Community Prof SPECIAL REPORT Outside The Core from page 51 mitzvah party elsewhere but works at the Showplace on weekends. The Galper Eye Center is located near Twelve Oaks Mall at 12 Mile and Novi roads. Bruce Meyers and his wife, Diane Galper of West Bloomfield, have worked in Novi for 12 years. Diane was an optom- etrist in Novi for several years before they opened their own office. "Novi has been booming and growing very, very well',' says Meyers, who is an opti- cian and vision therapist. "There's lots of new growth and neighborhoods going up." When 12 Mile Road was extended west as a boulevard from Farmington Hills, it helped connect the business to its Jewish clientele, as did M-5, which goes to West Bloomfield. But Meyers hasn't seen much growth in the Jewish community in Novi, though the overall growth has been good for business. "When the phone rings too much, we're okay," jokes Meyers. Nonetheless, he says businesses in Novi have been affected by the slowing econo- my, like other places in Michigan. Celia Gendloff remembers her in-laws asking, "Why would you want to live in Novi?" Gendloff grew up in Oak Park but moved to Novi with her husband, Mitchell, 20 years ago. "I told my mother-in-law there would be more Jews coming sooner or later. She said if she comes to visit she'd have to stay in a hotel because it's too far away" "We looked in Southfield," Gendloff recalls, "but we figured the houses weren't going to appreciate. We looked in Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield, but the homes [in our price range] were 30 and 40 years old. In Novi, we were able to get something new." Gendloff says Novi has a Homestead NEWI NOVI c KNIGHTSBRIDGE NOW GATE Located at the Southeast Corner of 12 Mile & Napier Roads, 112 Mile South of Grand River PRE—CONSTRUCTION PRICES FROM THE $27 S Single Family Homes - 2,000 to 2,900 Sq.. Ft. • Priced from the $270's • Clubhouse & Pool • Sidewalks Throughout - Walk-Out and Daylight Sites • 9' First Floor Ceilings • South Lyon Schools ▪ Beautifully Wooded Area Surroundings HUNTER PASTEUR FJ P JI°Y.m-1 COMMUNITIES 888-801-NOVI www.kniglitsbrid, : ,eo-ate.0 /41 /14%(/€ ir 4.' sovrtyors, Aut entu. Tex4leyeCUi§ine I WHOLE SLAB. J. [111041•1EP FOR 2 2 Texas Toast • 2 Cole Slaw • 2 Rice or Fries $10:.95 52 August 17 2006 iN JN LIFECYCLES corner of 14 Mile Rd. approx.. 1/2 tulle west of Novi Rd. Exemption Act, which keeps city taxes from rising if the homeowner lives in the same house for more than 10 years. That helps keep the community stable; the Gendloffs say their taxes would double if they moved to a similar house elsewhere in the city. "It's quiet. It reminds me just a little bit of Oak Park because there's a lot of great subdivi- sions, and they all have sidewalks," she says. She likes the mix of the old and the new, like the old barns that are still standing, the huge boulders in front of Guernsey Ice Cream that kids like to sit on, as well as the shopping, and the new highway access. Providence Park Hospital is opening on Novi Road in mid-2008. "One of the reasons we moved to Novi was because of the schools:' Gendloff says. "When I grew up in Oak Park, the schools there were No. 1. Now, we've got the best schools:' noting that the high school just underwent a major renovation and expansion. Her daugh- ter Jacalyn, 17, will be a junior at Novi High School in the fall. Of course, a big difference was a large Jewish student population in Oak Park and few in Novi. But she says that's not a problem. "There's a few of us parents out here that let the teachers and principals know there are Jews in Novi, and they've come around;' she says. Gendloff is slowly meeting other Jews at different events, including Leah Susskind's challah-baking session in late July, but hopes more will be corn- ing. "All you Jews who are looking for a home, come to Novi," she says. "And if you're here, please come out of the woodwork — we'd like to meet you:' E r z I I Includes carry out • With purchase of 2 drinks • Expires 8/.31/06 248.668.9005 I -(' ,i1 (/' I EARLY BIRD DINNER SPECIAL EVERYDAY 4pm-6pm 1103 East Lake Drive Ort.T1 1 1. i IV • Nt!il ACT' Celia Gendloff: Oak Park to N Celebrating births, engagements, weddings, Novi and b'nai mitzvah every week. _: TROT JEWISH NEWS Rabbi Avrohom and Leah Susskind at the Novi-Northville Center for Jewish Life can be reached at (248) 790-6075 or www.novijewishcenter.com .