Web Design in Grand Rapids, MI

Grand Rapids, Kent County

Well-Known Places in Grand Rapids

Frederik Meijer Gardens, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Van Andel Arena.

Grand Rapids Business Districts

• Downtown Grand Rapids
• Medical Mile
• 28th Street Corridor

Major Employers in Grand Rapids

Spectrum Health, Amway, Meijer, Steelcase, Grand Valley State University.

About Grand Rapids, Kent County

Michigan's second-largest city sits on the rapids of the Grand River that gave it its name, and it has reinvented itself from the 19th-century workshop that built America's furniture into a craft-beer capital and healthcare hub. Downtown fills every fall with ArtPrize, a radically open art competition decided partly by public vote, while the DeVos, Van Andel, and Meijer family fortunes anchor its civic life. It is a West Michigan city with deep Dutch-American roots and a startlingly progressive record on public health.

History of Grand Rapids

• The area was home to Hopewell mound-builders and later the Odawa (Ottawa) people before European-American settlement.
• In 1826 French fur trader Louis Campau established a trading post on land along the Grand River he bought from the federal government for about $90.

Landmarks and Places in Grand Rapids

• Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, a 158-acre botanical garden and sculpture collection.
• Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum on the west bank of the Grand River.
• Calder Plaza and Alexander Calder's monumental red stabile 'La Grande Vitesse.'

The Grand Rapids Economy

• Healthcare is now a leading sector, anchored by Corewell Health and the 'Medical Mile' research-and-hospital corridor along Michigan Street (Van Andel Institute, MSU College of Human Medicine).
• Steelcase, the world's largest office-furniture maker, is headquartered in the metro area, continuing the furniture legacy.
• Meijer, the pioneering supercenter grocery chain, is headquartered in the Grand Rapids area, and Amway (the DeVos family direct-sales giant) is based in nearby Ada.

Community Life in Grand Rapids

• Named 'Beer City USA' after online polls in 2012 and 2013, the region hosts more than 100 breweries and cider makers, including nationally known Founders Brewing Company.
• The Grand Rapids Griffins play AHL hockey (a Detroit Red Wings affiliate) at Van Andel Arena.

Local reference: en.wikipedia.org, www.fox17online.com, mymagicgr.com