WEST MICHIGAN | General Developments

[deja vu]

Grand Haven -

An article on the successes of Robinson Landing -

Innovative approach to affordable housing in Michigan proves successful
Shandra Martinez | The Lakeshore West Michigan
October 31, 2022

Allegan -

A nature preserve that was decades in the making is open -

Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy unveils new Armintrout-Milbocker Nature Preserve in Allegan
Rosemary Parker | Second Wave Southwest Michigan
November 3, 2022

[DetroitMan]

The Gun Lake Tribe is planning to develop 2.75 miles of frontage along the east side of U.S. 131 between Exit 61 and 133rd Ave. The vision for the land includes retail, health care, housing and manufacturing.
Gun Lake Tribe kicks off planning to develop 2.75-mile stretch of U.S. 131 frontage

The tribe for years has been acquiring property north of the casino on the east side of U.S. 131 in Allegan County to secure it for possible future development. Monica King, CEO of Gun Lake Investments, the tribe’s non-gaming investment arm, said the tribe has secured about a 2.75-mile stretch of highway frontage spanning approximately 1,200 acres.

Now Gun Lake Investments is launching a six-month planning phase to prioritize various uses and where they will be located.“The planning phase will really be about figuring out what are our constraints and opportunities, and what we can target first,” King told MiBiz. “This is really a 25-year-plus project and will be such a huge project. We really do need to make sure we get everyone involved. … Twelve-hundred acres is so significant and it will be its own ecosystem. We do have a couple of projects (in the development) that we want to fast track and that we hope to break ground on next year.”

Parts of the development could complement the tribe’s growing casino operations, including a new 15-story hotel, but the new project will not involve gaming, King said. Conceptually, the tribe hopes to use the development to help draw more families to the area, she added.

“We really want to make that corridor a destination,” said King, noting it was too early in the process to provide cost estimates for the project.

https://mibiz.com/sections/real-esta...s-131-frontage

[DetroitMan]

‘Unprecedented’ $10M cannabis hospitality project planned in Muskegon

The $10 million Fields Cannary project would be located just east of U.S. 31 at 420 S. Harvey St. in Muskegon. The nearly 4-acre property contains an existing 11,000-square-foot Sons of Norway lodge, which would be renovated into the dispensary, restaurant and bar, and cannabis consumption lounge. A 17,000-square-foot processing center and greenhouse facility would be added to the site.

Project developers plan to hire about 45 people when Fields Cannary is completed in late summer or fall of 2023. Construction is set to begin this year by Grow America Builders LLC, an Illinois-based construction firm specializing in cannabis projects.

https://mibiz.com/sections/real-esta...ed-in-muskegon

[DetroitMan]

Muskegon-

“The Shaw Walker property is an important part of Muskegon’s history, and it represents today the largest adaptive reuse opportunity that we are aware of in West Michigan,” Parkland Properties President Jon Rooks said. “We are looking forward to working with the city of Muskegon, county of Muskegon and the state of Michigan to find a way to preserve and repurpose this important piece of history.”

In February, the city told the former property owner, Brooklyn, New York-based P&G Holdings, to “fix” or “remove” the undeveloped portion of the buildings, according to WZZM 13.

The project will restore the existing buildings and repurpose them into up to 550 condominiums and apartments, as well as offices, retail space and more.

Half of the project will be privately owned condominiums with the other half as market rate apartments.

https://grbj.com/news/real-estate/de...egon-property/

[DetroitMan]

Muskegon Lake development projects focus of upcoming public forum

The city of Muskegon is hosting the forum from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, at city hall.

Attendees will be able to learn about the latest plans for the developments and provide feedback.

Adelaide Pointe is an ambitious project estimated at $250 million involving a marina with more than 200 slips, hundreds of condominiums, boat storage and retail.The location is a former industrial site near the end of West Western Avenue.

It also will include three acres of public access recreational areas on the two peninsulas forming the marina boat basin. Those are expected to include bike paths, grilling stations, fish cleaning stations and locations from which to fish. The adjacent Hartshorn Village project started three years ago by DeHaan Homes and Smith Equities. But the project stalled after two homes were constructed and Hartshorn Village has been purchased by Ryan Leestma, the developer behind the Adelaide Pointe project.

Originally, plans were for 55 detached homes at Hartshorn Village, but Leestma is proposing reducing that to 20.

