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GRLaker

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Looks like a nice bike ride.  It's great to see that you used the bike path instead of Grand River Dr.  One of my biggest pet peeves is someone biking along a skinny 2 lane road when there is a bike path 10 feet away from them.  Even if I wanted to give them half a car length I wouldn't be able to due to oncoming traffic, it's dangerous for everyone.  

Also, the strip mall in front of Goodwill has a Sherwin Williams sign up, so now you don't have to go all the way to Plainfield and 5 Mile for your paint needs.

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10 hours ago, Floyd_Z said:

Looks like a nice bike ride.  It's great to see that you used the bike path instead of Grand River Dr.  One of my biggest pet peeves is someone biking along a skinny 2 lane road when there is a bike path 10 feet away from them.  Even if I wanted to give them half a car length I wouldn't be able to due to oncoming traffic, it's dangerous for everyone.  

Also, the strip mall in front of Goodwill has a Sherwin Williams sign up, so now you don't have to go all the way to Plainfield and 5 Mile for your paint needs.

Yep, I generally like being out on the road better than on the bike paths when there's a good sized shoulder but Grand River is too dangerous. That's why it'd be great if they connected the paths on Fulton, because it picks up again at the Fulton bridge over the Grand River and is a very nice trail all the way out to McCabe, Conservation and Honey Creek. 

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23 hours ago, MJLO said:

"Keep Ada Weird" :tw_joy::tw_joy::tw_joy:

Hey, there are some hip people in Ada. :)  Their Beer on the Bridge event is pretty cool actually.  They also have an artists market that is way better than the art tents at Festival. :) (that's not saying much I know). 

 

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4 hours ago, GRLaker said:

Sears announced the closing of another 72 stores. Locations will be announced later today.

The irony of Amazon announcing new fulfillment centers incl Grand Rapids isn't lost.

I'm thinking Target is next.  Anyone been in one lately?

Edited by arcturus
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11 minutes ago, arcturus said:

The irony of Amazon announcing new fulfillment centers incl Grand Rapids isn't lost.

I'm thinking Target is next.  Anyone been in one lately?

Target??? No way. Place is packed constantly. Their brands of clothing, furniture, and home decor are super popular with millennials (and females in general), plus at prices that are very competitive with Amazon. I think they have carved out a nice niche for themselves. 

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40 minutes ago, arcturus said:

The irony of Amazon announcing new fulfillment centers incl Grand Rapids isn't lost.

I'm thinking Target is next.  Anyone been in one lately?

I don't think we are to that point yet.  Target isn't as big in W. Michigan as it is in many places throughout the country.   The Targets here are busy, but not as busy as they might be if so many of us weren't ardent Meijer shoppers. 

Sears and Kmart have been on life support like literally since 2004.  I am not sure what crazy credit and cash manuevering Ed Lampert and Co have been doing over the past 5 years to even keep the doors open.    They are about the worst examples to use to showcase the decline of brick and mortar retail, since they were obsolete brands even prior to the rise of Amazon. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/13/2018 at 2:12 PM, GRLaker said:

REI would be a nice addition and something that could kickstart a Rivertown resurgence. If this company is the largest real estate investment company in the world, I'm sure they have some sway to get a big name interested. 

I think meijer is trying to beef up their gas stations to accommodate more “fill in” trips. Smart move for people that just want a couple items. 

Joe

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So that’s what’s going in on Walker. I’ll be stopping there a lot more often. I like Meijer but I find the gas stations to be kind of dumpy. They have a new one in Cascade that we just stopped at the other night. It’s really, really nice.

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12 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

I think meijer is trying to beef up their gas stations to accommodate more “fill in” trips. Smart move for people that just want a couple items. 

Joe

They're also adding a large selection of beer and wine, similar to what Merle Boes is doing with his gas stations (Leonard and East Beltline for instance). 

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Most money for gas stations is made inside - not in the gas sales. Making the building a more desirable place to walk into is always a good business move for a gas station.

