ANN ARBOR ? Ann Arbor IT Zone President Diane Durance knows its always best to plan on holding the annual summer barbeque inside SPARK Central, the former IT Zone Launch Pad, because the weather always plays the role of spoiler.
For the past couple of Julys, extreme heat and humidity made socializing outside uncomfortable. This year, when the barbeque was held, it was Mother Nature that again damped the day and drove the barbecue inside because of heavy rains.
Earlier that day, the announcement that Google would establish its Midwestern headquarters in Ann Arbor and perhaps hire up to 1,000 employees over the next five years, seemed to overcame the weather negatives.
?Storms threatened to dampen our barbeque attendance, but with the Google announcement on the cover of the Ann Arbor News ? we forgot about the rain and focused on sharing and celebrating the good news,? Durance said. ?Excitement and optimism filled the air. The ?Google Effect? added about 40 people to our expected attendance.?
