Crain's Detroit Business

Crain's Detroit Business Essential business news, insights and analysis for Southeast Michigan's decision-makers.

Four years ago, David DeMuth had never run a professional tennis tournament.Today, players from around the world travel ...
06/13/2026

Four years ago, David DeMuth had never run a professional tennis tournament.

Today, players from around the world travel to Bloomfield Hills to compete in what many now consider one of the most respected stops on the developmental circuit for men’s professional tennis.

The Cranbrook Tennis Classic, founded by DeMuth in 2022, has grown from a local experiment into one of the ATP Challenger Tour’s premier events and was named ATP Challenger Tournament of the Year in 2025.

The 2026 edition, set for July 19-26, will offer a $230,000 purse, up from $50,000 just two years ago. It has climbed in rank from ATP 75 to ATP 125 status, which places Cranbrook among the premier tournaments on the Challenger circuit, and offers more ranking points and prize money, attracting players who are on the doorstep of the sport’s biggest stages. The tournament will air live on the Tennis Channel domestically and in 20 other countries.

The facility at Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills has become the unexpected foundation for what is now an internationally recognized sporting event.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/sports-recreation/cdb-cranbrook-tennis-classic-growth-20260609/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

Canada and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer tried to pressure President Donald Trump into opening the Gordie Howe Internat...
06/12/2026

Canada and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer tried to pressure President Donald Trump into opening the Gordie Howe International Bridge with a ribbon-cutting ceremony but there is a better deal to be had, on both tolls and property rights, before the span is launched, a top Republican state lawmaker said this week.

Trump administration officials — Pete Hoekstra, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — are “working to try to get us a ramp to open this thing,” House Speaker Matt Hall, who is aligned with the White House, told Crain’s on the sideline of a House session.

“They can’t open this bridge without us, right? They can’t open the bridge without customs. They can’t open this bridge without our partnership. You need a fair deal to do that,” he said.

“This was the Canadian government trying to kind of box Trump in,” he said of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority organizing and abruptly canceling a “significant” announcement planned for Friday, to allow for time to resolve outstanding issues. “The Canadians kind of leak out this story about a bridge opening that none of us knew about. ... Whitmer was doing that, too. They’re trying to put pressure on the administration.”

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/politics-policy/cdb-matt-hall-gordie-howe-bridg-20260611/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

Just a few months after the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses announced that Cornman Farms events venue would close at...
06/11/2026

Just a few months after the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses announced that Cornman Farms events venue would close at the end of its 2026 season, the historic Dexter Township property is up for sale.

The 27-acre estate at 8540 Island Lake Road has hit the market with a $3.3 million asking price. The listing includes the restored 1834 farmhouse, the red barn that became the centerpiece for countless weddings and celebrations, a commercial kitchen, historic outbuildings and the licenses and infrastructure needed to continue operating it as a hospitality business.

The property hitting the market comes about three months after Cornman Farms leadership announced they would wrap up operations after fulfilling its 2026 events calendar, saying that the economics of the wedding business in particular had shifted too much to sustain the model that made the farm so successful over the last decade. The managing partners previously told Crain’s that the decision to shut down operations came after months of conversations among the leadership team and investors.

Cornman Farms Managing Partner Tabitha Mason said the decision was driven by more than changing market conditions. It also reflected a personal evolution for the business’ leadership team.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-estate/commercial/cdb-zingermans-cornman-farms-sale-20260610/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

The long-awaited opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge is going to wait longer.The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Auth...
06/11/2026

The long-awaited opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge is going to wait longer.

The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority announced Thursday that the launch is postponed for further negotiations between the U.S. and Canada.

The bridge will not open next week, as some media outlets reported earlier this week. No timetable was given for the opening.

A ribbon-cutting for the long-awaited border crossing between Windsor and Detroit had been scheduled for 1 p.m. on Friday, Jun. 12, according to an invitation sent to an official that was shared with Crain’s.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that the bridge would “be open at the end of the week,” but President Donald Trump had not changed his position on the Detroit-Windsor crossing, a White House official told Bloomberg News.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/politics-policy/cdb-gordie-howe-bridge-opening-delayed-20261106/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

A Kalamazoo w**d business is trying to position the future of its $20 million cultivation facility as something a whole ...
06/10/2026

A Kalamazoo w**d business is trying to position the future of its $20 million cultivation facility as something a whole lot more valuable — a data center.

As Michigan’s legal ma*****na industry was launching, growers built massive indoor facilities in large warehouses with state-of-the-art electrical systems, heavy-duty HVAC and government-grade security.

But with the industry in freefall, plagued by a new 24% wholesale tax, basement consumer prices and chronic oversupply, those expensive operations have become a burden. Hundreds of licenses have been surrendered and dozens of businesses have bowed out as consumer prices continue to plummet, down to an average of just $59.05 per ounce of ma*****na flower from more than $512 an ounce in 2020 when the industry began.

Now, Harbor Farmz is pitching its nearly 33,000-square-foot cultivation facility on a four-acre site north of Interstate 94 in southeastern Kalamazoo for sale to developers as technology giants have descended on Michigan in search of land and opportunity to build the physical infrastructure for artificial intelligence.

