Grand Rapids is one of a few Midwestern metros which grew younger from 2010-21. It sits in a belt of Michigan counties along which has seen population and job growth and is forecasted to grow.
Future growth depends on pressing the gas, said Randy Thelen, president and CEO of The Right Place, in a presentation to the Economic Development Committee on Aug. 11, particularly on building new housing.
Grand Rapids is fortunate to have more amenities than smaller cities, Thelen said, but a more affordable cost of living than larger metros. The presentation featured several projects like the Grand Rapids Public Museum Riverfront project, the Acrisure Amphitheater project, the riverfront trail, the Sullivan Field restoration, and the Canal Park restoration.
“I know nothing’s perfect. I know we’re talking about sound and things like that right now,” said Tim Mroz, senior vice president of community development for The Right Place about the amphitheater. “But it’s something that we all should be extremely proud about as a community and not lose that once it’s built, that we don’t realize the treasure we just built.”
“We’re on the cusp of maybe becoming not a one-day city but a multiple-day city for people to stay, experience,” Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand said.
The amphitheater and soccer stadium act as “brick-and-mortar ambassadors” for Grand Rapids, he said, where people visiting can see if they’d like to live here.
With these features, interest in working and living in the city has grown. Thelen said he worked in Denver previously, and the quality of life attracted people, but the rate of new housing did not keep up with the growing demand. Young people are priced out of Denver.
“The costs got away from them,” Thelen said.
Midsize cities like Grand Rapids are poised to capitalize as high costs push residents out of other metro areas. Historically, Grand Rapids has attracted students from the southeast side of the state, but there are signs the Furniture City is pulling young people from Chicago, he said.
City Manager Mark Washington asked about how The Right Place highlights the positive news about Grand Rapids in light of negative coverage around homelessness.
“We’re a large urban community. We’re going to have issues, but we’re still a good place to invest, both for recruiting and retaining businesses,” Washington said.
The data—Grand Rapids’ growth, its young and highly educated workforce, and its amenities—make the city good for business, Thelen said, but public disorder in downtown has been a hurdle in attracting investment.
“I do get emails fairly often on how some of the unhoused challenges downtown, that’s uniquely downtown, has had an impact on investment, and I think we have to find a way to bring a Grand Rapids culture to that solution, but also recognize it does have an impact,” Thelen said.
LaGrand said efforts in Grand Rapids to house individuals make it a national model for getting to functional zero in chronic homelessness.
“That you can see some issues doesn’t mean we haven’t made amazing progress,” he said.
The Downtown Pathways Project aims to make the rate of individuals gaining housing higher than the rate of persons entering life on the street.
Write to juliana@grherald.com