Our city government should advance the interest of ALL its residents, not just the rich. On November 12th, the Grand Rapids City Commission will host a public hearing to consider whether or not to approve a $565 million tax capture/incentive to a proposed DeVos and Van Andel-backed development project. Join us in demanding that our commissioners use tax dollars for our benefit, not for billionaires. 

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About the Proposed Downtown Development Project

Fulmar Property Holdings, a company made up of members of the DeVos and Van Andel families, is seeking to build three high-rise buildings–including high-end apartments and condos, a hotel, an office tower, and retail stores in downtown Grand Rapids. The project is estimated to cost $797 million dollars, and the company is requesting a $565 million dollar tax capture/incentive from the City of Grand Rapids and the Michigan Strategic Fund. This is over a half a billion dollars that should go towards supporting our neighborhoods and the everyday people that live in them.

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In order to access this subsidy, Fulmar Property Holdings is offering to give back a meager $425,000/year to the Grand Rapids Affordable Housing Fund over 20 years - totaling $8.5 million dollars. The proposed contribution is a drop in the bucket compared to the mounting need for affordable and low-cost housing in our community. It does little to tend to the need for affordable and low-cost housing for everyday people in Grand Rapids while the company is positioned to reap the long-term benefits of the tax incentive and private development.

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The project will include a proposed 595 apartments (studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units). A member of the project team estimates that the apartment rates would be equivalent to 150% of the area median income in Kent County. Based on data from the State of Michigan, the monthly rent for the units would be as follows: Studio apartment: $2,643/month, One-bedroom apartment: $2,833/month, Two-bedroom apartment: $3,401. These rates are unaffordable for the everyday resident in Grand Rapids.

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Demand Investments in Affordable and Low-Cost Housing for Everyday People

Grand Rapids is increasingly unaffordable for everyday people, and we need to ensure there is adequate housing stock for low and middle-income families. The proposed Fulton Market development exemplifies a long-standing history of millionaires and billionaires using public funds to build their wealth at the expense of the needed investments we have identified in our community. 

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We stand in solidarity with the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union in calling for the Grand Rapids City Commission to restructure the downtown development deal to fund affordable housing for Grand Rapids residents and adopt the following demands. We call on our Grand Rapids Commissioners to: 

1. Restructure the project to require a $100 million contribution to the affordable housing fund over a 20-year period instead of the proposed $8.5 million, 
2. Reject the $565 million subsidy approved by the Grand Rapids Brownfield Development Authority, and
3. Require that the apartments built as part of this development be set at 30% area median income (AMI) in Grand Rapids rather than the proposed 150% AMI in Kent County.

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Take Action and Express the Need for Commissioners to Restructure the Deal

1. Email your City Commissioner and the Mayor expressing the need to restructure the deal to truly invest in affordable housing for everyday people in Grand Rapids.
2. Attend and offer public comment at the public hearing regarding the development project at City Hall (300 Monroe Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503) on Tuesday, November 12th at 2pm.
3. Attend and offer public comment regarding the development project at the City Commission meeting at City Hall (300 Monroe Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503) on Tuesday, December 5th at 6pm.

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