GR Planning Commission OKs permit for soccer stadium

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Grand Rapids Planning Commission has approved a special land use request to build a proposed soccer stadium.

After more than three hours of debate and hearing from about a dozen people during public comment, the panel approved the permit around 4 p.m. Thursday.

The permit will allow for two buildings (including the stadium), alcohol sales, outdoor recreational fields and other outdoor public spaces. The committee did ask Grand Action 2.0, the development organization backing the project, to take a more active role on finding transit solutions and possibly redesign part of the stadium’s exterior walls off of Winter Street. Members also asked some questions about scheduled hours for events, wondering whether there would be late-night games.

“There are a lot of other elements that still need approval and consideration, but we’re thankful for the planning commission’s consideration today,” Kara Wood, the executive director of Grand Action 2.0, said.

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The 8,500-seat stadium would host professional soccer games, tournaments and community events like World of Winter and ArtPrize. The project would also include entry plazas, a multimedia sign and a restaurant, according to a report from planning staff.

Grand Action 2.0 has proposed building the stadium at a 7.5-acre site on the city’s West Side located along US-131 near the YMCA. The site is bordered by Lake Michigan Drive to the south, Winter Avenue to the west, Mt Vernon Avenue to the east and Blumrich Street to the north.

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At the meeting, some people argued eliminating parking in an already crowded area is a big mistake and said that should have been accounted for in the earlier stages of planning.

“One of our biggest (concerns) is that the neighborhood becomes the parking lot,” neighbor Lucas Leverett told News 8. “We’re promised repeatedly by really the same players in all of these major developments … these same 16,000 spaces on the other side of the river for all of these projects. It’s just basic math: You can’t just keep tapping the same resource over and over and adding more pull.”

He wondered where residents would park, saying they shouldn’t have to compete with stadium visitors or be forced to pay more for permits for protected partners. He also questioned whether the Pearl Street exit from the highway could handle the additional traffic and whether intersections could be made safe for more pedestrians.

“Now it’s on the city to come to the table and solve these concerns. It would have helped to have had that conversation in the beginning,” he said.

Wood said the project still has a long way to go and she’s confident solutions can be found.

“The project is in the design and development stages and so there is still yet a lot of work to be done on those fine details, but we have a great working relationship with the city, and we can certainly come to a good resolution there,” she said.

She said Grand Action 2.0 is working with The Rapid and Dash bus services about creating specialized routes for events.

City leaders anticipate the project could draw more than 164,000 visitors each season.

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