Cities' goal is to raise $41,700 by October 20, 2009. Because a pledging program is not complete (or fun) without giveways, there are several prizes I am handing out based on a tier of pledges.

Make sure to follow Positive Cities on Twitter and Facebook. New giveaways will be randomly announced throughout the pledge drive that are not currently listed on my Kickstarter page.

Curious? I bet you are.

Click Here for more details and to make a pledge.

I appreciate your continued support in helping further my mission to create a platform for communities, starting with Detroit, to interact, engage, and rediscover the love and pride within one's own backyard.

Please spread the word.

Thank You Kindly,

Detroit Fashion Pages Makes A Debut At NYC's Mercedes Benz Fashion Week

Detroit Fashion Pages, Detroit's digital lifestyle magazine, has been invited to attend the renowned fashion event of the season- Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York from September 10 through September 17, 2009.

Detroit Fashion Page's fashion journalists, Asia Willis and Shelby Davis were selected to get an inside look of the infamous fashion tents at Bryant Park. Media coverage will include show reviews, feedback from attendees and up to the minute coverage on social media sites such as, Facebook and Twitter.

"We are extremely excited to be a part of the most prominent and distinguished fashion event of the year," said Niki Johnson, publisher of Detroit Fashion Pages. "Asia and Shelby are anxious to cover fashion week and I'm confident they will do an exceptional job."

New York Fashion Week, recently branded Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, is a semiannual fashion spectacle held in New York City. It serves as the pinnacle for fashion insiders and industry makers for previewing next season's fashion, attracting over 100,000 visitors across the globe.

Fashion shows are attended by journalists, editors, buyers, celebrities and social types. The fashion week shows are invitation-only and each fashion designer is responsible for the guest list.

Over 60 designers will showcase their 2010 Spring Collections including; Anna Sui, BCBG Max Azria, Donna Karan, Derek Lam and Nicole Miller.

American Express Launches Year-Long Partnership With United Way for Southeastern Michigan

As American Express expands its presence in Detroit as the official credit card provider for the newly merged Delta and Northwest Airlines, the company is enhancing its long-standing commitment to the metro Detroit area through the launch of a year-long philanthropic program.

The program, entitled “Travel with Your Mind,” is designed to help revitalize Osborn College Preparatory Academy, located in Detroit, through a series of transformational projects and multi-cultural initiatives. The first project at Osborn will take place on Friday, Sept. 11, 2009 from 3 to 7 p.m.

American Express will work with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, an affiliate of HandsOn Network, the largest volunteer network in the nation, to implement the organization’s signature HandsOn Schools program, which aims to reestablish schools as the focal point of the community. Throughout the school year, American Express will engage its employees, Delta and Northwest employees, as well as the broader community to perform a series of “Travel with Your Mind” projects at Osborn College Preparatory Academy, a Detroit Public School. The “Travel with Your Mind” theme was selected to help expose students to the new possibilities travel creates through a series of travel-related projects and multicultural initiatives – without the students ever leaving their own backyard.

For the first project, volunteers will help perform a variety of transformational activities at Osborn from painting travel-related murals and classrooms to putting together book shelves and outdoor beautification.

“As we focus on turning around local high schools that have graduation rates of 60 percent or less, we know lasting change will only be possible through powerful partnerships,” said Mike Tenbusch, vice president of Educational Preparedness at United Way for Southeastern Michigan. “We are excited about the spark of imagination that the ‘Travel with Your Mind’ projects will give the students of Osborn.”

The projects for Osborn were decided upon in advance at a “Design Day” meeting at which key community members discussed and selected proposed revitalization projects based on the school’s needs. Two additional projects are scheduled to take place at Osborn during the winter and spring semesters, which will be announced in early 2010.

In addition to Detroit, American Express is also working with HandsOn Network to bring the “Travel with Your Mind” program to Memphis, Minneapolis and Seattle, where similar projects will be executed throughout the year.  Overall, American Express’ “Travel with Your Mind” program in all four cities is expected to deliver more than 500 volunteers, 1,500 volunteer hours and contributions totaling more than $350,000.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the first project at Osborn College Preparatory Academy on Friday, Sept. 11 can register at http://volunteer.united-e- way/uwsem/volunteer.

