GET INVOLVED
The community’s participation in this process is key to its success. There are multiple ways for the public to be involved. The project team will be at community events, hold stakeholder interviews, and have opportunities for additional public engagement opportunities. Thank you for your participation in the early phases of the process! We connected with over 1,000 individuals through surveys and discussions to learn more about your ideas for Downtown Grand Rapids!
What are the specific investments and actions that you would like to see in Downtown Grand Rapids? We are excited to invite the community to a family friendly design event on October 12th! Join us to discuss the vision for downtown from the input received and identify improvements, investments, and actions to work toward that vision in the next 15 years. Kid friendly activities will be available during the event, so bring the whole family!
View the Presentations
In preparation for the Community Design Event, we’ve prepare four videos that provide key context and information about the Downtown Plan Update. Review each video to learn more about the planning process, existing conditions within downtown, and an overview of current input.
Grand Rapids Downtown Plan Update - Community Design Event
When: October 12, 2022 at 6:00 pm
Where: Rapids Brewing Meeting Room (214 N Pokegama Ave, Grand Rapids)
Early Engagement Summary
The first phase of the Downtown Plan Update included various engagement opportunities to learn more about the issues and opportunities experienced by the community and regional visitors of downtown. Engagement activities included a community survey, pop-up events, and stakeholder interviews. A full summary of the input gathered will be prepared and available soon, but the following includes a few quick highlights.

Why do you visit Downtown Grand Rapids?
Participants were asked to rank the importance of the reasons why they come to Downtown Grand Rapids. They were asked to rank each reason from 5 (very important) to 0 (not important at all). The overall results are shown in the graphic below. Dining and entertainment were ranked either 5 of 4 by nearly 75 percent of respondents.
