New projects in Monroe North

[thebeerqueer]

12 hours ago, jonrapley said:

On Downtown Grand Rapids Inc Facebook page they had mentioned the possibility of having broomball, hockey and other activities on the Monroe north ice rink. 

The Monroe North rink reminds me of one they tried doing in Heardside park a couple of years ago, unfortunately that one fell victim to a warm-ish winter and was closed more than open. I think the Monroe North one, with it's more DIY vibe, will encourage people to linger longer and maybe increase participation. 

[whitemice]

15 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

So they'll have two rinks this year? I know they have to keep that lot "activated" as a "park" but it seems a bit duplicative.

There is plenty of demand to support this;  and the residential density of Monroe North is soaring, and it is on frequent all-week transit.

This makes perfect sense to me.  Rosa Parks Circle is desperately over-subscribed as a venue / destination.

[discgrab21]

I know the GRSSC does broomball at RPC.  Maybe they will move over to the Monroe North lot?

[ironyisadeadscene]

1 hour ago, discgrab21 said:

I know the GRSSC does broomball at RPC.  Maybe they will move over to the Monroe North lot?

Broomball at Rpc is a mess though. Ball is always going through the railing.

 

Anyone else play in that league?

Edited November 16, 2018 by ironyisadeadscene

[jonrapley]

9 minutes ago, ironyisadeadscene said:

Anyone else play in that league

I played Broomball last year in that league. The game is a lot of fun, but yes the ball kept on going through the railings.

[ironyisadeadscene]

18 hours ago, jonrapley said:

I played Broomball last year in that league. The game is a lot of fun, but yes the ball kept on going through the railings.

Maybe you recognize me hahaha

[jonrapley]

38 minutes ago, ironyisadeadscene said:

Maybe you recognize me hahaha

That's crazy, that's my blue team! I was the keeper you were shooting on in that pic! 

[ironyisadeadscene]

14 hours ago, jonrapley said:

That's crazy, that's my blue team! I was the keeper you were shooting on in that pic! 

I am pretty sure I talked to you (because I talk alot) I also play goal in hockey so I like talking to goalies. Like a shared brotherhood kinda thing

Edited November 18, 2018 by ironyisadeadscene

[joeDowntown]

Has anyone noticed the progress on Embassy Suites? they're adding a lot of glass "railings", entryways, etc. I really like the street level, it's much more interesting than I pictured from the renderings. 

Also, don't know if this will be a permanent lighting element, but each balcony is lit. It's pretty cool when they are all lit. The only concern I have about that is I used to work at the Brassworks Building, and a lot of bugs hatch in the river. In turn, there are some NASTY spiders. Don't know if the balconies will be fun to sit on at certain times of the year (especially May).

Joe

[thebeerqueer]

On 12/20/2018 at 8:50 AM, joeDowntown said:

Has anyone noticed the progress on Embassy Suites? they're adding a lot of glass "railings", entryways, etc. I really like the street level, it's much more interesting than I pictured from the renderings. 

Also, don't know if this will be a permanent lighting element, but each balcony is lit. It's pretty cool when they are all lit. The only concern I have about that is I used to work at the Brassworks Building, and a lot of bugs hatch in the river. In turn, there are some NASTY spiders. Don't know if the balconies will be fun to sit on at certain times of the year (especially May).

Joe

I noticed all of the balcony lights on the other day too and thought immediately about summer bugs. I would imagine that the lights would be controlled by each room and the street is well lit, the lights might not be on all that much. 

[crinzema]

[joeDowntown]

Love the photos @crinzema!

Joe

[ironyisadeadscene]

On 12/30/2018 at 10:16 PM, crinzema said:

Looks like Cities: Skylines....

[GRDadof3]

Embassy Suites is wrapping up. I'm not a huge fan of some of the finishes to be honest, but this project feels ginormous on this stretch of Monroe. 

 

 

Also, J Reardons has gutted their space  in the Boardwalk and opening it up more and brightening it up. I hear the "brooding man cave" feel will be totally gone. I get my haircut down the hall so I'll keep y'all updated.

[Guest]

I really kind of like the new hotel.  The porte-cochere is nice and it has some nice looking lighting.  It will be great to have that many people in NOMo.

[jonrapley]

I don't like the back of the building, it has a very unfinished look. The front however is quite unique.

