New projects on the West Side

[joeDowntown]

1 hour ago, thebeerqueer said:

They're going to be operated as separate spaces (thank god), with Drip Drop upstairs and Broadleaf downstairs and the beirgarten. I'm beyond excited to welcome Broadleaf to the Westside, their beer, cocktails, food and vibe will be a nice addition to that strip. 

Good news! Both seem like great additions to Bridge Street. I was worried one was taking the spot of the other. 

Joe

[GRDadof3]

New LGBTQ+ bar coming to Bridge Street.

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/general-wood-shop-to-add-lgbtq-bar-to-bridge-street/?ipid=promo-link-block1

Now we just need that soccer stadium for the West Side.

[HavingAhoot]

36 minutes ago, GRDadof3 said:

New LGBTQ+ bar coming to Bridge Street.

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/general-wood-shop-to-add-lgbtq-bar-to-bridge-street/?ipid=promo-link-block1

Now we just need that soccer stadium for the West Side.

Hahah That name. The General Wood  Shop nice!

[joeDowntown]

Kusterer Brauhaus opened after years(?) of delays:

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/worth-the-wait-kusterer-brauhaus-opens-german-beer-hall-in-grand-rapids/

Joe

[thebeerqueer]

1 hour ago, joeDowntown said:

Kusterer Brauhaus opened after years(?) of delays:

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/worth-the-wait-kusterer-brauhaus-opens-german-beer-hall-in-grand-rapids/

Joe

Excited to welcome them to the Westside. I feel like they'll do well on Bridge St.  

[joeDowntown]

Saw a crane the other day and finally got a chance to drive by the development on Fulton street. It’s pretty far along and adds some nice density to the north side of Fulton. 
 

 

[Cookin_peacocks]

17 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

Saw a crane the other day and finally got a chance to drive by the development on Fulton street. It’s pretty far along and adds some nice density to the north side of Fulton. 
 

 

I drove by this and was alarmed by the progress. I had forgotten about this. 

 

Glad to see some density outside the core of DT. Love to see something beyond 4 stories though.

 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Cookin_peacocks said:

Love to see something beyond 4 stories though.

Me too!  Is that even possible with the current zoning though?  or is it just developers not wanting to go big?  I wish they would go higher, especially with housing being so tight.

[joeDowntown]

I think it’s appropriate for this area as it’s next to traditional residential. The lots close to the expressway (and the big boy site) are where I’d like to see some taller buildings (or a soccer stadium, or both). 

Speaking of soccer, they are adding temporary Futsal courts to the north side of the lots. Hopefully a precursor to more soccer in that spot.

[Cookin_peacocks]

1 hour ago, Floyd_Z said:

Me too!  Is that even possible with the current zoning though?  or is it just developers not wanting to go big?  I wish they would go higher, especially with housing being so tight.

That's what troubles me. You could build a 40 story tower downtown and it would fill up in weeks. But with inflation, it's too expensive 

[thebeerqueer]

Sad news for the Westside. Hopefully that space won't sit empty for too long. 

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/harmony-hall-closing-bridge-st-location/

[GR_Urbanist]

Quote

The announcement comes four months after the Grand Rapids Planning Commission approved Harmony Hall’s plan to transform a part of its parking lot into a landscaped space for outdoor dining. It was supposed to have a beer garden, space for lawn games and a wood wall with a mural.

So you close the pub part of it, because you need a bigger facility to make the beer? But you are keeping the other location open, that doesnt have any room to make anything on-site?

And you do this after you went through this whole process with the Planning Commission to add all of these elaborate additions?

Might as well make it a Chick-Fil-A at this point. Someplace that will actually have some staying power, I suppose.

[GRDadof3]

7 minutes ago, GR_Urbanist said:

So you close the pub part of it, because you need a bigger facility to make the beer? But you are keeping the other location open, that doesnt have any room to make anything on-site?

And you do this after you went through this whole process with the Planning Commission to add all of these elaborate additions?

Might as well make it a Chick-Fil-A at this point. Someplace that will actually have some staying power, I suppose.

Wow harsh. I think they did their best to keep it going (and the patio may have been a hail mary and probably came back way more expensive than they planned), but there's a lot of competition on Bridge now from when they opened. Competition for customers and staff.  And frankly it's way too big for a restaurant/pub. You want a place to feel full, and you also WANT to have a wait on busy nights (as it makes it seem popular). They had neither a full house nor a wait the last couple of times we went. They even got rid of a lot of the german stuff on the menu. 

Even Nickerbocker/New Holland reduced their restaurant footprint. 

Whoever buys this should divide the place up into separate businesses. 