Hartshorn Village also is the planned location for a “dry marina” operation that would involve indoor storage of boats and on-demand placement of them in the water via the city’s Hartshorn launch ramp.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...lic-forum.html

[DetroitMan]

Whitehall-
$8.5M apartment, restaurant building planned in downtown Whitehall

An $8.5 million mixed-use apartment complex with a restaurant is planned for an “amazing” location in downtown Whitehall.

The four-story complex is planned for the Colby Street hill at the corner of Lake Street overlooking White Lake, the city’s marina and Goodrich Park.

The 25 apartments will each have a balcony as well as a water view, said Chris Veneklasen, CEO of Veneklasen Construction and Veneklasen Development. His two firms are working on the project that has several other investors with ties to the White Lake area, Veneklasen told MLive/Muskegon Chronicle. He has a cottage on White Lake.

“Everyone has an emotional tie to the area,” Veneklasen said of the investment group. “Everyone wants to see the area prosper.”The site at 201 W. Colby Street and 115 Lake Street is the former location of the Pinheads bowling alley, which had been torn down five years before the investment group, 115 Lake St. LLC, purchased the property in 2021.

“It represents a great opportunity,” Veneklasen said. “It’s an amazing spot.”

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...whitehall.html

[DetroitMan]

I hope Muskegon is able to pull off this redevleopment

Old rail line sale should help develop huge site on Muskegon Lake

After six years of effort, the city of Muskegon now is the owner of a rail line that will be removed to spur development of the largest undeveloped tract of vacant land on Muskegon Lake.

The city on Tuesday, March 28, closed on the purchase of two miles of CSX rail line stretching along Muskegon Lake from the corner of Shoreline Drive and West Western Avenue west nearly to the Cottage Grove Launch Ramp on Lakeshore Drive. The city used $1.7 million in American Rescue Act Plan funding to purchase the abandoned rail line. It was motivated to make the purchase so that the Windward Pointe property, through which the rail line runs, could proceed with development.

The former long-time site of a paper mill that was served by the rail line, Windward Pointe is in the hands of a local investment group called Pure Muskegon that is seeking developers for the 120-acre property.

But the prospect that the railroad could essentially store rail cars on the property had made finding a developer extremely difficult, city officials said earlier.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...egon-lake.html

[DetroitMan]

Lakeshore Advantage plans $15.3M headquarters, startup incubator in downtown Holland

akeshore Advantage Corp., the economic development organization serving Ottawa and Allegan counties, has unveiled plans for a $15.3 million development in downtown Holland that would house a business incubator as well as the organization’s new headquarters.

The “Next Center,” planned at 65 E. Seventh St., will serve as a hub for innovation and business growth by providing resources to help grow startups.

“What this means for Lakeshore Advantage is that we will now be able to co-locate with the startup ecosystem,” Beth Blanton, vice president of engagement at Lakeshore Advantage, told Crain’s Grand Rapids Business.

Lakeshore Advantage announced the center on Wednesday during the organization’s 20th anniversary celebration with more than 250 business and community leaders.

https://www.crainsgrandrapids.com/ne...ntown-holland/

[DetroitMan]

Gotion is moving forward with their plant in Big Rapids

Gotion to move forward on $2.4B battery plant near Big Rapids after national security review

The company said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States determined in its review of the project that its proposed purchase of land in Green Township in Mecosta County "is not a covered real estate transaction and is not a covered transaction under the Defense Production Act of 1950," according to a Gotion news release.A covered transaction is a deal subject to CFIUS jurisdiction. Covered transactions can include foreign investment in the United States and certain real estate transactions by foreign persons reviewed to determine the effect of such deals on U.S. national security.

"We voluntarily submitted all the needed documents to the U.S. Department of Treasury Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to be transparent and accountable and received the response that it is not a covered transaction," Chuck Thelen, vice president of Gotion's North American manufacturing, said in the release.

Gotion submitted to a voluntary CFIUS review in April for its planned factory in Green Township, which has become a lightning rod for criticism and political debate. The plan to build a factory spanning 2 million square feet — and possibly another 1 million square feet on top of the initial footprint — has been effectively on hold for the past month as the company awaited results of the federal review.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/manufa...federal-review

[DetroitMan]

Main Event is opening their first Michigan location in Kentwood next year near Woodland Mall.