On 5/28/2018 at 5:16 PM, GRDadof3 said:

Took a long 25 mile bike ride out past Knapp's Corner and into the belly of Ada and Ada Township this weekend. I haven't done one of these photo essays in a while, what a lot of work! :)

Here's one of the new collections of retail buildings at Knapp's Corner. You can see the reconfigured street leading over to D&W:

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Kudos for the bike racks and string lights I guess. :) To the left I believe was slated to be a Bar Louie:

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New Hopcat across the road:

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Only 10 minutes away (by bike) you're out in the country.  One of the things I love about this area. One of my favorite stretches to bike, along Michigan St. 

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On Grand River Drive, Roselle Park's relatively new community center:

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Grand River Drive non-motorized path:

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Lots of sculptures out in these parts. 

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I love this farmhouse/preschool. If you look closely you can see a goat on the bridge:

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Amway re-did their landscaping and added a new bike trail in this section from Grand River to Bronson a few years ago. 

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But it sadly end at Bronson and you have to risk your life to try and pick it up again about a half mile down Fulton (and it's a janky section at that point until the Fulton bridge). They are building a non-motorized path on the other side of Fulton near the gas station, wondering if that's how they're going to link them?

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This is the gas station and body shop that replaced that old disgusting one. And McDonalds moved from the strip mall out to here and has a drive through now. Pretty swank for a suburban operation. They could really uses a bike rack or two here:

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Spectrum Health has a new clinic just East of here on the other corner:

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Behind McDonalds and the gas station is a new "EGR-ish" new home neighborhood going in. Prices range in the $550's. Quite a few sold signs already.

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Behind this project on Bronson, they're adding on to the Ada Averill Museum:

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As Grand Rapids 2nd most "toniest" suburb after EGR, they're definitely setting the architectural dial at "modern country."

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The new location for the Ada Community Center:

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Now the new downtown starts (sorry some of them are blurry, may have been sweaty hands). :P

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I like the Italian-styled balconies on these. 

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The new Gravel Bottom looks inviting:

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Nice architectural details:

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Seating outside of Kingma's Market:

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This building will be just to the South of the Western end of the Kingma's section of retail, if that makes sense. It will run North-south.

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This building further along is just to the South of that. I guess it's probably where the parking lot for Gravel Bottom was?  This is apparently the new building for Zeytin's. 

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Across the street is the sad but not so sad remains of the strip mall:

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The old schoolhouse, slated to be an ice cream shop I believe. I think it's the one that Candy (?) Devos is opening? Behind it is the new riverfront park and boardwalk.

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Snowmelt!

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New restroom building for the park
 

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Looking Northwest from the (now) back corner of the new downtown. 

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Heading west down that new street, now looking at the back of the stripmall and Zeytins current location.

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Back to the old section. They should rename this part "Old Town" and make it the "keep Ada weird" part of Ada, anchored by the bike shop. 

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Up the hill from "Old Town Ada" is an interesting new development called Riverpoint, that overlooks the Ada dam from a dramatic hillside site. Townhomes and homes. 

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This is looking West up the hill toward that old school that was remade into condos and offices:

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Some amazing site work to make this project happen:

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The setting and views of the dam are worth the $600K+ price tag. :)

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The kayakers out on Thornapple River made it seem other-worldly (Traverse City-like)

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The pics don't do it justice:

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Across the road are new homes going in designed by J Peterson (EGR fame)

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And that's my Ada essay, complete without any political commentary. ;)

 

Settlers Grove riverfront park site plan:

http://adamichigan.org/uploads/village/Settlers-Park-Site-Plan.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

I drove around Ada the other day and I have to say...I know that there is some criticism of this project, but I think it is a great move for the village and will only increase demand for real estate in the area. Ada was never on my radar for purchasing a home, but having this central downtown has put it on the list of places to look.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/20/2018 at 10:38 AM, mgreven said:

Then there's the Lakes Mall in Muskegon...already a lot of vacancies and lots of local type store (second hand, comics, vape shops).  That Younkers was supposed to stay but with that, Sears and JCP as the anchors  it could get worse really quickly.  Not even 20 years after it was brand new and took a bunch of stores out of Muskegon and into Norton Shores/Fruitport.

