GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A massive redevelopment effort backed by the DeVos and Van Andel families could transform the Grand Rapids skyline as soon as the fall of 2028.
Progressive Companies and Michigan Growth Advisors shared plans for the $738 million Fulton + Market project to develop more than 1.2 million square feet on vacant riverfront property.
The proposal could add three new towers along the Grand River where the old Charley's Crab restaurant once stood.
The nearly 7-acre property is mostly parking space and was bulldozed in January. Developers want to add an extended riverwalk, public greenspace and walkable connections to the Acrisure Amphitheatre that will soon be nearby.
This riverwalk would connect North Fulton Street and the underpass below US 131.
Each tower would be mixed-use, including one for office space, one for residential use and then the third for hotels and condos. Two of the towers would share a base structure that would house parking and more than 32,000 square feet of retail space.
With 420,000 square feet of office space and 21,000 square feet of retail space, the stand-alone office tower could accommodate up to 1,600 employees, plans detail.
In the residential tower plans, plans show there could be as many as 595 units plus 130 hotel keys and 76 condo units.
The investment would bring more than 1,900 full-time jobs to Grand Rapids, add new housing, and allow for more than $296 million in Transformation Brownfield Plan Capture over 20 years.
The group says more than $8.5 million is proposed to be invested in the City of Grand Rapids Affordable Housing Fund as part of the project.
Developers are working with various community and neighborhood groups to showcase their plans. This includes talks with the Heartside Neighborhood Association, the Heartside Business Association, The Rapid, the Downtown Neighborhood Network and Plaza towers.
They plan to inform stakeholders like the Grand Rapids Chamber, Hispanic Chamber, Experience Grand Rapids, Kent County Administration, Grand Action, CAA, DGRI and the Right Place throughout the process.
Prior planning from GR Forward, River for All and the Grand Action 2.0 Market Ave Corridor Study - Riverfront Sites were considered and incorporated into the project.
Potential timeline
The plans have yet to go before any sort of board. They'll be presented before the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority on Wednesday and in October. The plan would then be presented in front of the City Commission in November.
Next up, the schedule calls for the Michigan Strategic Fund Board in February 2025.
If all goes to plan, phased construction could begin in the fall of 2025, with a target completion date of fall 2028 to spring 2029.
You can check out more of the developer's plans for the Fulton and Market area here: