RegalTDP

Dammit. Jinxed it

Posting this here because we’ve brought up crime in this thread as having an impact on businesses. Homicide is down nationwide so far this year compared to 2023. Grand Rapids is on the list, with a big fat zero in homicides so far. Even Detroit has a pretty sharp decrease. https://www.wsj.com/us-news/murder-rates-down-new-york-san-francisco-philadelphia-508b6855?st=2fkt047y43fn97i&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

I don't think it's an ad but it REALLY reads like ChatGPT wrote it. When I see sentences like: ...I'm like, OK, yes those are words strung together to form a proper sentence, but it's still "off" in a way I can't explain. I mean, enterprise tech? That doesn't answer the question of why they chose to highlight GR, but it’s Forbes, after all. I'm pretty sure we've joked on this thread before about how Forbes has a weird crush on our city.

I agree 100% that location is key but I also believe Woodland understood it would have to fight to stay relevant and they have been doing an outstanding job. Breton Village too. It didn't have to turn out this way. When you think about Knapp's Corner, that whole area sprang up to be accessible to the upper-income families in Forest Hills; 25 years later it has not been built out even close to its potential. I remember 15 years ago they even thought of putting a third mall there, and nothing happened. I'm not ready to pull the plug on Rivertown yet; it will not be the most fashionable place to be, but it will still be viable. It serves a growing area, and it still has a lot of stores. To me, a big problem is that they designed it with six freaking anchors and all the big department stores are in trouble. Who knows for how much longer we'll even have JC Penney and Macy's, despite their ever-desperate efforts to bring customers in. I don't think they'll ever be able to keep all six anchors filled, and if they're going to redesign the mall I would start with knocking some of them down.

Woodland Mall twisting the knife.... 1st Lego Store in West MI (and 2nd in Michigan, after Somerset Collection) coming this Summer. https://www.instagram.com/p/C5g8mvRxBHY/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Not only are those dumb names for sports teams, they also make life more confusing! I once wound up going to an LA Galaxy II game because our friends bought the wrong tickets by accident. It's an easy mistake to make when purchasing your tickets online, especially if you don't know about the farm system.

Since we got sushi on the mind, I think GR is ready for conveyor belt sushi, which IMO is the ultimate sushi experience, and needs to be a bigger thing in the US. I think Kura is the biggest US chain, and they only have a few locations (but they have 2 in Detroit).

Question for the civil engineers in this forum: Is there an infrastructural reason for putting retention ponds by the road? Or is it an aesthetic landscaping choice? Seems like a lot of large suburban developments do this. Or maybe Wyoming's zoning won't allow for commercial developments there. I agree with GR8Scott as I would think there's a lot of traffic at this intersection coming up from M-6.

Westsiders coming for Joe after that statement:

Don't you mean bicentennial? By "founding" you're referring to Campau settling here in 1826 right? Predictions. Everyone always beats me to the good predictions so I don't have a lot. I don't think I had any last year. --Corewell will throw a hissy fit when they don't get their way. They'll spread rumors that they're thinking of making Southfield their HQ and Monroe Ave a "regional center." They'll start airing ads about how much they love GR and being the area's top employer and so people better appreciate it. They'll tear down the buildings in the middle of the night and dare the city to do something about it. In the end I think they will get their parking (I hope to be wrong). --More of a long-term prediction than just 2024, but longer term KCM's spotlight in the NYT was just the beginning. Good Asian food is moving into the midwest and GR is going to keep getting some more great options. --Dave's Hot Chicken will go in Breton Village or 28th Street. I'd love to see it on Wealthy or Bridge though. --Concur with everyone that West Leonard is the new hot spot for more infill construction. Also more housing will be announced along the river. I just hope it'll be tall. --This site will finally recognize that I'm not a G**damn robot. I could swear I've ID'd every single traffic light that exists in this world. Is Rick Deckard is going to bust in my room and kill me if I get one wrong?

YAAASSSSSS

I can sympathize with people who live in 234 Market as this will definitely change their living experience. But, I would think those people didn’t move there hoping the area would stay an industrial dead zone forever.

I don't know how one could make apartments out of that building without tearing it down. This is what we're talking about, right? https://maps.app.goo.gl/9VndTjQ6xyAKDU6HA

I would definitely choose Grand Rapids out of those five in September. Absolute perfect time to be in Michigan.

At the very least, this time they found a very good picture from Meijer Gardens. I'm not unhappy with this.

I’ve lived in California for over ten years now (hard to believe) and I still get a kick out of spotting a Steelcase truck out here.

Pretty impressive with how well Breton Village has been doing at attracting new trendy brands to GR, even while we talk about Rivertown's downhill slide. I know it has the advantage of EGR being a more upscale part of town; but, Breton Village was a pretty sad place itself not too long ago, and now it's bringing stores to the area that GR otherwise wouldn't have.

If time travel is in play, I'm going to back to the '30s to prevent the dismantling of the streetcar network.

They teased GR with a Shake Shack in the Woodland expansion They owe GR a Shake Shack Give GR Shake Shack

I mean, I guess if we're looking on the bright side arena football has historically been such a revolving door of expansions, moves, and foldings that I don't think they ever had a single year where the lineup of teams stayed the same. If AFL can stay in business, there's always hope they'll come knocking next year!

I feel like that glass tower is only there for the purpose of trolling JBAN. The way that it might juuuusssst barely peak over the tree canopy will drive them out of their minds.

GR is currently leading in two USA Today "10Best" Reader's Choice polls. Make sure your vote is counted. 2023 Best Beer City / Grand Rapids: https://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-beer-city-2023/grand-rapids-michigan/ 2023 Best Beer Bar / HopCat: https://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-beer-bar-2023/hopcat-grand-rapids-michigan/

I don't think it's being used anymore. The Marine company that was assigned there moved to Battle Creek.