Partners

City of Traverse City
www.ci.traverse-city.mi.us
Located along the shores of beautiful West and East Grand Traverse Bays, the City of Traverse City is a magnificent place to live, work, and raise a family.

Benzie County
www.benzieco.net
Bordering more than 60 miles of Lake Michigan coastline, hosting 57 inland lakes, and receiving 80 to 100 inches of snowfall each year, Benzie County is a rural paradise for the outdoor enthusiast and nature lover.  Click here for recent Benzie County highlights.

Grand Traverse County
www.co.grand-traverse.mi.us
Grand Traverse County’s appeal is evident with the first visit: a small population in a beautiful location, with all the amenities of larger cities. Shopping, entertainment, recreation, employment opportunities, and gorgeous views of the Grand Traverse Bays, cherry orchards, and 69 inland lakes make Grand Traverse County a great place to be.  Click here for recent Grand Traverse County highlights.

Kalkaska County
www.kalkaskacounty.net
Kalkaska County boasts 225 miles of rivers, 75 inland lakes, and 80 miles of snowmobile trails. The Village of Kalkaska is located on a highly traveled section of US 131, making this area a prime spot for business expansion.

Leelanau County
www.leelanaucounty.com
Widely promoted by residents as one of the most beautiful spots on Earth, Leelanau County sits on a small peninsula otherwise known as the "pinky finger" of the mitt of Michigan. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, inland Lake Leelanau, and the lighthouse in Northport are just a few of the county’s treasures.   Click here for recent Leelanau County highlights.

Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)
www.michigan.org/medc
MEDC helps companies locate and grow in Michigan, leveraging the many incentives the state has to offer. They provide help with expanding your business, financing, starting a business, technology, relocation, and more. References such as maps, county economic profiler, demographic data, labor information, and more can be found at the MEDC web site.

Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center (MI-SBTDC)
www.misbtdc.org/region2
Headquartered at Grand Valley State University’s Seidman College of Business, the MI-SBTDC has offices in twelve regions around the state. The Northwest Michigan region covers ten counties, with two offices in Traverse City. Small business counselors provide free one-on-one assistance with a wide array of business needs: writing a business plan, developing financial statements and projections, obtaining financing, marketing strategies, site location, and more.

Northwest Michigan Council of Governments
www.nwm.org
The Council of Governments is a ten-county public agency providing services in Workforce Development, Business and Economic Development, Regional Planning and Community Development, and Corrections.

Northwest Michigan Tooling Coalition (NMTC)
www.northwestmichigantooling.com
Northwest Michigan Tooling Coalition is a group of twelve local manufacturers, collectively designated as a Tool & Die Recovery Zone under the Renaissance Zone Act. Organized by the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce, the twelve member firms of NMTC collaborate on business-building efforts, including marketing, development of standardized processes, and more.

SCORE, Counselors to America’s Small Business
www.score-tvc.org
No longer limited to retired business people, SCORE counselors are successful entrepreneurs, managers, CEOs, and directors, volunteering their time to help you achieve the same success. They can help assess business startup needs and ideas, as well as expansion efforts.

Resources

Builders Exchange of Northwest Michigan, Inc.
www.bxtvc.com

Homestretch
www.homestretchhousing.org
Homestretch is a non-profit regional developer of affordable housing in the Traverse Bay region. Through various partnerships, Homestretch builds houses that are within reach of low-income families.

Land Use and Transportation Study
www.landuseandtransportation.org
Funded by Michigan Department of Transportation, a group of individuals are coordinating a citizen-led process to select a contractor for a comprehensive, multi-modal transportation plan. These individuals, appointed by Grand Traverse County, make up the Land Use and Transportation Study Coordinating Group.

Michigan Land Use Institute
www.mlui.org

Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center (MMTC)
www.nmc.edu/trac/info/mmtc.html
Michigan Manufacturing Technology Centers provide innovative training and consulting for small and medium manufacturers. Northwestern Michigan College Training and Research Center (TRAC) is home to MMTC in the Northwest Michigan region. They provide seminars and workshops, on-site training, mentoring, transformation planning, and benchmarking services, among many others.

Munson Healthcare
www.munsonhealthcare.org
The Traverse Bay region is the proud home of Munson Healthcare, headquartered in Traverse City with subsidiaries in Leelanau and Kalkaska Counties. Munson Healthcare is the area’s largest employer, offering high quality healthcare and specialized, advanced medial services, including oncology, cardiology, and orthopedics. Munson Medical Center repeatedly ranks among the Top 100 Hospitals by Solucient which maintains the nation's largest health care database.

NorthSky Nonprofit Network
www.northskynonprofitnetwork.org
Northern Michigan nonprofit organizations benefit from their own nonprofit management support organization, NorthSky Nonprofit Network. Headquartered in Traverse City, NorthSky provides a wide range of services including training, consulting, information & resources, and advocacy; all designed to build the capacity of area nonprofit organizations.

Northwest Michigan WORKS!
www.nwm.org/miworks.asp
Northwest Michigan WORKS! provides services to job seekers and businesses alike. Job seekers receive help with writing resumes, career information and job search, interest assessments, and more. Businesses receive the resource of a single point of contact from a human resources expert – the Michigan WORKS! Business Liaison.

Northwestern Michigan College (NMC)
www.nmc.edu
The Mission of NMC is to provide lifelong learning opportunities to our communities. They serve more than 50,000 learners annually in the five-county region of Northwest Michigan. Their many and varied programs support vocational and technical education needs, as well as credit transfer to universities.

Traverse Area Association of Realtors (TAAR)
www.taar.com
TAAR is a five-county association, boasting 775 licensed REALTOR® members. Their web site provides an easily searchable database of residential and commercial MLS listings in the area.

Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District (TBAISD)
www.tbaisd.k12.mi.us
TBAISD’s Career-Tech Center offers vocational and technical education to high school students and adults in the five-county Grand Traverse area. Training utilizes the latest technology and state-of-the-art equipment, preparing the workforce for high demand jobs.

Traverse Bay Poverty Reduction Initiative
www.traversebaypri.org
The Traverse Bay Poverty Reduction Initiative consists of a group of dedicated organizations and citizens, working towards reducing poverty in the area. Their goal is to reduce poverty by 25% by 2010. Efforts are centered on six issue categories: Employment & Wages, Housing, Health Care, Education & Training, Early Childhood, and Social Attitudes.

U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)
www.sba.gov
The U.S. SBA helps you to manage your business from start to finish, expand your business, and increase your business knowledge. They also connect you with a team of experts in your area. Services include financial assistance, contract opportunities, disaster assistance, online training, counseling, and more.