CREW Detroit Announces IMPACT Award Winners

 The Detroit chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW Detroit) is pleased to announce the winners of its 8th annual IMPACT Awards.

 The IMPACT Awards are considered to be among the most prominent honors in the Detroit area commercial real estate community and recognize three recently completed, multi-disciplinary projects in Southeast Michigan that demonstrate a significant, positive impact on the region. The 2009 IMPACT winners and their corresponding categories are:

·         New development:  Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital

·         Redevelopment: The Westin Book Cadillac Hotel

·         Special Impact:  The Marquee of Redford Township


Judges for the 2009 Impact Awards entries were: Lawrence Marantette, Taktix Solutions,R.J. King (DBusiness Magazine), Helen Dennis (CBRE), Bob Washer (MICCO), Susan Harvey (Ashley Capital), Delia Rodi Barczys (Niagara Murano), and Katherine Banicki (Testing Engineers & Consultants).

 The LEED Silver Registered Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, the winner in the New Development category, is a full service hospital serving the people of Oakland County and beyond.  It originally began as a 270,000 sq. ft. medical office building/clinic in the 1970’s and was expanded in 2009 to become an 830,000 sq. ft. medical and surgical facility. IMPACT judges lavished high praise on the hospital, citing it as “a game changer” with “iconic impact,” a focus on “giving back to the patient,” and “attracting physicians and practitioners from around the world to learn about first class healthcare.”

 The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit, the winner in the Redevelopment category, opened in October 2008 following a massive $200 million historic renovation.  The Italian Renaissance-style hotel originally opened its doors in 1924 on what was called “The Fifth Avenue of the Midwest,” earning distinction as the tallest hotel in the world. The spectacular property, which is a member of the National Registry of Historic Places, now features 453 elegant rooms and more than 60 branded residences, as well as 30,000 sq. ft. of meeting and banquet space.  The judges all lauded the beauty of the Book. One judge deemed it the best redevelopment project in the metropolitan community in years, while another applauded its efforts to maintain a spot on the historic registry.  Several noted they had been following talk of redevelopment plans for the hotel since the 1980’s.

 The Marquee of Redford Township, the winner in the Special Impact category, is located at Five Mile and Beech Daly and is built on the site of the former Redford Township District Library, which was vacated in 2004 following the new construction of the current Redford Township District Library. The Marquee, owned by Redford Township, was completed in the summer of 2008 and revitalized the downtown district into a vibrant, central gathering area with an open-air, tent-like structure and an adjacent 250 seat amphitheater. The Marquee allows for community events such as farmers’ market, craft shows, concerts, plays and community movie nights.  IMPACT judges hailed the Marquee as a positive community gathering space that complimented the neighborhood; “the little engine that could” in terms of its creative re-adaption from one community landmark to another.

According to CREW Detroit member and IMPACT Awards Chair Susan Cook, a Senior Project Manager with ATC Associates Environmental Services in Novi, this year’s awards experience was particularly rewarding.

 “The 2009 IMPACT Award entrants included some of the most prestigious names in Southeast Michigan and reflected a deep commitment to long-term investment here, despite the region’s economic challenges,” notes Ms. Cook.  “Plus, whether it was the redevelopment of historic hotel properties to their former glory or the adaptive re-use of once industrial sites into unique corporate offices, the IMPACT submittals all reflected a dynamic commercial real estate approach where environmentally sound principles are in harmony with form and function.”

Lawrence Marantette has served as a judge since the IMPACT Awards were established in 2001 and agrees that this year was a challenging one for the judges.

“Given the lack of significant development in southeastern Michigan, there was a surprisingly strong set of quality submittals for this year’s Impact Awards Program. The entries ranged from healthcare to housing to higher education, with a couple great community facilities projects. It shows the depth of CREW members in all aspects of real estate development,” offers Mr. Marantette.

