Fourth Quarter Regional Business Sentiment
Traverse Connect conducted its fourth quarter Business Growth Barometer Survey of investor and member businesses, aimed at providing a snapshot of our regional business sentiment, outlook, and current challenges.
Eighty-seven percent of respondents agree that the Grand Traverse region is a good place to grow their business, and 80% agree that the region is improving. This is a minor decrease from the third quarter. Compared to late summer and early fall, the fourth quarter showcased the uncertainty that some feel around inflation, the local housing market, and continued challenges in staffing.
Traverse Connect’s accomplishments for the fourth quarter of 2024 are summarized on the second page, with advancement on a diverse set of strategic initiatives focused on attracting talent to Northwest Michigan and advocating for small businesses’ concerns with the Earned Sick Time and minimum wage laws going into effect in February.
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News from Traverse Connect that you might have missed.
→ As Silicon Valley is synonymous with information technology, so will Traverse City be to freshwater technology. That’s the ultimate ambition behind the Freshwater Research & Innovation Center, which recently held its first board meeting as a formally-constituted nonprofit.
→ Looking for a fun way to spend Valentine’s Day, whether with a date, your friends, or on your own? Join Michigan’s Creative Coast for Valentine’s Day at the Interlochen Arts Academy ballet performance and the Fresh Coast Quarterly Club!
→ The Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance offered testimony yesterday at the Michigan Senate’s Regulatory Affairs Committee hearing on SB 15. Watch the testimony and learn more about the pending changes to earned sick time and minimum wage.
→ Traverse Connect is seeking input from its Grand Traverse Area Manufacturing Council (GTAMC) members about your business needs and priorities to ensure that we’re supporting your growth. Please consider taking this brief survey.
→ Manufacturers are invited to join industry leaders, defense experts, and small business innovators at the Northern Michigan Defense Conference on March 6 to explore the vast opportunities within the defense and federal contracting sectors.
Our midweek reading list.
→ Northwestern Michigan College has opened registration for the Great Lakes Blue Tech Challenge, a contest seeking “technology-based innovation” to help solve issues facing the Great Lakes and to be part of the new Freshwater Research & Innovation Center. Watch more here.
→ Cherry Capital Airport announced in 2024 its plan to add four to five more gates in a new concourse and is already discussing what will happen next.
→ While the recent executive order has impacted some of the numerous Traverse City organizations with DEI programs, others are outside the mandate’s reach and remain committed to DEI principles.
→ This winter, 20Fathoms is expanding its free educational offerings to help launch more startups, including a series of breakfast workshops, coaching programs in Elk Rapids and Petoskey, grant programs, and more.
→ Munson Healthcare has partnered with Harm Reduction Michigan to stock and distribute 25 Narcan Distribution Boxes at various points throughout the region to provide free and anonymous life-saving medicine.
→ Grand Traverse County commissioners provided the last piece of a funding puzzle for Safe Harbor with the aim to expand its services beyond the current October-to-April season.
→ TCAPS is now accepting applications for candidates to fill the remainder of Trustee Andrew Raymond’s term, which must be submitted by February 26. Raymond resigned this week after being named CEO of Kalkaska Memorial Health Center.
→ The Community Development Coalition of Northwest Michigan came together a few years ago with an ambitious goal to improve the quality of life in five rural counties of northwest lower Michigan.
→ Owner of Peace Love and Little Donuts Kristina Schnepf has started a new entity called Green Door Folk School coming this spring with a series of 10 classes from quilting to improv comedy to woodworking.
→ Investors receive a discount on personal home, auto, & umbrella coverage with Auto Owners Insurance. Investors also receive a discount on business auto, property, liability, and umbrella coverage. As any small business owner knows, a little savings goes a long way!
Traverse Connect’s upcoming in-person and virtual events.
February 14 from 5:30 to 9:00 p.m.
March 6 from 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Traverse City Restaurant week is right around the corner! From February 23 through March 1, local eateries across Traverse City and Grand Traverse County will offer special multiple-course prix fixe menus. It’s the perfect opportunity to explore Traverse City’s distinctive food culture, cultivated by talented culinary experts and prolific producers. 
