[Allan]

I'm indifferent about the helistop. I like the idea of not building a skywalk though. Skywalks take away pedestrian activity from the streets. And it's not like people are going to say "let's go to a different hotel because the Marriott doesn't have a skywalk."

[metrogrkid]

IDIOTIC 19TH CENTURY GRAND RAPIDS PLANNING COMMISSION STRIKES AGAIN !!

GRAND RAPIDS - OH MY GOD!!!!!! The only informed member of the Grand Rapids Planning Commission is Ms. Marilyn Tische - a longtime resident of the downtown Carl Forslund Condos (next to the upcoming Marriott Tower) and one of the original modern urban pioneers in downtown GR urban living. With that said I am now going to blast the rest of the GRPC!!!!

Sans Ms. Tische, the rest of this STUPID body (the group that said that the Moch International/Trowbridge Street 24-story twin-tower apartment project was TOO DENSE for North Downtown - UMMM, DENSITY IS THE GOAL OF A MAJOR DOWNTOWN AREA STUPIDS) can look forward to the far more visionary CITY Commission seeing the ongoing continuity importance of also having the Marriott tower connected to the ever-growing Minneapoliseque GR skywalk system. Any notion of GR's skywalks being a detriment are LUDICROUS. The GR system links the 12,000-seat VanAndel Arena, Plaza Towers/Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, the National City Center and Campau Square Class-A office buildings, the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and the new 1-million square foot DeVos Place Congress Center. Try walking between all that in the horizontal snow squalls of GR winter outside of the skywalk system. Those walkways make downtown GR's hub a usable and viable convention destination year round. If anyone was thinking at all, they would redevelop the area of the Grand Plaza Parking Ramp and skywalk promenade behind the National City Center into a 10-story vertical shopping and entertainment atrium for the skywalk pedestrians of the new Marriott, Amway Grand and points south (Marriott Courtyard and VanAndel Arena) to pass through and drop cash within (SAID: CAPTIVE AUDIENCE).

GRPC needs to stop being the suburban, non-urban living but making decisions for the city with their suburban mentality idiots that they are and let downtown become the world-class hub that it was meant to be! ARRRRGH!!! Now I feel much better.

joeDowntown, on Feb 25 2005, 09:47 AM, said:

Planners Nix Part Of Hotel Plan
By David Czurak

GRAND RAPIDS — City commissioners will be the next group to check in, and check out, the new hotel being proposed for the corner of Pearl Street and Campau Avenue by Alticor Inc.

Planning commissioners approved much of the hotel’s site plan yesterday, including the demolition of the Israels Building at 226 Pearl St. NW.  But they nixed two elements of the design: the helistop and the overhead walkways.

The proposed walkways would have connected the new hotel with the existing skywalk system. The design would have linked the hotel with the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and then connected the hotel with its parking deck, which is to go up south of the 340-room hotel on Campau Avenue. The walkway then would cross Campau Avenue and join the existing skywalk, adjacent to the city’s Louis Campau parking ramp.

“It seems to me to be entirely consistent with the existing walkway,” said Bill Hoyt, city planning director, prior to the commission’s vote.

“It seems to be a logical connection between the two hotels,” he added.

But planners felt the walkway would direct people away from other businesses located downtown.

As for the helistop, the hotel’s project manager Bert Crandell said it was a “land and go” pad that wouldn’t be used for commercial purposes. Crandell told planners that it would mainly be used to shuttle dignitaries to the city, and would likely have a maximum of two stops a day with none occurring overnight.

Crandell added that the pad meets the city’s noise regulations and was allowed under the current downtown zoning ordinance. But planning commissioners felt differently.

The helistop would be built on the roof of the four-story ballroom, part of the 24-story hotel’s design.

Michael Kaufman, a principal with Lohan Caprile Goettsch, the Chicago architectural firm designing the hotel with BETA Design Group, told planning commissioners that a 2,500-square foot urban park would replace the Israels Building at the corner of Pearl and Campau. He said the first floor of the hotel would be lit at night and would provide an “inviting” background to the park.

City commissioners will make the final decision on the hotel’s design. They can overrule the Planning Commission’s decision and allow the overhead walkways and helistop to be built.

Alticor has estimated the cost of the new hotel, to be operated by Marriott Inc., at from $60 million to $70 million. The firm said it would spend up to another $10 million to build the 700-space parking deck. About $11 million of public funds will go to the project.

“We’re not going to do anything that’s not done right,” said Crandell.    BJX
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Freddy C]

metrogrkid, on Feb 25 2005, 02:48 PM, said:

IDIOTIC 19TH CENTURY GRAND RAPIDS PLANNING COMMISSION STRIKES AGAIN !! 

GRAND RAPIDS - OH MY GOD!!!!!!  The only informed member of the Grand Rapids Planning Commission is Ms. Marilyn Tische - a longtime resident of the downtown Carl Forslund Condos (next to the upcoming Marriott Tower) and one of the original modern urban pioneers in downtown GR urban living.  With that said I am now going to blast the rest of the GRPC!!!!