The IMPACT Award winners were selected from an outstanding pool of eleven contenders.  To be considered for inclusion, all projects entered for consideration had to involve at least one company with a CREW Detroit member and had to have been completed between January 1, 2008 and June 29, 2009. Project criteria was broad and included innovative design and/or construction, environmental consciousness, creative use of existing materials, sensitive land use and social/economic significance.  In addition to Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, The Westin Book Cadillac Hotel, and the Marquee of Redford Township, the other IMPACT award submissions were:  Providence Park Hospital, Novi;  The Courtyards, Ann Arbor;  University of Michigan Ross School of Business, Ann Arbor ; The Water Wheel Centre, Northville;  PM Environmental/Strategic Energy Solutions, Berkley; Fort Shelby (hotel/apartments/restaurant) Detroit;  eTitle Building, Troy; and DTE Energy, Detroit.

Detroit: City of Neighborhoods

Bureau of Urban Living


Detroit has long been a city famous for making things, and neighborhoods are what make Detroit. From Warrendale to Indian Village, Delray to Sherwood Forest, we each do our part to honor Detroit's heritage as we write the next chapter of Detroit's story.

Now, inspired by neighborhood maps made for other cities, Detroit finally has its own. Introducing the Detroit Neighborhood Map, designed by Allied Fabrication Systems.
This snapshot of our changing city is a must-have for every Detroit lover.

Available at Bureau of Urban Living
Colors: Navy Blue/Orange
$25 Flat, $50 Framed

Making their debut at Crain's House Party
Thursday, September 10, 5-7 PM
Bureau of Urban Living
460 W. Canfield Street
Midtown Detroit

Edgar Winter Takes a “Free Ride” to Detroit for Rockin’ on the Riverfront Performance

The multi-instrumentalist and rock, pop and blues music pioneer Edgar Winter will heat up the Detroit Riverfront Plaza on Friday, September 11 for the sixth concert in the 2009 Rockin’ on the Riverfront concert series, sponsored by Andiamo Detroit Riverfront and in partnership with Detroit’s Classic Rock Station 94.7 WCSX-FM.

Winter is still jamming as hard and heavy as ever and has been for more than 35 years. His hits “Frankenstein” and “Free Ride” captured an era in pop history by fusing blues with rock. He continues to defy musical trends with his latest CD, Rebel Road.

Mark “The Paz Man” Pasman, host of 94.7 WCSX’s “The Motor City Blues Project” and guitarist for some of Detrot’s top bands, will open the show at 8 p.m. Edgar Winter will take the stage from approximately 9 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.

To celebrate the end of this year’s free Rockin’ on the Riverfront concert series, Andiamo and WCSX are asking concert goers to make a donation to the Capuchin Soup Kitchen as they enter the Detroit Riverfront Plaza. Every $2 donated will feed one meal to a person in need.

Admission to the concerts is free and no advance tickets are necessary. Viewing space will be on a first-come, first-serve basis and people are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs and blankets. In addition, boaters on the Detroit River are invited to anchor near the riverfront and enjoy the view of the stage from the water.

Food and refreshment concessions from Andiamo Detroit Riverfront will be available at several locations on the plaza. Outside food, beverages or coolers will not be permitted. Andiamo Detroit Riverfront will accept dinner reservations before and after the concert and invites guests to take advantage of its gorgeous outdoor patio overlooking the Detroit River.

Convenient parking is available for $5 per vehicle at the GM surface lot at the intersection of St. Antoine and Atwater, adjacent to the GM Renaissance Center.

Hospital Food Goes Healthy and Local

Michelle Martinez
Crain's Detroit

For decades, the food that hospitals served their patients and visitors was a practice in irony. Hospitals advised patients to change their diet to help treat chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, but served up bland, salt- and fat-laden foods bedside or in their cafeterias.

But new food programs are allowing hospitals to practice what they preach, serving fresh, healthy and — increasingly — locally sourced foods to patients, visitors and even staff.

