Heartside

The place where art, entertainment, charity, and good eats converge, Heartside is located just southeast of the central city. The historic district features a number of Grand Rapids' most popular destinations. The Van Andel Arena hosts major concerts, and is home to the Griffins hockey team, an affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. Ionia Avenue is known for its vibrant nightlife. Avenue for the Arts, which runs along Division Avenue, showcases local artistic talent in shops and galleries. And the new Downtown Market, just South of Wealthy Street (not technically in Heartside, but close enough) provides a large selection of year-round produce and food options.Housing in Heartside is on fire, where hundreds of repurposed industrial and early 19th Century commercial spaces have been converted into some of the best residential projects in the Midwest.Heartside is recognized and celebrated for its compassion. So amidst the wi-fi coffee shops and modern lofts is a number of upstanding community kitchens, clothing banks, and other services for less fortunate citizens. Heartside joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. Today, it offers some of the more fashionable shopping, dining, and entertainment in the city.  

Manufacturers’ demands for skilled workers outnumber college grads

Michigan manufacturing is in the midst of a conundrum: the number of jobs is decreasing while manufacturing output is increasing; the solution could be engineers with high-level tech and manufacturing skills.

Perrigo plans to add 400 new jobs, keeps $10M plant expansion in Michigan
Pure Michigan sells Great Lakes tourism to international market

The push to bring out-of-state travelers and their wallets to Michigan reached beyond U.S. borders this week when a state tourism official played host and tour guide to a cadre of European travel agents in hopes of encouraging overseas travel to the state.

More student housing coming to downtown Grand Rapids

As downtown Grand Rapids colleges like the MSU College of Human Medicine, Cooley Law, and the Aveda Institute continue to grow, the expected influx of students need places to live and one new prospect is an abandoned hotel sandwiched between the city’s arts avenue and the entertainment district.

Wheelchair-bound vets soon to have access to century-old veterans’ park

Amid a city-wide push to upgrade parks and develop quality of place for all residents,one century-old veterans park that many residents haven’t even heard of is getting a major facelift thanks to some private organizations.

Michigan signs Great Lakes compact

As states around the union experience water shortages and look to the Great Lakes to solve their problems, the eight Great Lakes states and two Canadian provinces are fighting to have control over water diversions and regulate water usage.

Ready to Wear

Grand Rapids may never be counted among fashion capitals like Paris, Milan, and New York. But the city is home to a growing number of creative clothing designers with big aspirations. Eight local collections hit the runway on July 12

LEED: Credits, Cuts, and Converts

Pushing to LEED certify a building was an experiment five years ago. Today it's emerging as the construction industry standard in West Michigan. But, as developers like Nick Koster know all too well, that doesn't necessarily make the decision to go green any easier 

Grand Rapids tech firm opens two out-of-state offices, adds 20 jobs
Expansion of Ottawa County manufacturer to generate $11M investment, create 26 jobs

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