GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — This warmer weather is a great time to be outside. What better spot to be than at a park? Grand Rapids is getting ready to welcome a new one.
The city of Grand Rapids is going to create four and a half acres of green space right next to the new amphitheater. The last time the city undertook a project near this size was more than a decade ago. The city explains that they plan to start working later this month.
Grand Rapids parks are a popular spot for many.
“It’s just a good way to get fresh air,” Paul Mueller said.
Mueller and his fiancée are enjoying the sun and warmer weather.
“It’s so nice out; we figure we gotta start getting our miles in,” Mueller added.
The two love being at parks — especially right now.
“So honestly, like, the last week, it's kind of been like, ‘Okay, let's go to a new park. Try to rotate through all of them.’ It's really just nice to get a variety too,” Mueller said.
Grand Rapids is getting ready to add a new park to the city's growing list.
“I mean, Grand Rapids has been growing for the last decade, and we just love to see it just keep getting bigger and better,” Austin Burrill said.
The area is currently blocked off by a fence and overgrown brush. The park is adding several new features, including stadium-level seating, river access, and access to the new amphitheater.
“The project will include a multi-use pathway, about a half-mile stretch of pathway, four and a half acres of new green space being created, some scenic views of the river in the downtown, with some seat steps and seat walls along that pathway and opportunities for future public art to be displayed,” Grand Rapids City Engineer Tim Burkman said.
This project is estimated to cost $17 million. Burkman explains that the money comes from the Greenway Grant and capital improvement funds.
“It's a beautiful vision, opening up access to spaces that didn't exist before,” Burkman added.
The last time the city saw a project of this size was more than a decade ago. The city explains that Pleasant Park and Tremont Park were both less than two and a half acres in size.
“Really inviting people in, drawing them into the river, creating additional non-motorized transportation opportunities adjacent to the river just will be, I think, a tremendous amenity that's being added to our river edge,” Burkman explained.
Many are eager to see the park completed.
“It'll probably be busy at first, which is great, you know; it gets used. But I think there's no harm in it. I think it only benefits everyone involved,” Mueller added.
The city explains that it plans to have a portion of this project done by April 2026, so it coincides with the opening of the amphitheater.
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