Laser tag, bowling coming to Grand Rapids-area mall

A new business is coming to Woodland Mall in Kentwood, complete with a full-service restaurant, laser tag and bowling.

The business, called Main Event Entertainment, will be located at the rear of the north side of the mall behind the Von Maur and Black Rock restaurant, at 3139 28th Street.

The 48,950-square-foot building will technically be a separate structure from the mall, but the entrance will be less than 30 feet from the corridor between Von Maur and Black Rock. Along with a full-service restaurant and bar, planning documents show the business will also have 22 bowling lanes, laser tag, billiard and shuffleboard tables and room for 120 interactive and virtual video games.

Main Event Entertainment is a Dallas-based company founded in 1998. The group has 50 such entertainment centers across the United States.

According to Kentwood Economic Development Planner Lisa Golder, the new business will have different hours than the mall.

“It’s supposed to be located within 25 feet of the mall but it’s a freestanding building,” Golder told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. “They’ll be open later than the mall, they’ll be open until 2 in the morning.”

According to Woodland Mall officials, Main Event is set to open at the mall in 2024. The restaurant inside the building will be “offering chef-inspired cuisines, a high-energy bar with the latest audio-visual technology and private rooms available to rent for birthday parties and other events.”

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rap...area-mall.html

[DetroitMan]

This would be huge for Holland if they are chosen as the North American HQ for LG Energy and would be a feather in the cap of Michigan's emerging electric battery sector.


LG Energy Solution ‘seriously considering' Holland for North American headquarters

LG Energy Solution is positioning its growing operation in Holland to become the company's North American headquarters as it scales up battery manufacturing across the country.

The designation could bring an influx of white-collar and senior-level positions, building on the hundreds of advanced manufacturing jobs LG Energy Solution Michigan is creating in West Michigan with its $1.7 billion lithium ion battery plant expansion in Holland. LG Energy Solution Michigan is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seoul, South Korea-based LG Energy Solution. "We are seriously considering making this site the headquarters for North America," Roger Traboulay, project manager at LG Energy Solution Michigan, said during a presentation to local developers Thursday at the expansion site in Holland. "If that happens, it would bring in a whole band of directors and senior persons with (a need for) executive-level housing."

Holland is among the eight plants across the U.S. and Canada that LG is aggressively investing to build capacity and supply chains for automakers that are launching electric vehicle lines, Automotive News reported this week. Once up and running, which is expected by mid-decade, the eight plants would have a combined 300 gigawatt-hours of electric vehicle battery production capacity.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/econom...th-american-hq

[DetroitMan]

Construction firm plans up to 1.4M square feet of industrial property in Holland Township

The firm is working to develop a 77-acre property in Holland Township with the capacity for 1.4 million square feet of industrial real estate, which is nearly double the amount of currently vacant industrial square footage in the region, according to a recent market report.

Doing business as Holland Industrial Development LLC, the Grand Rapids-based construction firm purchased the property from West Ottawa Public Schools on May 12 for $2.9 million, according to property records. The school system previously planned to expand on the parcel, but the project never came to fruition. The property is located just east of U.S. 31 between New Holland and Ransom streets.

“We’ve done quite a bit of industrial construction over the years, and we think there is strong industrial demand across the West Michigan market and a lack of development-ready inventory for large industrial users,” said Chris Beckering, executive vice president of Pioneer Construction. “We’re currently in the process of doing further due diligence and engaging with potential users who have interest in the site.”

https://www.crainsgrandrapids.com/ne...land-township/

[DetroitMan]

Downtown Zeeland poised for ‘resurgence’ as 4 projects take shape

Four mixed-use projects and a $10.2 million street refurbishment are underway in downtown Zeeland, signaling a post-pandemic “resurgence” for the West Michigan community, local officials say.

Road crews began working on the street project in June and expect to wrap up in the 2024 construction season. The project includes resurfacing and upgrading Main Avenue as well as adding more snowmelt systems, sidewalks, landscaping, bump outs for pedestrian crossings and to ease traffic, and essentially adding another block on the east end of Zeeland’s current three-block downtown.