The change is a chance for hospitals and Michigan communities to get “multiple outcomes,” said Michael Hamm, a professor of sustainable agriculture at Michigan State University, “a public-health impact, an economic impact and a land-preservation impact.”

Hamm in March co-wrote an article in the Journal of Hunger and Environmental Nutrition that estimated if Michigan residents ate the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables and bought them from local, seasonal sources, it could add nearly 2,000 jobs and $200 million to the state's economy.

Henry Ford West Bloomfield Executive Chef Frank Turner puts it another way: If more residents were to spend “just $10 a week on locally grown food,” tens of millions of dollars would be put back into the state's economy, he said.

“We want to set the example for the community,” he said.

Henry Ford Health System isn't the only one. Locally, Warren-based St. John Health, Detroit-based Detroit Medical Center and Royal Oak-based William

Beaumont Hospitals are all finding new ways to offer healthy choices to everyone who passes through their doors. The Michigan Health & Hospitals Association last November started a campaign to get hospitals to eliminate trans fats from their vending machines, cafeterias and patient menus by January.

Nationally, Arlington, Va.-based Health Care Without Harm, a global coalition of health care providers, labor unions and environmental groups challenged hospitals to overhaul their food systems to healthier and locally sourced models.

That group in June hosted its FoodMed conference in Detroit, addressing strategies and benefits of instituting a healthy, sustainable food plan in health care settings.

More than 250 hospitals nationwide have signed that organization's pledge, Henry Ford West Bloomfield and Chelsea Community Hospital among them.

The practices are more important to recession-worn residents, who may want to support Michigan economies, and to those more interested in where their food comes from in light of recent peanut butter, spinach and meat recalls, said Elaine Brown, executive director of Michigan Food and Farming Systems, a nonprofit that promotes sustainable agriculture.

In 2003, there were 90 farmers markets statewide, she said. Today, there are 200 — including weekly markets at Henry Ford West Bloomfield, Beaumont Hospitals and St. John Health.

Henry Ford West Bloomfield President and CEO Gerard van Grinsven sees it, too.

The healthy and sustainable communities concept is “the whole theme behind what we're doing,” he said.

Van Grinsven in 2006 was hired to head Henry Ford's new West Bloomfield hospital from his post as vice president and area general manager of the Chevy Chase, Md.-based Ritz Carlton Co. The hospital has become a lab for the seven-hospital system, where holistic health care and fresh, local food preparation are tested for systemwide viability.

Van Grinsven tapped Matt Prentice, the chef behind such restaurants as Coach Insignia and Shiraz, and Prentice's executive chef, Frank Turner, to develop menus that included fresh local foods. Instead of institutional food workers, the pair hired 20 chefs, half of them culinary students, to serve about 800 meals a day in the hospital.

West Bloomfield cooks patient meals on demand from a large menu. It has no deep fryers or freezers. Its projected $100,000 annual food spending goes mainly to regional farms and vendors such as Maple Creek Farms, a community-supported organic farm in Yale, in the Thumb; or Chef's Garden, an organic farm in Huron, Ohio.

A demonstration kitchen is on hand for healthy-cooking classes, drawing residents each week for classes such as vegetarian cuisine or healthy tailgate food, featuring Michelle Bommarito, a TV chef who has appeared on TV with Martha Stewart and on the Food Network.

Henry's, the hospital café, serves up dishes such as carrot bisque and salmon burgers to about 200 people a day who show up at the hospital for no other reason than to eat, van Grinsven said.

Two months ago, a farmers market was added, drawing another 200 to 300 people to the hospital every Wednesday.

Not everyone is throwing out their fryers, but other local hospitals are moving toward more healthy offerings.

Beaumont Hospitals has been free of trans fats since May, said Maureen Husek, director of nutrition and retail services. The three-hospital system's “My Healthier Choice” program labels cafeteria items that meet American Heart Association guidelines, Husek said.

Detroit Medical Center's Harper University Hospital labels each cafeteria item with its nutritional content and provides the Weight Watchers “point count” of certain items, said Thomas Malone, hospital president and CEO.

