Downtown newsmagazine is pleased to announce that Gigi Nichols is officially taking over our coverage of the non-profit social scene effective this week. We will be refreshing our presentation of upcoming events as we make this transition, including renaming our events coverage as Society Notebook. Nichols column will appear online weekly and in print each month. Nichols began her career in publishing as a merchandising coordinator for SEVENTEEN Magazine in New York. Later, h

Cash and several personal items were stolen from an unlocked pickup truck parked in the 100 block of W. Highland Drive, Bloomfield Township police said on Monday, February 18. Bloomfield Township officers responding on February 8 to the report of a theft in the area spoke with the victim who said an unknown person entered his Ford F-150 sometime between Wednesday, February 6, and Friday, February 8, and stole an undetermined amount of cash and personal items. The truck was un

A former Birmingham-based financial advisor, who pled guilty last year to embezzling over $3.7 million from his clients at UBS Financial Services, was sentenced on Tuesday, February 12, to nine years in prison. John Maccoll, 65, of Rochester Hills, pled guilty in September to wire fraud in relation to the theft of money from his clients at the Birmingham-based UBS office. Maccoll advised some of his clients at UBS to wire transfer money or write checks to his personal account

Birmingham police are investigating a theft of packages delivered on the morning of Saturday, February 16, to a home in the 900 block of Oxford Drive. Police said the resident contacted police about 9 a.m. to report two packages stolen from their porch. The value and contents of the packages were not released. Investigators said there were no suspects or witnesses associated with the case.

An Auburn Hills man was arrested on Thursday, February 14, in connection with a pair of thefts in January from a Bloomfield Township pharmacy in the 42000 block of Woodward Avenue, police said. Bloomfield Township police said the alleged thefts occurred on January 14 and January 21 from Rite Aid, 42931 Woodward. The store manager compared video footage of the incidents and determined the man was the same person responsible for both incidents. Police through their own investig

Two 19-year-old men were arrested on Friday, February 15, by Bloomfield Township police in connection with theft and credit card fraud stemming from a series of thefts at several gym locker rooms in the area, police said. Bloomfield Township police said the investigation included the Troy Special Investigations Unit, which together said the men were observed stealing personal items from multiple LA Fitness locations, including the Bloomfield Township location at 2050 Telegrap

Pernoi, an Italian hybrid meaning “for us,” will take on its own definition as noted chefs Luciano DelSignore and Takashi Yagihashi join forces to create a unique fine dining restaurant in downtown Birmingham in the former Cafe Via location that will be their dream restaurant, and ultimately, a dream destination for high-end diners. The restaurant, located at 310 E. Maple Road, closed in March 2018. DelSignore, owner of white tablecloth Italian restaurant Bacco, in Southfield

The Bloomfield Township Planning Commission on Tuesday, February 19, gave unanimous support for a site plan and special land use approval for Sushi Hana, 43656 Woodward Avenue, in order to clear the way for the restaurant to obtain a Class C liquor license. The restaurant, located in a strip mall plaza at Woodward and Millington Boulevard just south of Square Lake Road, is planning to transfer an existing liquor license from the Golden Crown Restaurant, 43239 Woodward Avenue,

An ordinance amendment proposed in Bloomfield Township would ease requirements for homeowners planning to install outdoor patio upgrades, such as masonry walls, outdoor kitchenettes and gas fire pits. Under the township's current zoning ordinance, all landscape elements associated with a patio or uncovered terraces must be approved by the township's zoning board of appeals (ZBA). All such structures must be at least 16 feet from all lot lines, or acquire a variance from the Z

While it doesn't yet feel like spring, it will be soon, and that means the trees are nearly ready to be tapped and used to make maple syrup, and everyone in the community is invited to participate at the E.L. Johnson Nature Center on Franklin Road in Bloomfield Township. Making maple syrup is a traditional rite of spring, and the E.L. Johnson Nature Center, part of Bloomfield Hills Schools, has a tapping program that is one-of-a kind, showing participants the entire process,