As the street upgrades continue, developers are in various stages of building four mixed-use projects around downtown, bringing 83 new residential units as well as space for multiple offices and restaurants.

https://www.crainsgrandrapids.com/ne...ts-take-shape/

[DetroitMan]

Affordable apartment building proposed near downtown Muskegon

Construction of affordable apartments near downtown Muskegon is being pursued by an Ohio developer that missed out on an earlier development opportunity in the city.

Spire Development plans to seek state assistance in funding a 50- to 100-unit apartment building within sight of the Bayview Towers complex.

Rezoning of 11 lots from R-3 single-family residential to form based code - neighborhood core, was recently approved by the Muskegon City Commission. The new zoning allows apartment buildings that are two to five stories.The rezoned vacant lots primarily are on Allen Avenue, but also on Myrtle Avenue, Jay Street and Amity Avenue.

The 2.2-acre building site comprising the rezoned lots is near the corner of Jay and Allen.

The proposed development would be priced to be affordable for those earning, on average, 60% of the Muskegon County’s average median income, which is $36,360 for a family of 2. Residents would range from those earning 30% of AMI to those earning 80%.

Rents for a two-bedroom unit would start as low as $511 for those at 30%, Muskegon Development Services Director Jake Eckholm told commissioners.

“The intent is to have units that are affordable for the residents who have lived in the neighborhood,” Spire Development’s Vice President of Development Sean McMickle told the commission.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...-muskegon.html

[DetroitMan]

Local developer plans to buy Muskegon Lake paper mill site for ‘transformational’ housing

A prominent local developer has plans to purchase and redevelop the sprawling Windward Pointe former paper mill site on Muskegon Lake.

Jon Rooks entered a purchase agreement in July for the 122-acre “Windward Pointe” site on Lakeshore Drive that once was home to the Sappi paper mill, Rooks said in an email to MLive/The Muskegon Chronicle.

His plans are to develop a wide variety of housing on the site as well as a marina and multiple public access points. Residential units will range from studio apartments renting for less than $1,000 per month to sprawling homes worth $800,000. The property that includes more than a mile of prime Muskegon Lake frontage was an industrial site for 120 years, operating as a paper mill from 1889 until Sappi Fine Paper shut it down in 2009.

It currently is owned by a group of local investors called Pure Muskegon.

“The Sappi Paper Mill (Windward Pointe) redevelopment requires a purchaser with the ‘know how’ and experience performing similar types of projects,” Rooks wrote. “We felt an obligation to the community to pursue this acquisition and continue what Pure Muskegon started.”

Rooks’ Parkland Properties is taking on another ambitious Muskegon redevelopment project with the $220 million repurposing of the dilapidated former Shaw Walker furniture factory. There, he plans to construct 378 living units as well as retail space. Rooks said his plans for the Windward Pointe property include:

• Large waterfront sites for executive homes costing $600,000 to $800,000.

• Smaller waterfront lots for homes valued at about $150,000 to $250,000.

• Condominiums and townhomes.

• Apartments, including studios renting for as low as $1,000 per month.

• Public access and amenities, including a large public beach, bike trails, sidewalks and multiple fishing areas.

Rooks wrote that he hopes to begin development in spring 2024, starting with development of roads and the sale of building sites.

“Our expectation is that we will start with the homesites adjacent to the water and work backward toward Lakeshore Drive,” Rooks wrote.

The site is currently undergoing cleanup of PFAS contaminants that is being funded by a $15 million state grant. The PFAS, known as “forever chemicals,” has been slowly leaching into Muskegon Lake, a member of the property ownership group said earlier.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...l-housing.html

[DetroitMan]

Nearly 2,000 living units at Windward Pointe part of developer’s plans that include marina, public parks

Among the plans for the sprawling lakefront Windward Pointe site in Muskegon are 221 lots for new homes, about 1,700 condo, townhomes and apartment units, a 224-slip marina, 350-boat indoor storage building and several small parks on Muskegon Lake open to the public.

Jon Rooks’ Parkland Properties has released plans for the 123-acre property on Muskegon Lake that previously was the site of paper mill that was torn down years ago. The site plan includes boat storage, restaurants, retail areas and public restrooms. Plans include rerouting the Lakeshore Trail paved pathway through Windward Pointe, which is along Lakeshore Drive on the lake’s south shore.

Public amenities include small parks with fishing docks, a kayak launch, public pathways and a forested area that would be preserved.