Signs posted around the hospital indicate calories burned by taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or walking around the DMC's Midtown “quad.”

St. John is trans-fat free and is revamping its cafeteria menu to be heart healthy, said Dina Ciaffone, a district manager with global food service company Sodexo Inc. posted at St. John and a former director of the system's Detroit Riverview hospital. The system has rewritten its patient menus along similar guidelines and alerts patients when they're butting up against dietary restrictions with each meal.

St. John has bought from local growers and vendors for the past 15 years, Ciaffone said, spending about $2.3 million a year for produce and dairy products alone to prepare nearly 4 million meals for patients and visitors a year.

“We really believe that the less distance food travels, the fresher it's going to be, and (it) cuts down on emissions,” she said.

The trend isn't happening only at hospitals. Skilled nursing homes are overhauling their food plans as well.

Nabil Hawatmeh, executive director of food and nutritional services at MediLodge of Sterling Heights, swapped the bland gravy-colored entrees being served several years ago for what he calls “upscale dining” options.

Now the residents are served from a colorful buffet that features five homemade entrees, healthy panini sandwiches, and fresh fruit and salads.

If they get hungry during the night, they can order room service from a 20-item menu, Hawatmeh said.

Medilodge relies on Medicare and Medicaid for the majority of its revenue, but Hawatmeh said the changes have made the Sterling Heights location a coveted place for prospective residents and drawn residents out of their rooms to socialize more.

The $1 to $2 in extra food costs per patient per day (the industry average is about $6 or $7, Hawatmeh said) is offset by creating efficiencies in other areas, or accepted by the administration because of the program's benefits.

“The No. 1 concern people have when they come here is the food,” he said.

Health care industry food giants are taking notice.

“We've definitely changed our buying patterns to accommodate (the increased demand),” said Diana Bott, senior director of multiunit and health care sales for Sysco Detroit, the local branch of Houston-based Sysco Corp., boosting local produce buys and increasing business with companies such as Cadillac Coffee and Achatz Handmade Pie Co.

But making paying cafeteria customers or wary patients warm up to healthier food choices has been a hurdle, Ciaffone said. DMC's Malone agrees.

Hospitals depend on revenue from cafeterias and retail food chains as part of their budget, Malone said. The biggest money producer on Wednesdays at Harper Hospital's cafeteria? Fried chicken wings.

Offsetting cost is another issue.

National healthy-food model Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente started buying local and healthy foods for its hospitals in 2006 and saw an increase in its total food spending of about 1 percent, said Jan Sanders, director, national nutrition services procurement and supply. But it offset that cost with measures such as buying in-season produce, reducing the number of times high-cost items appear on hospital menus, or replacing beef or poultry with vegetarian options.

Preston Maring, the Kaiser Permanente physician who spearheaded the system's farmers markets and healthy-food programs, said most of its programs paid for themselves and did boost the amount of fresh fruits and veggies hospital visitors and staff ate, he said.

“It's difficult to say that someone healed a little bit faster because they had healthy food on their tray, but we do know that increasing overall consumption of fruit and vegetables is good for people and puts money into local farm economies.”

Van Grinsven said that a condition of West Bloomfield's radical approach was that it didn't cost more than conventional food service might.

The common-sense approach to serving patients food they want to eat when they want to eat has cut down on waste, Taylor said.

“You could feed a village from the amount of food hospitals throw away,” van Grinsven said.

Revenue from Henry's Café, cooking classes and the upcoming culinary institute will go to offset any increase from buying organic or local food, he said, but added that hard numbers on the cost of West Bloomfield's expansive food programs won't be tallied until the end of the year.

The hospital opened in March and has only 113 beds of its eventual 300 on line, with 192 scheduled to be available by the end of the year.

But early, small indicators are pointing in the right direction. Henry's Café is grossing $5,000 a day, matching early projections. They aim to double it when they expand their dinner service later this year, said Sven Gierlinger, hospitality services administrator at West Bloomfield.