Grand Rapids board signs off on $8M land sale for Amway Stadium
Posted By: mlive on February 12, 2025. For more information, please click here to read the source article.
The Grand Rapids Downtown Development Authority approved a request by Grand Action 2.0 to purchase a site near the David D. Hunting YMCA where the 8,500-seat Amway Stadium will be built.
Grand Action 2.0, the private economic development group leading the push to build the stadium, will pay $8 million for the property, according to a DDA memo.
The 8.5 acres Grand Action is purchasing includes 4.4 acres of surface parking lots near the corner of Pearl Street NW and Mt. Vernon Avenue NW owned by the DDA. It also includes the YMCA’s parking lot, public rights of way and the former Big Boy property. The DDA unanimously approved the purchase.
Rick Winn, who chairs the DDA, said Wednesday’s purchase agreement was another step needed to get the stadium project off the ground.
“It’s another transformational project,” he said. “I think it’s going to bring the communities together because soccer is a uniter of people, and that’s hopefully what will happen here.”
Kara Wood, executive director of Grand Action 2.0, said construction on Amway Stadium is expected to start this spring. The $175 million, multi-purpose venue is expected to host 14 home games by a yet-to-be-named team in the MLS NEXT Pro league once it opens in spring 2027.
The DDA is overseen by Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. (DGRI). Tim Kelly, president and CEO of DGRI, said the soccer stadium represents a better use of the land than the surface parking lots that currently occupy the site.
“For as long as I’ve been around, we’ve looked at those west side parking lots as opportunity sites,” he said. “With conversations with Grand Action, through the Destination Asset Study, the opportunity to deliver a soccer stadium was a transformational idea and project not only for downtown but the entire region.”
Usage rates weren’t immediately available Wednesday. However, DGRI and the city of Grand Rapids parking services department have said the lots are underused. In addition to its entertainment value, the soccer stadium will provide a boost to Bridge Street NW, where a host of restaurants, bars and other businesses are located, Kelly said.
While a chunk of parking will disappear once construction starts, a 482-space parking lot, known as DASH lot 9, will remain in place, Kelly said. DGRI will continue to examine redevelopment opportunities for that lot, such as housing.
DASH Lot 8 will also remain open.
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