New Business

A familiar office building in the Southfield City Centre will soon be known by a new name.

The Maccabees Center at 25800 Northwestern Hwy. and Civic Center Drive will rebrand and be revealed as The Century, a name selected through a unique form of focused crowdsourcing, says Thomas Litzler, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Livonia-based Schostak Brothers & Company, which owns the building.

“We came up with the name through employee focus groups and research,” says Litzler. The new name will accompany a new look, with an extensive remodeling project to several key areas of the building planned. “John Hawkinson [project manager] put together a menu of enhancements for us, and concurrent with that, a cross-section of employees came up with a variety of possible names.”

Suggestions included geographic locations, family names, and other more generic options.

“This name became an amalgamation of all of those,” Litzler says.

The Century is an especially fitting name, as Schostak will celebrate 100 years in business in 2020.

Planned renovations will leverage the 360,000-square foot building’s already desirable attributes, making the office center even more attractive to a wide variety of employees. A tenant lounge will offer space for people to gather for informal meetings or to watch television and enjoy snacks. A leasing center will feature a showroom and place for potential tenants to meet with leasing professionals. A fitness center and updated cafe will provide places for tenants to work out, refuel, and relax.

“The building currently has an outdoor courtyard green space with tables, and we will be improving that to create an all-weather deck with outdoor year-round furniture to get more use from the space,” says Litzler.

Parking lot improvements, upgraded HVAC for improved tenant comfort, and a new drop-off dry cleaning service will round out the building’s renovations.

The Century will also feature a bikeshare station, as part of the popular Zagster bikeshare program that connects amenities throughout the Southfield City Centre and provides easy access to heart-healthy activity along the shared-use pathways of the City Centre Trail.

“The bikeshare is a convenient way to get around and to close places without having to drive. People can easily get to the Town Center or to food trucks that are here often,” Litzler says. “It’s a convenient, novel way to get around and get some exercise, too.”

Work has already started on the building, and is scheduled to be completed during the first quarter of 2020. With a new name, and new amenities, The Century will provide tenants and potential tenants with even more reasons to enjoy working in the City Centre, Litzler says.

“With prominent visibility, very easy access to all Detroit markets–from downtown to the western suburbs and Troy–and plenty of free parking and a protected underground deck, The Century really is a full-service building.”

When Ahmed Alomari decided to expand Cybernoor, the global software support and solutions corporation he leads, he knew that a Midwest location made the most sense for clients located across various time zones.

“With Detroit regenerating, and with business incentives, Michigan seemed to be a good location,” says Alomari, Cybernoor Corporation president and CEO. “We searched for office space and knew we wanted to acquire a building. Southfield seemed to be a good location for an up-and-coming business.”

In October 2017, Alomari and his colleagues selected a building on Northwestern Highway, between Southfield Road and Evergreen Road. They knew they wanted extensive renovation, a prospect that requires permits and approvals that, in most cities, can take months. But Alomari says the whole process was smooth and simple, thanks in large part to support from the City of Southfield.

“We were new to the permitting process, but once the City learned what we wanted to do, they expedited everything for us, and made things happen in days that normally take months,” he says. Cybernoor purchased their building on October 16, and the bulk of the renovations were completed before the end of December.

As a One Stop Ready community, the City of Southfield is focused on economic development by following a set of best practice guidelines to provide cohesive support to businesses that invest in the community. Cybernoor’s positive experience illustrates the depth of resources available through Oakland County’s One Stop Ready designation.

As a small- to mid-sized business, Cybernoor management made a conscious choice to join  Southfield, because it believes in the value of variety and diversity for a robust business climate. When other similar-sized companies have chosen to locate in other suburban Detroit areas, Cybernoor selected Southfield, and Alomari says this was a smart choice.

He was correct. The City of Southfield is an engaged Redevelopment Ready Community, as designated by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Because Southfield has invested time and effort into building a community-driven approach to development, prospective businesses can expect to benefit from effective, forward-thinking strategies designed to help the entire community prosper.

As Alomari continues to settle Cybernoor into its new home on Northwestern Highway, he will be looking to grow the Southfield location by hiring sales executives, a marketing manager, an office administrator, as well as technical staff. Alomari says he also plans to work with local schools and universities to seek out interns and offer training opportunities to help build a talent pipeline.

Overall, Cybernoor is looking to join an active and growing business community.

“We’re looking for good networking opportunities with other small- and medium-sized businesses, and to connect with other software and IT companies in Southfield,” says Alomari.

For companies that have yet to locate in Southfield, Alomari wants to share the message that the City of Southfield actively works to make new companies feel welcome and valued. A streamlined permit process, coupled with consistent and rigorous due diligence helped Cybernoor make the best choices when hiring contractors.

“In general, dealing with city permits can be a pain, but in this case Southfield was welcoming,” Alomari says. “This can really help other small businesses who are moving in and investing in the city.”