Ran across this interesting article , "Who is making money from struggling U.S. malls? Apparently the family owned investment firms Namdar Realty Group and Mason Asset Management buy up failing malls then just collect rent from whatever tenants are left and do minimal maintenance and promotion.  So I wondered if they own any malls around here.  They do, Lakes Mall in Muskegon.

Reuters - Who is making money from struggling malls

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28 minutes ago, walker said:

Ran across this interesting article , "Who is making money from struggling U.S. malls? Apparently the family owned investment firms Namdar Realty Group and Mason Asset Management buy up failing malls then just collect rent from whatever tenants are left and do minimal maintenance and promotion.  So I wondered if they own any malls around here.  They do, Lakes Mall in Muskegon.

Reuters - Who is making money from struggling malls

That stinks...I don’t understand how that works in the long run.  I hope thy don’t kill that mall...sadly, I think they have already started. :(

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There are a ton of new developments going up along Lake Michigan Drive in Allendale I noticed recently. They all seemed to pop at once. Office and retail. 

I also noticed a new hotel going up behind that retail center across from the new Duluth Trading Company by Rivertown Crossings. Sort of wedged between the retail center and Grandville High School. I swear it wasn't there a few weeks ago. :P

CopperRock Construction has a bunch of work going on out in the Hudsonville area, including a new retail center at the corner of 36th and Baldwin across from the new Licari's out there. 

A bunch of new industrial buildings going up by the new Jamestown Meijer, which looks very close to opening. 

Orion's new townhomes in Cascade are going up. There's also a big new retirement community going up where the Y used to be on Forest Hill Avenue. 

I actually had the pleasure of having to travel to Zeeland for business this week and holy cow the area around 96th and the one high school was unrecognizable. And the downtown area was hopping for a mid afternoon with a lot of shoppers. 

Overall it seems like the commercial construction business has taken off again recently. 

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24 minutes ago, GRDadof3 said:

There are a ton of new developments going up along Lake Michigan Drive in Allendale I noticed recently. They all seemed to pop at once. Office and retail. 

I also noticed a new hotel going up behind that retail center across from the new Duluth Trading Company by Rivertown Crossings. Sort of wedged between the retail center and Grandville High School. I swear it wasn't there a few weeks ago. :P

CopperRock Construction has a bunch of work going on out in the Hudsonville area, including a new retail center at the corner of 36th and Baldwin across from the new Licari's out there. 

A bunch of new industrial buildings going up by the new Jamestown Meijer, which looks very close to opening. 

Orion's new townhomes in Cascade are going up. There's also a big new retirement community going up where the Y used to be on Forest Hill Avenue. 

I actually had the pleasure of having to travel to Zeeland for business this week and holy cow the area around 96th and the one high school was unrecognizable. And the downtown area was hopping for a mid afternoon with a lot of shoppers. 

Overall it seems like the commercial construction business has taken off again recently. 

We may be starting to reach the point in commercial suburban development where density in the inner ring of suburbs is reaching its maximum point and spreading out into the outer ring of the suburbs will be the next step. The only holdout for this, of course, would be Walker between the Grand River and Lake Michigan Drive. Allendale, Jamestown, Byron, Gaines, and Caledonia Townships will be the new frontier in commercial development.

Edited by GRLaker
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3 hours ago, GRLaker said:

We may be starting to reach the point in commercial suburban development where density in the inner ring of suburbs is reaching its maximum point and spreading out into the outer ring of the suburbs will be the next step. The only holdout for this, of course, would be Walker between the Grand River and Lake Michigan Drive. Allendale, Jamestown, Byron, Gaines, and Caledonia Townships will be the new frontier in commercial development.

I'm really surprised the Lowell exit hasn't taken off yet. I know Grooters had all that property listed at one time. The Cedar Springs exit is going gang-busters with Meijer and the usual outcrop of businesses. The Rockford exit has a big new development that is about to start just East of the Meijer. Mixed use (but not really urban in nature). The South end of the metro will stretch with commercial all the way to Wayland here soon. So yes the exurbs are certainly taking off. 

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