Grandville Avenue Developments

[PBJ]

Yep, we'll re-convene once we have significant construction progress / a finished "model" apartment.

uhm.. time line please...

[GRDadof3]

Hey, who all went today?? Did you guys exchange the secret handshake?

[torgo]

since my handle here is the same as my name, i can just say 'andy' and no 'secret handshake' is needed.

[twoshort]

Hey, who all went today?? Did you guys exchange the secret handshake?

Andy112129, Prankster, GrGuy, and myself. I'm bad with names and faces and trying to deal with nicknames and real names really screwed me up.

[GRDadof3]

At PWCD, I kept wanting to call Prankster....Prankster. Josh was easy because that's his real name.

[quoteme3]

The floors have been refinished on the top floor.. very shiny, and a light natural color. SOO cool.

[PBJ]

Wow.. great insight, love it.. and welcome aboard!!

[GRDadof3]

Freaking awesome! Thanks quoteme3! I can't wait to get in and see it. I'll see if I can find anything on Hopson. There is a historian guy at the old GR musuem site (archives bldg) who's name is Bill Cunningham I believe. He apparently knows everything about the city. If you need his contact info, you can get it from the library clerks in the archive section at Ryerson (in the new wing).

I get a couple of hits for W.C. Hopson at the library and in a book called "The History of the City of Grand Rapids"

http://www.grpl.org/collections/grhsty_spc...desman_u-z.html

http://www.rootsweb.com/~mikent/baxter1891/nameindex/h.html

I'd hit the special collections area at Ryerson and ask for either of these.

[GRDadof3]

Here's another blurb about Hopson:

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:cN8ubom...6+company&hl=en

[Prankster]

Welcome quoteme3, your insight into this building is very much appreciated. What Terra Firma showed us was very amazing, but it must have been even more for you because you knew what it looked like before the rehab started.

[quoteme3]

Wow.. great insight, love it.. and welcome aboard!!

well thank you for welcoming me everybody! I'd been poking around your site here trying to keep up with

some of the new residential conversions down Cherry St and the like in order to ultimately market my services to them... you folks have made that very easy to do here and I thank you for that.

This is a great forum.

[quoteme3]

Welcome quoteme3, your insight into this building is very much appreciated. What Terra Firma showed us was very amazing, but it must have been even more for you because you knew what it looked like before the rehab started.

Thank you prankster.... this project is old hat for Eric, but was all new to me, most of what I've done

in the past was bland burb, raw land ground up stuff.

When I look back at the project from the start, I think... wow, we pretty much went over every square inch

of this big building with one sort of tool or another. Not many places we didnt touch. Not too sure I'm ready for another one, but no regrets whatsoever.

Dont hesitate if you have questions, it was a fun experience I dont mind sharing.

[quoteme3]

Here's another blurb about Hopson:

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:cN8ubom...6+company&hl=en

Hi GRDadof3,

so it appears this Verstay fella learned the sheet metal ropes from W C Hopson just after the turn of the century..... the pieces seem to fit the puzzle, the environmental doc said sheet metal/tin was the first use of the building, so the building was named after W C Hopson. The Railroad tracks went right down along the back ally before the bus depot was built (a small section of the same track remains behind the Bud Icehouse

north up the road, I believe), which would be needed back then to deliver the heavy sheet metal loads.

Now i am curious what they made/manufactured. I think my dad has the History of GR book... I'll see what it sez. Thank you.

BTW, you missed the tour? Email me at [email protected]

[GRDadof3]

Hi GRDadof3,

so it appears this Verstay fella learned the sheet metal ropes from W C Hopson just after the turn of the century..... the pieces seem to fit the puzzle, the environmental doc said sheet metal/tin was the first use of the building, so the building was named after W C Hopson. The Railroad tracks went right down along the back ally before the bus depot was built (a small section of the same track remains behind the Bud Icehouse

north up the road, I believe), which would be needed back then to deliver the heavy sheet metal loads.

Now i am curious what they made/manufactured. I think my dad has the History of GR book... I'll see what it sez. Thank you.

BTW, you missed the tour? Email me at [email protected]

I definitely will, thanks! It's got to be the same Hopson. Only one shows up repeatedly, and the Michigan Tradesmen usually gets a hit with any building name in GR that I put into a google search. Let us know what you find out.