“The fact is data centers are a hot topic,” Michael Ward, CEO and founder of Harbor Farmz told Crain’s. “With the industry where it is, there is a need for repurposing these buildings that are going to become available. We check all the boxes.”

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/cannabis/cdb-harbor-farmz-looks-to-data-centers-20260608/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

Uncertainty persists over the opening of a new bridge linking Michigan and Canada despite excitement about a planned ann...
06/10/2026

Uncertainty persists over the opening of a new bridge linking Michigan and Canada despite excitement about a planned announcement at the span Friday.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that the Gordie Howe International Bridge will “be open at the end of the week.” U.S. President Donald Trump, however, has not changed his position on the Detroit-Windsor crossing.

That renewed doubts about its launch and signaled it could remain a point of dispute amid broader trade talks.

Key supporters of the $4.6 billion infrastructure project have been invited to a “significant announcement” on the bridge deck on Jun. 12 to mark the span’s “next step” nearly eight years after a groundbreaking ceremony. The Detroit News and WJBK-Channel 2 have reported the opening date for traffic as Monday, Jun. 15 which Crain’s has been unable to confirm.

The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority has said the project team “is progressing well towards a spring opening” of the bridge, with additional details being shared in coming days.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/politics-policy/cdb-gordie-howe-bridge-opening-date-20260609/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

A New York-based hospitality group known for operating some of the country’s most acclaimed restaurants will open its fi...
06/10/2026

A New York-based hospitality group known for operating some of the country’s most acclaimed restaurants will open its first Michigan business this week.

Pine Hall, a cocktail-focused rooftop tavern from Union Square Hospitality Group, opens Jun. 11 atop the new Hudson’s Detroit building downtown. The 12th-floor venue is designed as a gathering place for Detroiters and visitors alike, whether they’re looking for pregame drinks, an after-work meetup or a full dinner overlooking the city skyline.

General Manager Kris Peterson, who comes to Detroit from Chicago, said he wants Pine Hall to be a place for everyone.

Named after The Pine Room, the iconic wood-paneled restaurant that once operated inside the Hudson’s store, Pine Hall incorporates warm wood finishes, local artwork and vintage Hudson’s artifacts, including jewelry and old department store catalogs.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/restaurants/cdb-pine-hall-opening-rooftop-hudsons-detroit-20260610/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

As 75 Michigan bank branches shutter this fall as a result of Fifth Third Bancorp’s acquisition of Comerica Bank, their ...
06/08/2026

As 75 Michigan bank branches shutter this fall as a result of Fifth Third Bancorp’s acquisition of Comerica Bank, their locations offer huge real estate opportunities on highly visible commercial corridors across the state.

Many of the bank locations are already being marketed for sale, offering prime placement for retail, fast-casual restaurants and more.

The closures are heavily concentrated in metro Detroit: Oakland County will see 21 branch closures, Wayne County will see 19 closures, and Macomb County will see 13 branch closures.

Across the state, a total of 20 Fifth Third branch locations and 55 Comerica branch locations will close on Sept. 3 and Sept. 4 before Labor Day weekend.

The closures continue a trend — Michigan has seen hundreds of bank branches close in the past decade.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-estate/commercial/cdb-comerica-fifth-third-branch-real-estate-20260608/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

A developer is breaking ground on what it says is the first housing community for people with intellectual and developme...
06/08/2026

A developer is breaking ground on what it says is the first housing community for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to offer homeownership — a feat that required creative financing to work around a system that has long locked this population out of the housing market.

A vacant field in Rochester Hills will soon be home to Auburn Oaks, a new “neuroinclusive” Auburn Oaks neighborhood focused on serving the needs of those with IDD.

It’s part of a growing trend as the number of children and adults living with autism and other conditions increases. Still, such developments like what broke ground off Auburn Road in Oakland County last week still exist at the margins within the specialty housing space when compared with other market segments such as senior or student housing.

Developers, financial partners and other officials backing the project aim to be leaders in the space and have introduced what they say is a first in housing built for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDD: homeownership.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-estate/residential/cdb-housing-people-with-disabilities-20260608/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

Detroit Public Media is making plans to break ground on its new headquarters in the city’s Milwaukee Junction neighborho...
06/05/2026

Detroit Public Media is making plans to break ground on its new headquarters in the city’s Milwaukee Junction neighborhood as soon as next month.

The plan is moving forward with 70% of its $40 million campaign goal met and financing lined up to complete the project as the nonprofit continues to fundraise for it.

The new campus will enable Detroit Public Media to bring Detroit PBS, classical-jazz station 90.9 WRCJ, the Michigan Learning Channel, the PBS Books program and 85 employees under the same roof.

Currently, the radio station and Detroit PBS journalism staff are embedded in the Detroit School of Arts, and additional employees are operating from leased space in Wixom.

When completed, the 50,000-square-foot headquarters building will include 300-seat theater studio, educational spaces, a performance radio studio that will convert to an outdoor studio and green space for community engagement gatherings outside. It will be wired for video throughout.

Read more here: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/nonprofits-philanthropy/cdb-detroit-public-media-hq-project-update-20260605/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=soc-own

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