“It’s a big project and we feel really good about it,” Rooks told MLive/The Muskegon Chronicle. “We want the community to feel really good about the project.”

The property is still zoned for industrial uses, and Parkland will be seeking rezoning for planned unit development at the Oct. 12 Muskegon Planning Commission meeting and Oct. 24 city commission meeting. Plans for the huge site primarily revolve around housing – which will include single-family homes, townhomes, condos, apartments and mixed-use retail/residential buildings.

Nearly the entire Muskegon Lake shoreline would be lined with homes, except for the parklets and the area east of the city’s Cottage Grove launch ramp where the marina would be located, plans show.

The main entrance would be just west and across Lakeshore Drive from Sherin Street and would feature a retail corridor.

Four-story apartment buildings would line much of Lakeshore Drive. Rooks has said some apartments would be studio units renting for less than $1,000 per month. Parkland Properties entered a purchase agreement with the property’s ownership group, Pure Muskegon, in July. Rooks declined to reveal the amount of the purchase offer and said he expects to close on the property before the end of the year.

Since July, Parkland, Pure Muskegon, the city of Muskegon and Greater Muskegon Economic Development have “collaborated” on more than $1 million of work at the site that includes additional environmental testing and removal of railroad tracks and wood fences that blocked public view of the site, Rooks wrote in an email. The city paid $1.7 million to CSX for the abandoned rail line, which runs along Lakeshore Drive from Windward Pointe to Western Avenue. The city wanted control of the line so it could remove the tracks believed to be a hindrance to development of Windward Pointe.

The property currently is undergoing $15 million in state-funded environmental cleanup of PFAS (acronym for per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) contamination left from its paper mill days.

Rooks pointed out that Parkland has experience with contaminated sites, having developed the 70-unit Terrace Point Landing neighborhood, also on Muskegon Lake, which had been the site of the large Teledyne/Continental Motors factory.

Assuming approvals are given, “full scale construction work” at the site will start in 2024 with the capping of some contaminated areas and the construction of roads and utilities, he wrote.

Within five years, the expectation is that redevelopment of the site will be “well underway,” Rooks wrote.

The preliminary development plan includes:

• 107 34-by-150-foot lots, along the waterfront. Homes would be two stories with basements.

• 114 lots that are 26 and 22 feet by 205 feet, many of them on the waterfront. Homes would be two stories with basements.

• 57 three- to five-story, 10- to 12-unit condo/apartment buildings.

• 21 48-unit, four-story condo/apartment buildings.

• 10 townhome buildings with 35 units.

• Mixed-use retail/residential buildings containing 50 apartments.

• A marina with 224 slips that would be 40, 45, 50 and 60 feet long. Of those, 31 of the 50-foot slips would be public. A public boardwalk would be part of the marina’s west breakwall.

• An indoor boat storage building measuring 155 feet by 720 feet with 350 storage spaces and in/out service.

• Five public “parklets” with waterfront access and fishing docks and two public kayak launches.

• Several clubhouses and pools as well as sports courts.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...lic-parks.html

[DetroitMan]

LG Energy investing $3B in Michigan to build batteries for Toyota

LG Energy Solution plans to bring a $3 billion investment to Michigan under a supply agreement with Toyota Motor North America.

LG Energy will manufacture lithium-ion batteries for Toyota electric vehicles at its Michigan facility, both companies announced Wednesday, Oct. 4. Under the contract, LG Energy’s investment will develop new production lines for battery cells and modules to be used exclusively for Toyota.
The South Korea-based company is currently constructing a $1.7 billion battery plant in Holland. “With our 30 years of experience in lithium-ion batteries, we will provide innovative power solutions to support Toyota’s push further into battery electric vehicles,” said Youngsoo Kwon, CEO of LG Energy Solution, in a statement. “The agreement also presents another big opportunity for us to strengthen our production capacity in North America, thereby bringing more real-life, large-scale progress toward electrification in the region.”

Starting in 2025, LG Energy will manufacture the battery modules with nickel, cobalt, manganese and aluminum cells at an annual capacity of 20 gigawatt hours, a news release said. The batteries will then go to Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky to be assembled into battery packs for electric vehicles.

https://www.mlive.com/public-interes...or-toyota.html

[DetroitMan]

Huge development at Windward Pointe on Muskegon Lake approved by planning commission

An ambitious project to transform sprawling former paper mill property on Muskegon Lake into a community of homes, apartments, a retail corridor, community parks and a marina has been approved by planning commissioners.

