The area faces great pressure to grow from the inside and the outside. The world s largest pharmaceutical company in the world, Pfizer, recently bought Warner-Lambert in Ann Arbor, adding to the pressure to grow. The Chamber also has several programs that look to mesh both the old and new economies, but the biggest issue facing local business is employment, and the lack of employees at all levels. Jim Kosteva, the University of Michigan s Director of Community Relations discussed the partnerships that the university forges with the community, calling the relationship between the two as a marriage where divorce or separation is not an option. The university is active on the boards of the Chamber of Commerce and the Convention and Visitors Bureau, and hosts thousands of students during the summer for its athletic camps.
Many informal meetings provide an open forum for various town-gown issues.
The university and the city have partnered in such issues as parking, transportation, research, roads, recycling, and more. University Research Marvin Parnes, the Executive Director for the Division of Research, Development, and Administration, told the group about the importance that university research plays in a community. UM has been ranked second in federal research dollars for several years. The university supports its faculty and helps with inventions and discoveries, while faculty members are permitted four days per month to serve as consultants in the community, allowing them to feel more connected to the world in which they teach. The group also heard about the partnerships between the city, the Downtown Development Authority, and the Transportation Authority on issues such as parking and transportation.