CenterCity Investing Guide

It’s hard to believe that, at one time, the entire downtown area of Grand Rapids could be had for a mere ninety bucks. But that’s what Louis Campau paid in 1831. Campau was a French businessman who came to Grand Rapids to trade clothing and household goods with the Odawa (Ottawa) Indians who lived along the west bank of the Grand River.

Six years after he purchased the land, Campau divided it and sold the lots for a profit. He invested that money in sixteen acres east of Division Street, and built the city’s first tavern, a store, a house for his brother, and a house for himself. Then he set about improving a piece of land near the river with gardens and flowers.

When you look around CenterCity today—the area bounded by Michigan Street on the north, the Grand River on the west, Fulton on the south, and Division on the east—investors and developers are pretty much following the example set by Campau: buying and selling downtown properties, building some new structures, and improving others—all while trading goods and currency with the locals.

“The real estate market in Grand Rapids has been improving for quite some time,” said Chris Beckering, real estate advisor with the commercial real estate firm Grubb & Ellis/Paramount, “but it’s coming from a recession. Vacancy rates downtown are higher than the national average.”

Beckering added that outside investors often have a different view of Grand Rapids than local investors; outside investors see the city as what it will be, while local investors tend to see it as it is now.

“Outside office investors are optimistic about the downtown market because there’s a huge investment in the medical community, and that will drive medical office users into the downtown area. Bringing Michigan State University’s medical school to town will create excitement,” Beckering said.

“We’re seeing a consolidation in ownership in office buildings downtown. Individual investors and investor groups are purchasing several properties in a short period of time to control a larger block of the market.”

Destination: 24-hour Downtown
Residential developments, specifically the rehabbing of existing buildings into condominiums, seem to be popping up all over the city, but the trend began downtown nearly two decades ago with the conversion of the Forslund building into condos. Since then, City View Condominiums, Front Row Condominiums, Plaza Towers and others have dangled the proverbial carrot in front of empty-nesters and young professionals, and many of them have made their move to downtown.

“I say this over and over again,” said Rick Chapla, vice president of urban redevelopment for The Right Place, Inc., a non-profit economic development organization. “The redevelopment of downtown isn’t because of any city official; it’s because of the people who have chosen to be downtown and to live downtown. That’s what’s making the difference. Grand Rapids is becoming a premier location to live, work, and play.”

The places being built are unique, vibrant, and safe, Chapla added. They are also trendy.

“It’s the recognition that old buildings, and the reinvestment and reuse of those buildings, is what makes the space so special,” Chapla said. “The same good feelings and vibrancy could not be created in the same way in a suburban location because the texture and fabric of the old buildings doesn’t exist.”

Construction is underway or planned for several condominium developments on the near peripheries of CenterCity. These developments are expected to fulfill some of the demand for urban housing from the predicted influx of medical and other professionals whose jobs are directly or indirectly tied to the growth in the designated SmartZone corridor.

Tall House Building, Boardwalk Condominiums, Icon on Bond, 240 Ionia SW, Dwelling Place Inn, River House at Bridgewater Place, The Fitzgerald, City Center Project, and Union Square Condominiums are all scheduled for completion within the next two to three years. The total housing investment will ring up to about $300 million.

“Having people living downtown has been our goal since the beginning,” said Sam Cummings, owner of Second Story Properties, which is renovating The Fitzgerald and building the City Center Project at the corner of Fulton and Division where a crumbling parking ramp recently stood. Cummings has been developing downtown properties for 13 years.

“We had to build other things first. We started with office. People get comfortable working downtown, and then they get comfortable being here at night, too. Our goal is to have downtown be alive 24 hours a day.”

The Secret is Out
With the Van Andel Arena, DeVos Place, the new Grand Rapids Art Museum, and the J.W. Marriott, people have more and more reason to come downtown.

“The J.W. Marriott increases the supply of nearby hotel space so the DeVos Convention Center can host larger conventions,” said Jay Fowler, executive director of the Downtown Development Authority. “The lack of current hotel rooms downtown limits the size [of conventions] because people like to stay near where the convention is being held. It also meets demand for business and pleasure travel.”

When the Downtown Alliance was created five years ago, the top priority of business owners was to keep the downtown area clean.

“Six days a week people are cleaning the streets and sidewalks downtown,” said Sharon Evoy, executive director of the Downtown Alliance. “2,000 pounds of trash a week is removed from the downtown area. That’s a lot of paper cups, a lot of dirt, and a lot of grime.”

The cleaning crew also plants, waters, and maintains 60 planter boxes around the city.

“What’s really exciting,” Evoy said, “is we see more and more private property owners doing their own beautification. Landscaping has such an amazing impact on an area. It adds a 24-hour feel because the plants and flowers are always out there. It makes an area safer.”

Tied into the beautification of the city is the streetscape design being created for the Downtown Alliance by ProgressiveAE.

“We’re developing a plan for the beautification of downtown that establishes design standards and how to implement them,” Evoy said. “It talks about the placement of things on the sidewalk, and the how the sidewalk should be designed to have coherence. We want it to be flexible so businesses can do their own thing, but we want some consistency so it flows together.”

Besides keeping the streets and sidewalks clean and beautiful, the Downtown Alliance is also working on a campaign to market CenterCity.

“We’ve done a branding effort which included the development of the tag line ‘keep it a secret,’” Evoy said. “We want the campaign to be fun and lighthearted; something that explains the tag line and inspires people to talk about downtown and come downtown. We’re hoping to launch it in time to support the downtown businesses during the holiday shopping season.”

A key part of the campaign is a web site for shoppers that will have a listing of all CenterCity businesses, with up-to-date information to make it easy for shoppers to shop downtown. There will be listings for live theater, the ballet, concerts, restaurants, retail stores, and events, along with parking information and driving directions. Web users will be able to plan a day of shopping and dining, or an evening of dining and theater, and all the information they need will be right at their fingertips.

Isn’t it amazing what a $90 investment can become?

For more information about CenterCity visit the:
– Moving Guide
– Visiting Guide

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Directions to Center City

From the North:
Take US-131 South toward Grand Rapids and merge onto I-196 East via Exit 86A on the left toward Lansing. Take the Ottawa Ave exit, Exit 77C, toward Downtown. Turn slight right onto Ottawa Ave Nw. Arrive in Center City.

From the East:
Take I-96 West toward Grand Rapids and keep left to take I-196 West toward Downtown Grand Rapids/Holland. Take the Ottawa Ave exit, Exit 77C, toward Downtown. The ramp becomes Ottawa Ave Nw. Arrive in Center City.

From the South:
Take US-131 North toward Grand Rapids and take the I-131-BR exit, Exit 84B, toward Downtown. Turn right onto Oakes St. Sw and turn left onto Division Ave S/US-131 BR. Arrive in Center City.

From the West:
Take I-196 East toward Grand Rapids and take the Ottawa Ave exit, Exit 77C, toward Downtown. Turn slight right onto Ottawa Ave Nw. Arrive in Center City.

Take I-96 East toward Grand Rapids and merge onto US-131 South via Exit 31A toward Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo. Merge onto I-196 East via Exit 86A on the left toward Lansing. Take the Ottawa Ave exit, Exit 77C, toward Downtown. Turn slight right onto Ottawa Ave Nw. Arrive in Center City.

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