The proposal for Windward Pointe presented by Muskegon developer Jon Rooks was unanimously approved by the city’s planning commission following a public hearing on Thursday, Oct. 12.The planned unit development (PUD) that includes about 2,000 residential units ranging from studio apartments to large waterfront homes will be considered by the Muskegon City Commission on Oct. 24.

If the commission approves the PUD, the project still faces significant hurdles, mainly obtaining permits from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The property carries a legacy of soil and groundwater contamination for which cleanup efforts and testing continue. As much as three-quarters of the property consists of fill material that complicates its development.

More than a dozen citizens addressed the project during the planning commission’s public hearing Thursday. Most praised the project and its potential to create a new “village,” as one speaker described it, where people of various economic backgrounds will live and where the public will have the opportunity to visit.

Some highlights of the project include:

• More than 150 waterfront lots for 1,800- to 5,000-square-foot homes ranging in price from $150,000 to $250,000.
• Eleven large waterfront sites for homes ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 square feet that Rooks said would be “targeted at executives” and valued as high as $800,000.
• About 1,700 condo, townhome and apartment units, including studio apartments renting for less than $1,000 per month. Rooks said some could be reserved for senior citizens.
• Three-story “condo mansions” that appear to be mansions but really contain several condominiums.
• Nearly 276,000 square feet of public amenity areas, including more than 970 feet of waterfront access and nearly 2,000 feet of public boardwalk.
• A marina with about 220 slips as well as transient docks.
• A 350-boat indoor storage facility with in/out service.
• A “retail corridor” consisting of 20 to 40 shops and service providers lining both sides of an entryway off of Lakeshore Drive with views of the lake.
• A three-story building containing restaurant, bar, outdoor entertainment, resident clubhouse and event center with rooftop deck.
• A portion of the Lakeshore paved trail, which would be relocated from along Lakeshore Drive onto the Windward Pointe property.
• Public pathways throughout much of the site.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...ommission.html

[DetroitMan]

Affordable apartments planned at former Nelson School in Muskegon

General Capital is proposed a 52-unit “workforce housing” development at the former elementary school at 550 W. Grand Ave. just off Seaway Drive near downtown Muskegon.

The school, which includes a historic structure and a newer large addition, was closed as an elementary school in 2020.The proposal comes on the heels of other announced affordable housing projects in the city, including one at the former Froebel School in the Jackson Hill neighborhood.

City officials are pressing hard for more affordable housing – a need that was highlighted in a recent housing study. That study found a need for 3,000 additional housing units in the city over the next five years, and that 96% of people who were surveyed said affordability was the biggest housing problem.

In addition to the 46-unit project at Froebel by Samaritas, proposed housing projects include two others by Spire Development. Those include 45 senior housing units and a 50-unit, two-bedroom affordable apartment complex, both in the area of Amity and Allen avenues near Apple Avenue.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...-muskegon.html

[DetroitMan]

Whitehall-
$8M apartment complex breaks ground in heart of Whitehall

Construction has begun on an apartment building in the heart of Whitehall designed for those who work in Whitehall but can’t find housing there.

The 32-unit Harwood Flats is being constructed on Lake Street at the end of Colby Street. In addition to market rate apartments, every one of which will have a balcony with a water view, the building has commercial space.

The $7.9 million project is being constructed at the site of the former Pinheads Bowling Alley and adjacent to Goodrich Park on White Lake. After years of planning, ground was broken in December 2023, Chris Veneklasen, CEO of Veneklasen Construction, told MLive/Muskegon Chronicle.

“We’re excited to be moving forward and excited for what this can do for the community,” Veneklasen said. “It provides a need for people who are working in the community but living outside of it.”

The project received its final needed boost with the Nov. 14, 2023, approval of a Commercial Rehabilitation Act tax abatement by the Michigan Tax Commission.

The abatement freezes the property’s taxable value to the amount established prior to construction. That 10-year abatement is expected to be worth about $733,000, according to a previously released city estimate. Local and state education taxes are not part of the abatement.

The project also received a $1.5 million grant from the Michigan Strategic Fund. The grant restricts rents for three years.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/...whitehall.html