"Thirty-Eight" rises at Commerce and Weston, aims for more LEED living in downtown Grand Rapids

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

"Thirty-Eight," an innovative new $16 million mixed-use project, aims to bring 43 more LEED-certified residences to Grand Rapids' downtown. Now that construction of the long-anticipated structure at 38 Commerce is above grade, developer Locus Development says it's rising quickly.

"The foundations are in place and two weeks ago they poured the second floor of the building," says Andy Winkel, a partner in Locus Development with John Green. "Each week and a half we'll add another floor and continue to see the building going vertical. We have photos on the web site"

Although it will be another year before the building's completed, several of the units are sold or leased.

"Two of the eight residential condos are sold, and a handful of the 35 apartments are spoken for," Winkel says. "The residents represent a pretty broad range of people, but one thing that's consistent is everyone is pretty excited about being downtown. They like the energy in the neighborhood and they like having attached parking right next to their apartment or condo."

That parking is a $10 million public ramp the City of Grand Rapids plans to purchase and operate once it's constructed.

The residences range from cozy to spacious, with apartments as small as 590 square feet and two-story penthouse condos up to 2,720 square feet.

The mixed-use aspect includes commercial and retail spaces, with a proposed main-level restaurant and a 150-seat rooftop bar on the eighth floor. The bar is accessible via elevator from the restaurant or the lobby. Winkel hopes the restaurant owner will incorporate the bar into the restaurant plan, but if not, the design enables the bar to be operated separately.

"The thing that's drawing attention is the rooftop deck and bar area," Winkel says. "It will be the first one downtown that's up eight stories and the views will be great."

Source: Andy Winkel, Locus Development

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Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].

Photo:

Construction underway at 38 Commerce -Heartside