[TheLonesomeHobo]

31 minutes ago, GRDadof3 said:

Wow harsh. I think they did their best to keep it going (and the patio may have been a hail mary and probably came back way more expensive than they planned), but there's a lot of competition on Bridge now from when they opened. Competition for customers and staff.  And frankly it's way too big for a restaurant/pub. You want a place to feel full, and you also WANT to have a wait on busy nights (as it makes it seem popular). They had neither a full house nor a wait the last couple of times we went. They even got rid of a lot of the german stuff on the menu. 

Even Nickerbocker/New Holland reduced their restaurant footprint. 

Whoever buys this should divide the place up into separate businesses. 

What part of the building did new New Holland eliminate? 

[whitemice]

17 hours ago, TheLonesomeHobo said:

What part of the building did new New Holland eliminate? 

I believe their second floor is effectively closed.  Or it was very recently (obvs, this can change on a moments notice).

[GRDadof3]

17 hours ago, TheLonesomeHobo said:

What part of the building did new New Holland eliminate? 

Just as you walk in to the left used to be all dining area. It's now a store (or was when I was there a few years ago).

Shorts Brewery in Bellaire did the same. An entire dining section is now a store. 

[HavingAhoot]

Looks like a place called GinGin Lounge looking to come to Bridge street.

[TheLonesomeHobo]

2 hours ago, HavingAhoot said:

Looks like a place called GinGin Lounge looking to come to Bridge street.

I thought they already announced a LGBTQ bar for this location? Did that plan get scrapped?

[Pattmost20]

3 hours ago, TheLonesomeHobo said:

I thought they already announced a LGBTQ bar for this location? Did that plan get scrapped?

 

5 hours ago, HavingAhoot said:

Looks like a place called GinGin Lounge looking to come to Bridge street.

General Wood Shop, an LGBTQ friendly bar was announced for 507 Bridge Street a couple months ago. 

Last year Gin-Gin's was announced for 345 Summer Ave NW. That is by the same owners as Butcher's Union. 

Not sure if both are going ahead as planned, but I couldn't find any articles from this year about Gin-Gin's.

[joeDowntown]

4 hours ago, TheLonesomeHobo said:

1 hour ago, Pattmost20 said:

 

General Wood Shop, an LGBTQ friendly bar was announced for 507 Bridge Street a couple months ago. 

Last year Gin-Gin's was announced for 345 Summer Ave NW. That is by the same owners as Butcher's Union. 

Not sure if both are going ahead as planned, but I couldn't find any articles from this year about Gin-Gin's.

I would bet that the names are getting messed up. We have seen the plans for GinGin before, and I doubt they’ve moved buildings (since they owned the building on Summer).

An impressive amount of activity in the area. Gin Gin, Drip Drop, general wood shop, a taproom (can’t remember which company) and a moonshine bar. 

Joe

[Pattmost20]

8 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

a taproom

Broadleaf (Vivant's sister brewery). They make some awesome beer and have some pretty good food at their Kentwood location. 

I think there are a lot of really great things going in on Bridge. Already a huge entertainment district, but it is only getting better. I've hit up Kusterer a couple of times since they opened, that is another great addition to Bridge street.

[Cookin_peacocks]

2 hours ago, Pattmost20 said:

Broadleaf (Vivant's sister brewery). They make some awesome beer and have some pretty good food at their Kentwood location. 

I think there are a lot of really great things going in on Bridge. Already a huge entertainment district, but it is only getting better. I've hit up Kusterer a couple of times since they opened, that is another great addition to Bridge street.

I'd imagine once the apartment building on Alabama (I think it is) adds density to the area, it's going to only grow larger.

[joeDowntown]

Neighbors question soccer stadium instead of housing. I'm hoping it's both, not either/or:

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2022/09/as-group-eyes-grand-rapids-soccer-stadium-questions-swirl-over-housing-neighborhood-impact.html

Joe

[GRDadof3]

15 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

Neighbors question soccer stadium instead of housing. I'm hoping it's both, not either/or:

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2022/09/as-group-eyes-grand-rapids-soccer-stadium-questions-swirl-over-housing-neighborhood-impact.html

Joe

I saw that, but it's really only one person they interviewed. If housing were in the cards for those lots now, housing developments would have been underway already. Plus the proposal we've been sharing identifies quite a few potential housing spots in the area. 

[joeDowntown]

1 hour ago, GRDadof3 said:

I saw that, but it's really only one person they interviewed. If housing were in the cards for those lots now, housing developments would have been underway already. Plus the proposal we've been sharing identifies quite a few potential housing spots in the area. 

Yep. And as I've speculated, the numbers being thrown around ($114M?) would indicate that it's more than just the soccer stadium (or so I hope).  

Also, I read the city planning agenda, and it sounds like Gin Gin / General Wood Shop are the same project, one is the LLC of the other (which totally confuses me as their is also the proposed Gin-Gins on Summer... ) . So the plans somebody showed above for 507 Bridge is General Wood Shop. 

Joe