[MJLO]

11 hours ago, jonrapley said:

I don't like the back of the building, it has a very unfinished look. The front however is quite unique.

I assume they expect the lot behind it to fill in at some point.

[Guest]

12 hours ago, jonrapley said:

I don't like the back of the building, it has a very unfinished look. The front however is quite unique.

The back of the building is quite ugly.  It kind of makes Bond feel like an alley more than a street.

[GR_Urbanist]

1 hour ago, Floyd_Z said:

The back of the building is quite ugly.  It kind of makes Bond feel like an alley more than a street.

This is what I get as well.

 

I hope to see future N. Monroe development start to actually take place away from just the parts that immediately face the river, so that Bond and Ottawa arent relegated to just the status of de facto service roads with nothing but a bunch of parking lots, trash bins, HVAC boxes and blank exteriors fronting much of it.

 

Obviously the long history of the area as an industrial district will take time to change over to something completely new. I just hope the guidance from the city is towards the area being a district of multiple "main streets", and not just N. Monroe.

[GRDadof3]

1 hour ago, GR_Urbanist said:

This is what I get as well.

 

I hope to see future N. Monroe development start to actually take place away from just the parts that immediately face the river, so that Bond and Ottawa arent relegated to just the status of de facto service roads with nothing but a bunch of parking lots, trash bins, HVAC boxes and blank exteriors fronting much of it.

 

Obviously the long history of the area as an industrial district will take time to change over to something completely new. I just hope the guidance from the city is towards the area being a district of multiple "main streets", and not just N. Monroe.

I think Ottawa and Monroe will continue to be the "main streets" and Bond will probably always have a service drive feel to it, unfortunately. I don't foresee Gill Industries being wooed away any time soon. My estimation is in the next five years all of those body shops along Ottawa will be taken over by restaurants, bars, small scale residential, etc.. 

[Guest]

5 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

I think Ottawa and Monroe will continue to be the "main streets" and Bond will probably always have a service drive feel to it, unfortunately. I don't foresee Gill Industries being wooed away any time soon. My estimation is in the next five years all of those body shops along Ottawa will be taken over by restaurants, bars, small scale residential, etc.. 

I agree that most of the smaller parcels will start to become developed.  I think it might be at least 10 years until we see those bigger industrial properties sold, barring some huge boom in the area.  Autodie is absolutely massive.  It would take a pretty significant offer for them to justify moving their operations out of DT.

[GRDadof3]

15 hours ago, Floyd_Z said:

I agree that most of the smaller parcels will start to become developed.  I think it might be at least 10 years until we see those bigger industrial properties sold, barring some huge boom in the area.  Autodie is absolutely massive.  It would take a pretty significant offer for them to justify moving their operations out of DT.

The property on Market is being offered up for development and we haven't seen anything recently on that. 

[MJLO]

It feels like once these last couple buildings get finished on Monroe there won't be action in the neighborhood for a while.  Seems like the demand that lead to dozen's of major new projects announced 2014-16 has been met.  Not much being announced right now, and it seems like the office sector downtown remains soft, with most companies not wanting to deal with the parking struggles.   I think Downtown is at it's apex for the moment.  I am still of the opinion that in order for GR to push to the next level another major tenant/company will need to move into the city.  If not downtown itself, then one of the adjoining neighborhoods.

[GRDadof3]

If you get a chance, go drive by or walk by the new Embassy Suites. The ground floor is incredible, including a sweet lobby with what looks like a giant plant wall going up several floors. Plus in the "motor lobby" area there's a stone wrapped fountain. Garage doors on the Big E bar part of it will be cool in the summer.  Looks like a big city hotel. 

Also, count the TV's you can see from the street.  

[joeDowntown]

3 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

If you get a chance, go drive by or walk by the new Embassy Suites. The ground floor is incredible, including a sweet lobby with what looks like a giant plant wall going up several floors. Plus in the "motor lobby" area there's a stone wrapped fountain. Garage doors on the Big E bar part of it will be cool in the summer.  Looks like a big city hotel. 

Also, count the TV's you can see from the street.  

I've driven by a couple of times in the last week and it looks pretty awesome. The lobby is top notch, and I think it's going to bring a lot of traffic to the area. It also looks like it'll have a lot of meeting space. It's a pretty impressive development.

I think I counted 57 TVs.  The outdoor patio should be pretty nice in the summer.

Joe