Grand Rapids city commissioners and residents say they feel let down after a local businessman appointed to fill a commission vacancy in March filed to run for the seat this week after repeatedly claiming he had no plans to do so. Bing Goei, owner and CEO of Eastern Floral and founder of the Goei Center, filed as the sixth and final candidate for the Third Ward commission seat on Monday, one day before the Tuesday filing deadline for the August primary.  Goei beat out six other candidates to fill the vacancy left when former Commissioner Nathaniel Moody resigned citing personal reasons at ..read more

Grand Action 2.0 received the first vote of approval this morning for an estimated $318 million Transformational Brownfield Plan for the Acrisure Amphitheater, soccer stadium and adjacent mixed-use projects.  The Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority unanimously approved the Transformational Brownfield Plan, which is set to be considered for approval by the city commission on May 21. The Michigan Strategic Fund Board also must approve the powerful funding tool, which is expected to be scheduled in June.  “It’s important to note … $130 million dollars of private philanthropy ..read more

With nearly 30% of the office space in Bridgewater Place sitting vacant, the 18-story office tower’s owner has decided to bring in a new firm to market the space to potential tenants.  California-based Hertz Investment Group dismissed Colliers International as its leasing agent for Bridgewater Place and hired brokerage firm JLL in its place. The move is aimed at addressing the spiking vacancy in the class A office tower, where Corewell Health has vacated about 55,000 square feet of offices and is set to leave another 15,000 square feet of temporary space in the coming weeks.  “Histor ..read more

The Grand Rapids City Commission has adopted five policy changes aimed at gradually increasing housing supply, diversity and affordability. The city commission at its Tuesday evening meeting unanimously approved five zoning ordinance amendments related to housing. The amendments will ease restrictions on accessory dwelling units (ADUs), increase the allowable number of unrelated occupants per unit, adjust group-living requirements, allow for more small-scale residential infill projects throughout the city, and reduce or eliminate parking minimums in certain areas to make infill easier to accom ..read more

Local labor attorneys expect a quick court challenge to a planned federal ban on virtually all non-compete agreements.  The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday voted 3-2 to ban employers from using noncompetes, which are often used to prevent employees from leaving to go work for a competitor.  Dean Pacific, a labor attorney and partner at Grand Rapids-based Warner Norcross + Judd LLP, expects a court challenge to come as soon as Wednesday. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has vowed to challenge the ban as exceeding the FTC’s rule-making authority.  “Very quickly, it’s going to be t ..read more

Parking rates in downtown Grand Rapids could increase for a third time since Jan. 1, 2023 under a new budget proposal for the city’s next fiscal year.  The parking rate increases are part of the proposed 2025 fiscal year budget, which was presented today at the Committee of the Whole meeting. The parking rate hikes include increasing special event parking rates, extending on-street metered parking enforcement hours and increasing monthly parking rates by 2%, which currently range from $48 to $200 depending on the lot.  The budget would extend the times that the city enforces metered ..read more

The Grand Rapids-based Frey Foundation entered its 50th year in operation in 2024, with third-generation family member Tripp Frey in his second year chairing the organization’s board of trustees. Under Frey’s board leadership, the foundation’s charitable giving continues a focus on local projects, including programs that support housing solutions for low- and moderate-income residents.  Founded in 1974 by Frey’s grandparents Edward and Frances Frey, the foundation has awarded more than $187 million in grants over the past 50 years. At the end of 2022, the organization had $132 million in ..read more

A developer and a title company are planning to add 181 units of mixed-income rental housing at an existing office property on Grand Rapids’ northeast side. Pinnacle Construction Group and Sun Title Agency will go before the Grand Rapids City Planning Commission May 9 with a request to rezone 301 Leonard St. NE from Neighborhood Office Service to Planned Redevelopment District. The rezoning would support construction of a five-story mixed-use residential and retail building on the 3.4-acre site at Leonard Street and Lafayette Avenue NE, which Sun Title acquired in 2022 for its corporate headqu ..read more

President JetCo Federal Sue Schweim Tellier is the president and owner of JetCo Federal, a U.S. Small Business Administration- and Women’s Business Enterprise National Council-certified woman-owned small business that serve as a prime contractor in supply chain management and logistics serving the defense industry. Since opening in 2007, JetCo Federal has gained a reputation for agile solution design and earned positive performance assessments from federal agency clients. Prior to moving to the private sector in 2007, Tellier worked in procurement marketing for the Michigan Department of Manag ..read more

President and CEO Waséyabek Development Co. LLC    Deidra Mitchell serves as president and CEO of Waséyabek Development Co. LLC, a 100% tribally-owned holding company that manages the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi’s non-gaming economic development activities. Waséyabek’s purpose is to diversify the economic and investment interests of the tribe beyond gaming and create diverse employment opportunities for tribal members. Under Mitchell’s leadership, Waséyabek has grown from three employees to more than 500 people, from three entities to 31, and from one location to c ..read more