Sans Ms. Tische, the rest of this STUPID body (the group that said that the Moch International/Trowbridge Street 24-story twin-tower apartment project was TOO DENSE for North Downtown  - UMMM, DENSITY IS THE GOAL OF A MAJOR DOWNTOWN AREA STUPIDS) can look forward to the far more visionary CITY Commission seeing the ongoing continuity importance of also having the Marriott tower connected to the ever-growing Minneapoliseque GR skywalk system.  Any notion of GR's skywalks being a detriment are LUDICROUS.  The GR system links the 12,000-seat VanAndel Arena, Plaza Towers/Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, the National City Center and Campau Square Class-A office buildings, the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and the new 1-million square foot DeVos Place Congress Center.  Try walking between all that in the horizontal snow squalls of GR winter outside of the skywalk system.  Those walkways make downtown GR's hub a usable and viable convention destination year round.  If anyone was thinking at all, they would redevelop the area of the Grand Plaza Parking Ramp and skywalk promenade behind the National City Center into a 10-story vertical shopping and entertainment atrium for the skywalk pedestrians of the new Marriott, Amway Grand and points south (Marriott Courtyard and VanAndel Arena) to pass through and drop cash within (SAID: CAPTIVE AUDIENCE).

GRPC needs to stop being the suburban, non-urban living but making decisions for the city with their suburban mentality idiots that they are and let downtown become the world-class hub that it was meant to be!  ARRRRGH!!!  Now I feel much better. 
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Now this is the GR that I remember! I think that EGR made a good choice with the Gas Light villiage project. These people on the planning commission should all take a Nortwest Air flight to Minneapolis to view the benefits of the skyway system to buisnesses.

[joeDowntown]

I'm sure the skywalk will pass. The city commission often ignores the planning commissions recommendations (which is good, the planning commission seems to do some pretty dumb things that would stifle development).

If I were a betting man, I would bank on there being a skywalk from the new Marriott...

[joeDowntown]

Welcome Metrogrkid, I agree with you totally. I almost flipped when they balked at the height of the Moch Towers. Too much density? These are the same people that will complain about Urban sprawl. How do you diminish Urban sprawl? Have a denser core city. Sometimes I don't know why these boneheads get appointed to these positions.

When the whole Moch Towers fiasco went down I wrote every city commissioner and a letter to the Grand Rapids Business Journal. Not that I'm taking credit for the city commission overturning the planning commissions recommendation

Joe

[joeDowntown]

[snoogit]

joeDowntown, on Mar 15 2005, 05:31 PM, said:

They have announced that the new parking lot that will be built next to the Marriott will have 751 spaces and be over 100ft tall. It will be 10 stories, 9 above, one below.

(Business Journal)

I heard that they were considering adding more stories to the Riverfront Plaza Building and the old Telephone and Power (is that what it is called?) building. It sounds like it is almost a must now that the ramp will eclipse the Riverfront Building. The Riverfront building will have 141 spaces reserved in the new ramp which makes me think they will be building up (the building is maybe 5 stories, I wouldn't think 141 spaces would be necessary for a 5 story building).

Joe
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If they save anything from Isreals, it would be neat to see some of the archtetural artifacts integrated into the parking ramp I will say one thing about GR, it has some of the most archtecturally interesting Parking ramps I've ever seen.

This post has been edited by snoogit: 15 March 2005 - 09:15 PM

[joeDowntown]

I agree. The last thre parking ramps that have been built look very nice. I hope that this new ramp includes ground level retail. That street is in dire need of some frontage. Right now it is like all the building have their back turned to the street with parking lots galore. Adding streetlevel retail would make this an interesting (and more pedestrian friendly) street.

Joe

[Jonnyipps]

I am a bit skeptical about the addition of a 9 story parking lot in the area. Although I will not argue that is not needed, they have a tendency of not creating a vibrant street for pedestrians. I wish that they would put retail/restaurants on the first floor, as is the norm in many other cities. Recently, I went to Arlington, VA and they just completed a 5 story parking garage with boutique stores along the street-front...the way all parking ramps should be.

[joeDowntown]

Jonny, Welcome to the forum.

I agree. I think it is imperative that they put storefronts on the first level. This will be the third parking ramp on this small street (four if you include Plaza Towers which sits back from the road). They need some activity to make it not seem like a cavern...

Joe

[superNOVA]

I have a feeling that it will have some ground floor retail. It would actually be a good place for a small store to service all of the surrounding condos and apartments. Ground floor retail is becoming pretty much a standard for parking ramps these days.

I just wonder why it took people this long to figure it out.

[snoogit]

It would be a good place for that "drive thro" pharmacy the press thinks we need

integrate it into the exit somehow, I can't imagine its too hard