We hope everyone is well-rested from the Thanksgiving break. Now it's time to play catch-up with our weekly roundup:

Crain's: Quicken may lead others downtown

Dan Gilbert said he has verbal commitments from three companies to move from the suburbs to downtown Detroit since the formal announcement was made last week that Quicken Loans Inc. would move its headquarters and 4,000 employees from Livonia.

"It was a chicken-or-egg thing. Now that we've gone public with it, and the land is under contract, it's become real. People are ready to commit, now," said Gilbert, who declined to name the firms. "Detroit's comeback doesn't have to be a 30- or 40-year deal if you have some synergy and get people together and on track."

Freep: Promotions firm ePrize considers move to Detroit

The Pleasant Ridge interactive promotions agency ePrize said it, too, is considering moving its headquarters and 300 employees to downtown Detroit, said founder and Chief Executive Officer Josh Linkner.

“We will only do it if we are able to provide team members and extraordinary experience,” Linkner said, adding that it will evaluate the possibility seriously within the next year.

“Part of success is based on creating an environment,” he said. “The last thing we want to do is stifle it.”

Linkner said Quicken’s move and other business developments are creating a tipping point and that Detroit is well on its way to becoming “a vibrant downtown area with art galleries, shopping and a wonderful sense of rich and open environment.”

Rapid Growth: Rising River House project spurs 1,000-plus jobs in downtown Grand Rapids

By the time construction of the 34-level River House Condominiums is completed at the end of next year, a big chunk of the $85 million investment will have gone into the pockets and bank accounts of over 1,000 local workers. Steady employment is the bonus for many of those contractors since the project broke ground in June 2006.

Approximately 30 subcontractors provided work crews for pouring concrete, installing mechanical and electrical equipment, setting studs, hanging sheetrock, plumbing, HVAC installation, elevator installation, masonry, and more. An estimated 95 percent of those workers are from the Grand Rapids area.

In addition, Indianapolis-based ASI, Ltd. hired some 20 local laborers to work with its three-person crew to install the specialty glass facade. The ASI employees moved to Grand Rapids three months ago to begin work, some brought their families with them, and they'll remain here through Spring 2008.

"The majority of the hourly wage is coming right back into the local economy," says Matt Larsen, project manager for Wolverine Construction Management, the construction manager for River House. "Even the guys out of Indianapolis are spending their money on rent and other things here in Grand Rapids."

Remember: Housing = Jobs.

Freep: Venture capital conference is one step in shedding also-ran label

In the world of venture capital for new and growing firms, Michigan is known as a flyover state, a place bypassed by the big money people doing deals in Silicon Valley, Boston and other entrepreneurial hot spots on the West and East coasts.

Efforts to shed that rap will get a boost soon, now that key Michigan economic development officials have won a bid to host the 2008 conference of the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds, Sept. 10-12 in Detroit. The group's board of directors will conduct three quarterly meetings here before that, the first including a private dinner event Dec. 17 at Seldom Blues restaurant.

This is a big deal, because the NASVF annual conference is expected to draw 300 investment and economic growth professionals from about 45 states and a dozen countries to Detroit.

Most of these professionals know about the Michigan of large, no-growth manufacturing companies. Many don't know as much about Detroit's new casino-hotels and riverfront development, or Michigan's new programs to help launch and grow firms in alternative energy, life sciences and other sectors.

Freep: Aerotropolis seen as key to reviving Detroit area

As metro Detroit struggles to renew and rebuild its economy, one goal has emerged as pivotal -- the creation of a new economic hub around Metro and Willow Run airports.

Known as an aerotropolis, or airport city, the goal foresees a day when tens of thousands of people would work in shipping, logistics, air cargo and other businesses linked to the global economy by convenient air transportation.

The goal of an aerotropolis remains elusive and faces daunting challenges. But Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, who champions the plan, says it's critical to the region's future.

"We've got an economy that's been hit really hard. We've got to start doing things outside the box," he said. "Look at what Roosevelt did. He started a number of programs to jump-start the economy and spur economic growth. We cannot be afraid of failure."